There are many ways to keep the memory of a loved one alive. You can put up pictures of them, create a plaque, or just tell stories about them. Jeremy and Jason Schwittay had a different idea. With the help of Jeremy’s wife, Monica, they decided to put together the “Ardis Schwittay Ayrshire Heifer Memorial” in honor of their mother, Ardis, who passed away in January 2019.
Jeremy and Jason are partners at Schwittay Farms LLC in Peshtigo, WI. Prior to their mother passing, she was the main calf care taker. “She fed calves seven days a week,” Jeremy said. On top of that, Ardis also had various other titles on the farm such as parts runner, lawn crew, babysitter, and she was also the main support system for the family. She played a huge role in the success of the dairy.
Schwittay explained that his mother was very passionate about the calves and that’s how they came up with the idea of giving away an Ayrshire heifer calf each year. “We will be picking an applicant to receive that heifer calf annually every year in an effort to better remember our mother and her compassion and caring effort for feeding calves every day,” Schwittay said.
Applications are available to anyone in the U.S. ages 8 to 18-years-old. He hopes that each year the winning youth will learn valuable life lessons through farming such as what the true meaning of responsibility is.
Applications and essays are due by March 30, 2021 and can be downloaded here.
Here’s the full interview from Jeremy Schwittay.
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