The Future is Bright for Latham’s Summer Interns
Joe Roberts (left), Logan Shedenhelm (center) and Amber Hammes (right) are joining Team Latham this summer as Latham Hi-Tech Seed’s 2016 Interns.
Three Iowa State University (ISU) students have joined Latham Hi-Tech Seeds as interns for sales and marketing. Their first day on the job was May 10, and it’s been all hands on deck ever since! Our two summer sales interns have been busy assisting with planting research and show plots in Alexander. Meanwhile, our marketing intern has been conducting interviews and writing blogs.
Fresh off an internship with the American Quarter Horse Association where she wrote youth blogs about everything from showing to horse ownership, Amber Hammes of Ankeny, Iowa, put her blogging skills to work immediately. She’s a senior at ISU, majoring in Agriculture and Society (formerly known as Public Service & Administration in Ag) with a focus in Public Relations and International Agriculture.
“When I first saw the internship description for Latham on CyHire, I was immediately attracted to the idea of working for a family-owned business,” she said. “My dad has his own business, so I’ve always been interested in working for a company that truly cares about the local community and their people.”
Involved with campus organizations, Amber is serving as the Second Vice President for the Delta chapter of Sigma Alpha professional agriculture sorority. Her position educates new members during the member candidate process, as well as facilitates events and activities to make the new member candidates feel at home with Sigma Alpha.
“When I walked by the Sigma Alpha booth at the CALS (College of Agriculture & Life Sciences) New Student BBQ my freshman year, I immediately disregarded it thinking that it was going to be a lot of drama. After speaking with the recruitment chair, however, I was convinced to give it a shot. I went to recruitment week and met so many girls with similar interests and outlooks on life,” she explains. “It was a perfect fit for me.”
Aside from showing and spending time with her 7-year-old American Quarter Horse gelding, Winston, Amber loves to garden, craft and travel. Discovering a new place and a different culture is her idea of the ultimate way to spend time.
Logan Shedenhelm is from Riceville, Iowa. He is the fifth generation to grow up on his family’s corn and soybean farm. A budding entrepreneur, Logan started his own Black Angus cattle herd during his sophomore year of high school. He chose to raise Black Angus cattle because the beef plant that is 10 miles away from his family farm only accepts black-hided cattle. He also sells a couple calves to customers directly.
“You can taste the difference between beef that you’ve raised compared to just buying it at a supermarket, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to start raising cattle,” said Logan.
Logan is a junior at Iowa State University (ISU), majoring in Agronomy with a minor in Agricultural Systems Technology. He is involved with the Agricultural Business Club, Agronomy Club, Agricultural Marketing and Management Organization, as well as the ISU Corn Growers Association. After graduating, Logan hopes to work for a seed or chemical company while returning to his family farm and growing his beef cattle operation.
Logan will cover the eastern part of Iowa this summer and says he’s very excited to work for a family-owned company. “People know the quality that Latham delivers in every bag of seed, and I’m looking forward to learning from a company with that high of a reputation.”
Joe Roberts will cover the western part of Iowa for Latham Hi-Tech Seeds. He grew up on a no-till row crop farm near Belmond, Iowa, where his family grows Latham® brand corn and soybeans.
“I’m really looking forward to being a sales intern for Latham because they know how to treat their people right,” says Joe, whose home farm is only about a 15-minute drive from Latham headquarters. “Whether it’s with a customer, dealer or employee, I want to learn how Latham takes care of their people.”
Joe became interested in studying agriculture when he saw the difference in how his family farmed their land compared to how other people worked their soil. “I was always interested in understanding why we chose to not break up the soil and other farms did.”
Having those valuable experiences on his family farm prompted Joe to attend ISU in Ames, where he’s currently a sophomore in Agricultural Business, Agronomy and Seed Science.
On campus, Joe is involved with the Agricultural Business club, Agricultural Marketing and Management club, CALS Council, Iowa State University Corn Growers Association and the Golf club. In his free time, Joe plays golf, bakes and raises broiler chickens. After graduation, he hopes to go back to his family farm and work in sales for the seed industry.
The future is bright with these three in it! Anyone who’s worried about the next generation will have all fears calmed after spending some time in their midst. We’re looking forward to working beside them for the next 12 weeks.
