Texas Farm Bureau announces 2025 Excellence in Agriculture finalists
(WACO, Texas)—A passion for agriculture, community and family earned several young Texans recognition in the 2025 Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) Excellence in Agriculture (EIA) contest.
The finalists in this year’s competition are Jacob and Laura Henson of Lingleville, Sarah Roderick of El Paso and Ryan and Madilyn Yeatts of Forestburg.
TFB’s EIA award recognizes young men and women ages 18 to 35 who are involved in agriculture but do not earn their primary income from a farm or ranch enterprise.
“These young men and women may not make their primary income living on a farm or ranch, but their work is just as vital,” TFB President Russell Boening said. “Their work supports farmers and ranchers, strengthens rural communities and ensures the continued growth and success of Texas agriculture for generations to come.”
Jacob and Laura Henson
Jacob operates a construction company specializing in remodels and trim work. Laura is an adjunct instructor and research associate in agricultural business at Tarleton State University.
As an instructor, Laura uses her agricultural background to share her experiences and inspire the next generation of agricultural communicators to grow their understanding of farm and ranch practices, agriculture’s role in sustainability and the need to do more with less.
The couple are part owners in a commercial cattle herd and help operate Laura’s family’s farm, white-tailed deer ranch and silage harvesting business. Together, they run a small business marketing agency and a growing fruit and vegetable garden. They sell tomatoes, squash, peaches, blackberries, peppers and other fruits and vegetables at area farmers markets. They also offer canned goods, like pickles, made from their produce.
Laura serves as the faculty advisor for the Tarleton Collegiate Farm Bureau Chapter and has held leadership roles with Erath County Farm Bureau. The Hensons attend TFB events throughout the year and previously served on the TFB Young Farmer & Rancher (YF&R) Advisory Committee.
They live in Lingleville with their two daughters.
Sarah Roderick
Sarah Roderick is the events and outreach coordinator for AgSpire, a company that partners with farmers and ranchers across the country to implement sustainable and regenerative practices. In her role, Roderick conducts interviews, manages digital marketing and leads outreach efforts to promote AgSpire’s mission of equipping farmers and ranchers with tools to strengthen their operations.
She remains actively involved on her family’s ranch in Marfa, where her family runs 750 Angus cows on 60,000 acres of land that has been in their family since the 1850s.
Roderick is involved in county and state YF&R activities and serves on the TFB YF&R Advisory Committee. She was a finalist in the 2023 YF&R Discussion Meet and continues to be active in El Paso County Farm Bureau where she serves as the county YF&R chair.
She lives in El Paso.
Ryan and Madilyn Yeatts
Ryan works as an operations analyst for Standard Meat Company, a custom meat portioner supplying restaurants, fast food chains and meal kit providers across the country. His role blends financial analytics with creative ideation, involving tasks from pricing and profitability to steak cutting and recipe development.
Madilyn is an equine and outside sales specialist with D&L Farm and Home. Her days are often spent on farm calls across North Texas and Oklahoma, advising trainers, breeders and ranchers on nutrition programs.
Together, the couple raise commercial Royal White hair sheep for meat production, tend a large garden to sell produce at farmers markets and are expanding their pecan and peach orchards.
The Yeatts are active in both county and state YF&R events and county Farm Bureau activities. Ryan serves as the vice chair on TFB’s YF&R Advisory Committee and as the Youth and YF&R chair for Montague County Farm Bureau. The couple is also active in their church and serve as worship leaders.
They live in Forestburg.
Contest details
The winner will be announced at the TFB Annual Meeting Dec. 5-7 in Arlington.
The winner will receive a $15,000 member-dealer voucher to be used at Ford, Case IH, Grasshopper, CAT or John Deere, courtesy of Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company; an engraved crystal award; and expense-paid trips to both the TFB Annual Meeting and American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) Convention.
The two runners-up will receive a $500 cash award, courtesy of Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company; and an expense-paid trip to the TFB Annual Meeting.
The winner will advance to compete in the national contest hosted by AFBF in January.
Information on the contest and TFB’s YF&R program can be found online at texasfarmbureau.org/YFR.
TFB Annual Meeting details
For more information about TFB’s 92nd Annual Meeting, visit https://texasfarmbureau.org/annualmeeting.
For high-resolution images of this year’s contestants, please click the name of the contestant below.
For broadcast-quality video of the candidates, please email Ed Wolff at ewolff@txfb.org.