Posted on August 21, 2023 at 2:28 PM by Emily Saveraid
It was inevitable that Stuart Swanson was going to be active in 4-H. From a young age, Stuart witnessed his parents (Ronald and Florine Swanson) be actively involved in the local 4-H program and beyond. He was eager to begin his 4-H career at the age of 10 and joined the Lincoln Leaders 4-H club where he was a member for 10 years. As Stuart got older, he was also a member of the Wright County Teen Council and State 4-H Council, and National 4-H Congress. His major projects were showing pigs as well as welding, food and nutrition, fishery and wildlife, and leadership project areas.
Stuart began farming in Wright County shortly after graduating from Iowa State University with a degree in Agricultural Business. He has made service to the agricultural community an integral part of his career. Stuart has served as a 4-H leader for the Wright County Pork Interest Group (which he was the founder of), for 14+ years. Aside from his leadership in the 4-H community, Stuart has served on the Iowa Corn Growers Association Board, District 2 Iowa Corn Board, Iowa Corn Animal Ag in the Environment Committee, Iowa Pork Committee, US Grains Council Western Hemisphere Committee, Wright County FSA Committee Chairman, North Central Coop Board, and much more.
Stuart and his wife, Lori, have 4 daughters who were all active members in Wright County 4-H and had Stuart as their 4-H leader for most of their tenure. His children’s favorite project group was swine and he enjoyed helping his girls get their swine projects ready for fair. He continues to be an active volunteer for the 4-H organization and volunteers at the Wright County fair even after his stint as a 4-H leader, specifically with the swine weigh in and swine show. Stuart hopes that he instilled the importance of 4-H and service to the agricultural industry in his children and others and is excited to see them prosper in this industry and organization.
