Bringing Farm Life to the City | by Shannon Peterson

We're bringing farm life to the big city through our partnership with the Omaha Children's Museum. Families can explore the world of agriculture and learn where their food comes from in the Once Upon a Farm exhibit opening Oct. 18.

We began installing a miniature Valley_® center pivot at the museum Wednesday, so children will be able to learn about water and irrigation. And, Valley Authorized Provider Senninger Irrigation is creating a cool sprinkler exhibit. The museum will offer daily programming on different farm topics. 

We can't wait! If you're planning to be in the Omaha area over the next several months be sure to check out the exhibit.

Meanwhile, we wanted to share this special letter from Omaha Children's Museum Executive Director Lindy Hoyer:

Omaha Children's Museum
Executive Director Lindy Hoyer

I'm a small town girl raising a city kid. My worst fear as a child was to end up living on my cousin's farm bailing hay and milking cows before school each day. 

My regret as a mother of a city kid is not having my child spend as much time on the farm as I did growing up. Even so, my son has spent enough time on a farm to have actually seen how milk is gathered and produced, understands that the meat we have in the freezer came from the cow he saw on the farm and that most of the vegetables we eat were grown in the ground somewhere.

Omaha Children's Museum has partnered with multiple members of the agricultural industry in Nebraska to present our next community-engaged exhibit Once Upon a Farm. Our shared vision in creating this exhibit is to help the kids growing up in an urban environment make stronger connections to the origins of their food before it makes it to the shelves of the grocery store or farmers market. 

With agriculture as a leading industry in our state, it is vital for us to help our kids understand where their future lives will intersect with the people who work and manage our farms and ranches. Kids don't have to dream about milking their own cow or harvesting a field to find themselves a role in the agricultural industry.

We look forward to exploring the vast world of agriculture with our visitors this winter. Plan to spend some good, quality time on the farm with us and help us continue to narrate the story of Once Upon a Farm."

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Shannon Peterson Marketing Content Editor Shannon joined Valley Irrigation in 2013. She writes and edits materials about irrigation equipment. Shannon enjoys traveling with her family, particularly to national parks, and she occasionally writes about her travels for tourism magazines. She also likes trying new restaurants, seeing movies, and watching Husker football and Creighton basketball.

Come Play Under the Pivot in Omaha | by Jill Zwiener

Have you ever wanted to give your kids or grandkids the opportunity to stand right next to a life-size Valley_® center pivot? Now is your chance!

On Saturday, Aug. 16, Valmont_® is hosting the Picnic Under the Pivot at the Omaha Children’s Museum. A 45-foot Valley display center pivot will be installed on the grassy area right outside the museum.

Families are invited to stop by to enjoy food and drinks (while supplies last). We’ll be playing with large blocks, hula hoops, parachutes, and making big bubbles. There will be some giveaways, too.  The event is free to the public and will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Picnic Under the Pivot is the kickoff event for us and the museum as we prepare for the October opening of the Once Upon a Farm exhibit. Valmont is one of the sponsors of the exhibit, which opens Oct. 18 and will run through April 20, 2015.

The Once Upon a Farm exhibit will teach kids and their families all about the role of agriculture in their daily lives. Throughout the exhibit, guests will encounter interactive displays that incorporate irrigation (a scaled down 25-foot Valley center pivot will be on display), machinery, livestock, crops, and other natural resources needed to create the food and everyday products we find at the store and use in our homes. The exhibit will be a fun way for families to learn about the impact of agriculture in Nebraska and around the world.

If you can make it to the Picnic Under the Pivot on Aug. 16, be sure you plan to spend a little time inside the museum too. It’s filled with hands-on exhibits and activities for children of all ages. And you won’t want to miss the special exhibit that’s only going to be up for a few more weeks, Dinos: The Big Dig! 

And don’t forget to come back after Oct. 18 to see the full Once Upon a Farm exhibit.

Mark your calendars today. I hope to see you there!

Omaha Children’s Museum
500 South 20th Street
Omaha, NE 68102
www.ocm.org

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Jill Zwiener Brand Manager Jill joined the Valley Irrigation team in 2011. She loves country music, fountain soda, food, college football, and the ski slopes of Colorado. She enjoys using photography to freeze the precious bits of time with her family into pictures that she can cherish for years.