IBBA Connection Brangus Team in Full Swing I by Tommy PERKINS, Ph.D., PAS IBBA Executive Vice President will begin this column with a huge thank you to the entire staff at IBBA. As many of you know, the IBBA headquarters building has been sold and we have moved into a temporary office space. The San Antonio staff stepped up with a smile on their face in the heat of the battle to get the job done. The job included moving out of a 10,000-squarefoot building into two sixteen-foot pods and a 2,500-square-foot temporary office space. The move-out date hit us hard and fast but the employees packed boxes, moved furniture, tossed trash, and anything else needed to meet the deadlines. Although I helped with the building move-out, I did burden them with getting our office set up in our temporary space as I boarded an airplane to South Africa to participate in the World Brangus Congress. The local team is made up of Rosanne Nelson in the registry department, Dawn Simpson and Ingrid Duran handling the accounting duties, Education and Data Coordinator Jenny Bohac, Product Manager Emilio Silvas, and Field Service Representative Kyle Dykes. Although we have been short-handed in the office for quite a while we are beginning to complete the staff with the recent hiring of Field Service Representative Lauren Prine and Communications Coordinator Peyton Waldrip. The external team is made up of Tyler Dean piloting the junior program while coordinating all show and journal activities, and Melanie Fuller continuing to be a force in advertisement sales to keep the journal afloat. I just want to say publicly how proud I am of the staff and I am thankful for the entire TEAM that we have in place. I am also thankful for a patient membership, great leadership, and strong youth program that keeps this organization positively in front of the beef industry. Summer is coming to a close and the junior program just finished up the Junior National Brangus Show in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Congratulations to all of the participants, scholarship recipients, and class winners. Many of the juniors will remain lifelong Brangus breeders after their success in the show ring. Some may become fulltime Brangus producers while others may choose to continue showing after they have professions as doctors, attorneys, professors, or anything else they may pursue. The leadership skills and networking these young people gain will benefit them for a lifetime. Thank you to all who donated time, money, and other services to make it a successful event for the Brangus youth. The 2016-2017 IBBA committees have been formed and will be meeting before and/or during the upcoming IBBA Fall Conference to be held Aug. 12-13 at The Oaks Farms in Newnan, Georgia. I hope you made plans to attend as the Southeast Brangus Breeders Association Field Day is always a great event for copious amounts of education and even more fellowship with like-minded Brangus enthusiasts. I am thankful for the dedication from The Oaks Farm and the Southeast Brangus Breeders Association. It takes the help of a progressive, active membership to raise the necessary funds as well as to plan and coordinate such a big event. Lastly, I would like to remind you to watch the PFLI KI8MF =LIK?LJ 9I<<;F =LIK?LJ fi ZXcc /''$JC<-:3A? .>1101>? -??: I-:3A? Gclj# fli _fk\cj Xi\ Zfem\e`\ekcp cfZXk\[ .>1101>? Zcfj\ kf Xi\X i\jkXliXekj# j_fggè^ Xe[ -??: \ek\ikXèd\ek m\el\j% IcfYXc JXc\j DXeX^\i Gclj# fli _fk\cj Xi\ Zfem\e`\ekcp cfZXk\[ G_fe\1 0.)$,',$+,'. Zcfj\ kf Xi\X i\jkXliXekj# j_fggè^ Xe[ BXk_\iè\%8cc\e7CXhlèkX%Zfd ]i\\ _`^_$jg\\[ @ek\ie\k Xe[ Zfd]p Y\[j% \ek\ikXèd\ek m\el\j% C8 HL@EK8 `j i\^`jk\i\[ è k_\ L%J% GXk\ek Xe[ KiX[\dXib F]ÓZ\% )''0 CH DXeX^\d\ek# C%C%:% 8 | August 2016 Brangus Journal =fi XZZflek Xjj`jkXeZ\# ZfekXZk1 @EKC% 9I8E>LJ 9I<<;LJ fi ZXcc /''$JC<