Sleepy Eye FFA member Lily Kallevig represented Minnesota in Prepared Public Speaking. Kallevig chose to talk about mental health in rural communities. ” I talked about the four factors that impact rural mental health challenges: accessibility, availability, affordability, and acceptability, and how they impact our rural communities.” Kallevig says that in researching the project, one fact stood out the most. “Farmers are three and a half times more likely to die by suicide; I really was trying to get the message out there that farmers are struggling, we need to support them, and it’s okay to ask for help.” Kallevig placed silver in the national competition.
