Ann Wiirre, felt starting the NWIAA L Chapter was an exciting opportunity to connect women in agriculture in service of our rural and urban communities. We have a growing urban agricultural sector and helping each other develop and grow our agri-businesses while committing ourselves to education and partnerships with community organizations will ensure that healthy local, fresh food will be available for generations to come.
Ann is an entrepreneur, wife, and mother to two adult young men. She is from a long line of Minnesota farmers and passionate gardeners. When she moved to Florida in 2006 she had a passion for growing the local fruits and vegetables.
It was after a life changing diagnosis of Thyroid Cancer, that would prompt Ann to return to her roots and make conscious food and medicinal decisions. On March 13, 2014, Ann had her first surgery that led them to find Ann's Cancer. Only a few years prior to this, Ann's Father-In-Law passed away on her birthday of Thyroid Cancer. This would shake Ann’s world and the entire family. This would ultimately drive Ann to pursue her dream of bringing healthy food and medicinal resources to her community and advocate for natural, organic alternatives.
Knowing her life passions and desires were still a vision, Ann and her husband purchased more property in Brevard County, launched her business, and she has since begun to farm her land. Ann realized the major decline in the Citrus farming over the last few years and decided that is where she wanted to start in educating the youth in the local area about the importance in keeping the tradition in her area going into the next generation. Ann was a local school educator and wants to continue helping the youth learn how to grow and maintain the Citrus grown along the Indian River. Haulover Citrus is a woman-owned business that prides itself on community outreach and engagement for the collective betterment of our future.
TAMPA, FLORIDA NWIAA CHAIRPERSON
Ms. Amanda Edwards
Ms. Amanda Edwards is the national coordinator and co-director of the Florida Chapter of the National Women in Agriculture Association.
Ms. Edwards is a Tampa, Florida native and first generation citizen born in the US as her family has Caribbean Roots! She is a devoted mother of 3 children and graduated from the College of Public Health at the University of South Florida. In addition to her studies, Ms. Edwards is an avid Second Degree Black Belt Instructor. By utilizing her gifts/talents that have been cultivated through her training in TaeKwonDo, the workforce, and life experiences, Ms. Edwards strives to fulfill her God given purpose to empower the underserved in both urban and rural communities.
She does so by sowing seeds of enlightenment to aid in strengthening and restoring the mindset of the millennial generation in order to flourish in acquiring healthy eating habits, physical fitness, and to quench the undeniable thirst for mental reformation. Her main goal was and still is, to accomplish this feat by stimulating impressionable minds with her knowledge and expertise in the preventative medicine field. Ms. Edwards strongly believes that knowledge is a source of power, and holistic emancipation of the undeserved/minority population within the current construct of our society truly starts with what is being fed to our bodies physically, mentally, and spiritually.
This truth has driven a lifelong vision and goal to help others gain the forward thinking and courageousness needed to go against the grain of society to become self-sufficient in a time of utter convenience and dependency. Ms. Edwards would like to share the knowledge she has acquired and principle understandings of what she has studied, to teach both current and coming generations methods of sustainability through mindset renewal.
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”
-Ecclesiastes 3:1
Contact Email: admin@fwiaa.org (813) 702-1959
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA NWIAA CHAIRPERSON
Faith Clarke, is the founder of the Agricultural and Environmental Development Institute (AEDI). For more than 20 years, Faith provided training, conducted research, developed youth leadership programs and administered federal and international projects in agriculture; climate change; food safety and tourism. Prior to AEDI, she worked with the Florida Cooperative Extension Service. In addition to NWIAA, Faith is a member of the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Advisory Council, and serves as a volunteer with the American Red Cross.
Faith Clarke
Contact Email: Aediamerica@gmail.com (850) 590-2277
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA NWIAA CHAIRPERSON
Julian BourneSmothers
I am Julian L. BourneSmothers, a native of Jamaica. My passion and expertise aim to prepare as many professionals as possible for tomorrow. I assist youth in professional development skills that will empower them to compete globally. I am an organized, resourceful team player with experiences in all facets of mentoring, agricultural science, academic and career advising, and willing to perform beyond the call of duty.
Serving as an advocate for students allowed me to make a meaningful difference in over 2,000 students’ lives. For example, through individual counseling, coaching, and advising, I assist students in dealing with unique academic circumstances due to finances, family, and or medical concerns. My commitment to students is authentic. I supervise, train, coordinate, and implement programs that cater to students’ individual needs.
My passion for assisting children and families has propelled me to start a non-profit organization to support needy students and families internationally. The Bourne Morgan Foundation, Inc. was founded on April 13, 2012. Its purpose is exclusively for charitable and educational purposes to mentor communities for success by enhancing access to information and socialization. We provide programs to increase individuals and families' capacity to seek education for entrepreneurship that reduces poverty and increases self-enhancement skills.
I recently earned my Ph.D. in Educational Leadership at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), where my research focused on evaluating followership in youth leadership training provided by the National FFA Organization. With my recent discovery of the term followership, I intend to use followership as the new approach to training youth leaders for the 21st century. I have taken the initiative to be trained as a trainer in sharing the courageous follower's unique purpose. My next step is to become a scholar and advocate for intelligent disobedience.
Contact Email: Julian.bourne@famu.edu (850) 400-8515
HILLIARD, FLORIDA NWIAA CHAIRPERSON
Seketa Cooper-Simmons
I am Seketa Cooper-Simmons, Charter Chairman of the NWIAA in Hilliard Florida.
I was born in Sandersville Georgia, and grew up in Jacksonville, Florida. My grandparents had family farms and my daily activities included assisting with all of the animals and the gardens.
While a part time parent and wife, I was educated at the university of phoenix in the area of business administration. Currently I’m managing the west oasis ranch, which is under the auspises of epiphany care group 501 c3 non profit organization. West oasis ranch is a 15 acre farming area which includes animals such as goats, five species of chickens, potbelly pigs, large Yorkshire swine, ducks, vegetable/flower gardens, and a stocked pond…
My projects include bringing in neighboring communities for tours of the grounds and participating in cultivating the gardens and in Self harvesting. Future projects will include at risk children and all of the aforementioned entities above.
Seketa Cooper-Simmons
Chairman
Hilliard chapter NWIAA