Host and featured speaker Kelly Burke laughs as she talks about career and business building at the Kane-DuPage Soil & Water Conservation District Women in Ag event at Emerald Acres.
The Kane-DuPage Soil & Water Conservation District held the second installment of their Women in Agriculture networking and educational series Friday November 1, 2024 in Kane County. About 30 people gathered for an opportunity to learn about starting or expanding an agriculture business or farm and to network.
This event was hosted by Kelly Burke, a serial entrepreneur with several businesses. The gathering was at Emerald Acres, her wedding/event venue on a farm between Virgil and Elburn.
Kelly Burke leads a farm tour at sunset during the Kane-DuPage SWCD Women in Ag event at Emerald Acres.
Kelly spoke on networking to develop contacts and follow leads to start a business and about her entrepreneurial journey. One thing she did when she was starting was if there was a conference she wanted to attend to but couldn’t afford registration, she would go to the hotel and hang out in the lobby so she could network with attendees.
She also talked about her many ventures, including growing industrial hemp and KifCure which processes and sells hemp products (especially for use in buildings and construction); growing soybeans and offering farm services; the Silver Spur Ranch equine boarding facility (the only one in the country that includes a bar); and running a construction information technology company.
The Kane-DuPage SWCD crew (from left) Maggie Soliz, board member, Kat Gerdts, administrative coordinator, Emma Hunter, resource analyst, Olivia Winters, IDOA/NRCS conservation planner, and Isabella Borzeka, senior resource analyst, at the Women in Ag series event at Emerald Acres.
The staff of Kane-DuPage Soil & Water Conservation District – including Kat Gerdts, administrative coordinator, Isabella Borzeka, senior resource analyst, Emma Hunter, resource analyst, Maggie Soliz, board member, and Olivia Winters, Illinois Department of Agriculture/Natural Resources Conservation Service conservation planner – were on hand to answer questions and meet people.
Kane County sponsored the first two events in this series. The next two events have dates set at 4:30 pm Thursday February 27 and March 20, 2025. Details to follow on kanedupageswcd.org, and the events will be sponsored by American Farmland Trust. Dates in May and June are in the works.
Kelly Burke stands in front of round bales of hemp, ready for sale and processing, as she leads a farm tour during the Kane-DuPage Soil & Water Conservation District Women in Ag event at Emerald Acres.
Kelly Burke talked about the books that influenced her most. The top title is The Emperor Wears No Clothes by Jack Herer, which blended agriculture with her background in public health and nursing. She said finding out about the economic and environmental benefits of hemp products felt like a calling into the field. Other top picks are . . .
- The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
- Who Not How by Dr. Benjamin Hardy
- 10X is Easier then 2x by Dan Sullivan
- Blue Ocean Strategy by Renee Mauborgne and W. Chan Kim
- You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero
- Business Made Simple by Donald Miller
- The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C Maxwell
- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
- The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
For a closer look, Kelly shared her presentation slides.
Kane-DuPage SWCD Board Member Maggie Soliz talks to Julia Schulte, a “farm lady” from Bliss, and Jessica Mino, Kane and Kendall County Program Director for The Conservation Foundation.
Michelle DeRaedt (left) talks to Kelly Burke after the Kane-DuPage SWCD Women in Ag event at Emerald Acres. Michelle grows vegetables in a 24,000 square foot garden near Batavia and gives away all the produce.
Food by Dana Bujalski of Body Fuel by Dana in Big Rock was featured at Kane-DuPage SWCD’s Women in Ag.
Event catering by Dana Bujalski of Forest Edge Farmstead and Body Fuel by Dana.
More details on Michelle DeRaedt’s Glory Gardens, her 24,000 square foot garden which she grows produce to donate, near Batavia/Maple Park, can be found at AllGloryGardens.org.
Photos and story by Steve Warmowski, Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts communication coordinator.
