Telegraph Staff Writer
Lizzie Whitehead has a desire to help others, which really makes her excited about her new career as an agent in Bradford County’s University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences office.
“When they offered the job, I was super ecstatic,” said Whitehead, whose specialty is agriculture and natural resources. “I hope to make a huge impact on the community and help the local ranchers and farmers with questions that they have.”
At first, Whitehead’s desire to help looked as if it would be fulfilled by becoming a veterinarian. It’s what she longed to do as a youth participating in 4-H and FFA.
Whitehead was exposed to other opportunities when she began taking classes at the University of Florida.
“When I went through Animal Sciences at UF, they showed me all these other avenues before going to vet school,” Whitehead said. “This appealed to me because I have a servant’s heart.”
She never went to veterinarian school and has no regrets. If Whitehead had it to do all over again, she said she’d make the same decision that’s ultimately landed her in the Bradford Extension office.
“It’s the best position for me and my personality,” Whitehead said.
Path to current role paved by pastor, pig
She may not be involved with animals as a veterinarian, but make no mistake, animals have been a big part of her life. You could say it was one animal in particular that really put her on the path to a career in Extension when she was a youth growing up in Manatee County.
“My pastor bought me my first show pig,” Whitehead said, adding, “That’s kind of how I got to where I am today.”
She was 8-9 at that time and said the experience of exhibiting that pig was “the best experience of my life.”
Horses had already been a big part of her life, but Whitehead credits receiving the show pig as what got her involved in 4-H and FFA. She went on to exhibit other animals and enjoyed the camaraderie she experienced at those shows.
“Showing the pig was so much fun. I enjoyed it a lot,” Whitehead said. “The people who show animals, like swine and beef — they’re such nice people. It’s like a family.”
Those experiences she had in 4-H and FFA in middle school and high school helped prepare for the role she’s in now as an Extension agent.
“Public-speaking contests, showing livestock and doing community service events — that is what opened my eyes to something like this — this position,” Whitehead said.
To Georgia and back
Whitehead got married after graduating from UF. She and her husband, Clay Whitehead, a Bradford High School graduate, accepted jobs in north Georgia, with Whitehead working as a 4-H program assistant through University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.
“I enjoyed it, but I wanted to become an agent,” Whitehead said. “I wanted to be more helpful to the community.”
Extension agents usually have master’s degrees, so Whitehead continued her schooling at the University of Georgia.
Whitehead and her husband eventually returned to Florida. He wanted to be back at home to become involved in his family’s business, Whitehead Family Cattle, which is located in Lake Butler.
“We loved the area,” Whitehead said of where she and her husband were living, “but it was far from home — far from my family, far from his family. He wanted to come back closer to home to help with the family farm. When jobs popped up at UF, we both applied for them. It just worked out.”
When an agent’s position became available at the Bradford Extension office, a lot of people told Whitehead she should apply.
“When they offered me the job, I was super ecstatic,” she said.
Juggling work, family in a different part of Florida
Whitehead’s native home is Manatee County, which, according to U.S. Census data, has more than 400,000 residents. Therefore, it’s quite different from Bradford County, which has more than 28,000 residents.
Manatee may be where she grew up, but Whitehead likes the lifestyle in Bradford just fine. She said she loves Bradford’s sense of community and its small-town feel.
“Manatee County is definitely a lot bigger, and it keeps growing,” Whitehead said. “There are so many people moving there from up north. It’s a totally different atmosphere.”
Whitehead said she feels that she’s in a place where she can really have an effect in regard to her position as an Extension agent.
“All the people who are in this area are super open to new ideas and very welcoming,” she said. “They don’t mind you helping them. That’s what I like about the people who are from this community.”
Whitehead likes working in Bradford County because its Extension office is close enough to UF to be convenient without the hassles presented by the school’s campus.
“I have a parking spot,” Whitehead said. “That’s another positive. UF doesn’t have any parking. How can you not have parking for your employees?”
The real benefit of being a UF/IFAS Extension office close to the UF campus is that it’s easier to have Extension professionals at the school participate in activities in your community.
“Those specialists — I’m sure they’ll be more than willing to come out here, to drive 45 minutes to come to a meeting or come to a field day when those are planned in the future,” Whitehead said.
That is one of Whitehead’s goals — to bring those Extension specialists to Bradford to provide information and training opportunities. Before that, though, Whitehead said she needs to get to know the people in the county and have them tell her what their needs are. That way, she can provide the best help possible.
“Just being a resource to people is a goal of mine,” Whitehead said.
Whitehead also looks forward to getting involved with the youth, providing summer day camps and helping them to prepare for the Bradford Agricultural Fair by taking them to events such as livestock-judging contests.
“There’s a lot on my radar,” Whitehead said. “I’m trying to think of what I really want to focus on this year.”
It sounds as if Whitehead will be busy, which will be true of her time away from the office as well. She takes an active role alongside her husband in Whitehead Family Cattle. The couple also has an infant daughter, Kimber.
“Juggling family and the farm and my full-time position is something I definitely have to learn,” Whitehead said, “but I love staying busy and being involved. It’ll make me happy.”
With that criteria, it seems as if Whiteheead will indeed be happy in her new role at the Bradford County Extension office. She looks forward to making an impact on the county and adding to her own knowledge as well. Extension agents have to stay abreast of the changes in their field that take place over time.
“I do not know everything,” Whitehead said, “but I hope to learn a lot, and I hope to help a lot of people as well.”
