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Westlock County agriculture fieldman retires

A familiar face at municipality for the past 31 years, Jacolyn Tigert calls it career Feb. 23
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Jacolyn Tigert behind the pulpit in the little Cross Lake log church during Westlock County’s annual Agriculture Service Board tour, July 21, 2010. Fast forward to today, and her expression and arms in the air says, “I’m retired!”

WESTLOCK – Jacolyn “Jake” Tigert never dreamed that she would wind up in a career that spanned just two months short of 31 years, working for Westlock County for the past 28 years as assistant fieldman and since 1994, as agriculture fieldman.

Jake, as she has always been called, grew up on the James farm in the Eastburg area south of Rossington (western side of Westlock County, south of Highway 18) with her parents and siblings and said her dream was to be a farmer’s wife and live a happy and contented life on the farm. Instead, she found herself in a career that, while very involved with agriculture, was far from anything she ever thought life would bring her.

“I had a great career. No regrets. I got to stay in my hometown, and got to raise my daughter here,” she said leading up to her last day with the municipality, Feb. 23.

Following her high school years, she went north to Fairview College for a two-winter course in agriculture crop technology. After her first year at Fairview, she was accepted to go on a three-month agriculture exchange to the Soviet Union in 1991 to represent Alberta and the Westlock area.

“We went to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Leningrad; we went to Ukraine and Kiev. We were very close to Chernobyl. The ag director with us was from a small village near Chernobyl. We went and visited his family. We left three weeks before the Chernobyl disaster,” she recalls. “Mostly we toured the institutes, which are similar to our universities, so we spent most of our time there. We went to collective farms, we went to Belarus, where they make the tractors, we did all kinds of farm tours and into people’s homes.”

After graduation from Fairview in early 1992, and returning home to the Westlock area, she found a summer job that eventually turned into her career.

“I started May 1, 1992, as a soil conservation technician (for the MD of Westlock),” she said. “In 1994 the assistant (ag fieldman) left to go to Yellowhead County, and I was hired as the assistant, working alongside agriculture fieldman Dennis Mueller.”

And when Mueller left the county in 2014, she was appointed fieldman, a position she was already very familiar with.

“I basically did the fieldman’s role, but he held the title,” she added.

She notes some of the programs have changed since she started there those three decades ago, including the summer agriculture service board tours that were dropped a few years ago. Looking back, she says the tours were one of the highlights of her years with the county.

“We’ve ramped our roadside spray program (about 700 miles), fenceline program, Tansy incentive program, as well as others.”

But now, she says she has, “put her time in, reached my magic number, and I’m going to take it (retirement).”

Tigert says she owes a great deal to both Mueller and Marilyn Flock, former ag fieldman for the County of Barrhead, as both were great mentors and helped her at the start of her career.

And she in turn has been a mentor to Don Medcke, who began working with Westlock County seven years ago, and has been the assistant fieldman.

“I’m happy he is ready to jump into the role (as fieldman),” she said.

Medcke realizes that he, figuratively speaking, has some big shoes to fill.

“I would like to thank her for giving me the opportunity to work with her in the agriculture department in the spring of 2015. Jacolyn has been great to work with and we’ve had a lot of good times working together. With Jacolyn’s very well-deserved retirement, the county is losing a vast amount of knowledge, experience, and enthusiasm and I am very lucky to have been a small part of her work life. I wish Jacolyn the absolute best in her exciting new phase of life,” he said.

Westlock County councillors also took the opportunity to thank her for service, with reeve Christine Wiese saying in a recent interview they especially appreciated her professionalism during budget time.

Wiese went on to commend Tigert for the numerous programs she started over the years and her “enthusiasm” as she always looked to bridge the gap between farmers and the municipality.

“I want to thank Jacolyn Tigert for her many years of service to Westlock County and our community. I’ve spoken to many farmers and residents who have had the opportunity to work with her on various boards and committees. The message was clear, in every encounter they’ve had with her was met with a positive attitude and huge smile,” said Coun. Jared Stitsen at the start of the county’s Feb. 8 meeting.

“Jacolyn, you’ve been an excellent example for the many people who have worked at Westlock County over the years and you’ll be truly missed. Congratulations on your retirement and I wish you endless happy days with family and friends.”

Tigert and members of her family will soon be on their way to Osoyoos to spend a month relaxing, kayaking, biking, hiking, and just plain enjoying her new-found freedom. After that, she says she will come back to Westlock and perhaps take on some part-time work.

• With files from George Blais

Les Dunford, TownandCountryToday.com

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