Feeding calves, milking cows, and fixing machines are just some of the chores you will see some Kewaunee County middle schoolers complete this week as a part of the Pagel’s Ponderosa Boot Camp running through the end of the week. Thirty students from Kewaunee, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Luxemburg, and Holy Rosary Church in Kewaunee will participate in the five-day program, allowing them to participate in hands-on activities featuring jobs in the agriculture industries. Kiley Pagel was in the first Pagel’s Ponderosa Boot Camp when her grandpa, the late John Pagel, started the program in 2015 as one of his many ideas to get kids involved on the farm. Pagel says the connection the community has with the industry makes Boot Camp an important tradition to continue.

Coy Anderson of Luxemburg says it has been a fun week so far learning about the different jobs on a farm, including his favorite in the machine shed.

The Pagel’s Ponderosa Boot Camp concludes on Friday with the kids doing presentations on all of the things they learned over the five days and conducting farm tours for the families.