| 21 Job satisfaction & industry accolades Sam Dodd, the 2023 Waikato Dairy Manager of the Year title holder. Kelly Deeks RURAL PEOPLE » Sam Dodd p. 07 871 3037 e. tbs@spreading.co.nz T.B.S. No.1 OFF ROAD . . . . A career change decision in 2017 for Te Awamutu dairy farmer Sam Dodd has turned out to be a defining moment in this young man’s life, setting him on a trajectory towards job satisfaction and industry accolades as he strives on a daily basis to do what’s best for ‘the girls’. Sam was studying paramedicine in Wellington when the sudden passing of his mum saw him head home to Tauranga. But he couldn’t settle in the city. Looking for a change of scenery, he headed over the hill to his mum’s family farm in Matamata for a six week stint and was fortunate enough to work there with contract milker Mark Jeans, as well as meeting neighbour Gary McFarlane. “They are really great people and I ended up really enjoying it. One day we were B12ing the cows with the vet and she asked me whether I wanted to make a career out of farming. I had always loved coming to the farm but had never thought of it as a career. But then I did, so I said I would.” With the vet’s referral of Sam to Rhys and Tamara Parry in Taranaki, Sam secured a farm assistant position and has been farming ever since. “I couldn’t have started have started my farming career with better people,” Sam says. “I even lived with them in their house and they are such lovely people, they made my whole farming experience really cool.” From the Parry farm, Sam secured a 2IC position on the Joyce family farm, still in Taranaki. Michael Joyce worked with Sam’s dad at LIC and had known Sam since he was a baby. “I always looked up to Michael and I was lucky enough to work with his son under manager Hermez Javier-Sisser. These were also amazing people who gave me an opportunity and set me up for my Dairy Industry Awards career.” In 2018, Sam placed third in the Dairy Trainee of the Year category of the Waikato Dairy Industry Awards, in 2019 he came second, and in 2020, he brought the award home. It was time for a break and Sam bought tickets to Europe, but these were soon canceled for Covid. Through his dad’s contacts, he got an interview on the day before the first nationwide lockdown and secured a 2IC position on Belinda Wilson’s Mangahana Farm, working under contract milker Michael Parks. After two years, Michael wanted to step away from the dairy industry and Sam says he was in the right place at the right time to take over the manager’s position. “I’m on my second year of doing that and I’m loving it,” he says. “I’ve got such a supportive owner who knows what she’s doing and helps out a lot. I’m here to continue the legacy of Mangahana for Belinda and her family, and make this a productive and profitable business that’s here for the future.” This year, Sam won the Waikato Dairy Manager of the Year award as well as four merit awards, and is now leading the manager’s category team for the 2024 awards. He says entrants to the Dairy Industry Awards are guaranteed to learn something about themselves and their systems. “Farmers may share a boundary but across the fence, every system is different. The awards are a great chance to showcase what you do and why you do it.”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=