Yet again this year, the All West/Select Sires Internship Committee was overwhelmed by the amount of quality candidates who applied to become the 2023 All West Summer Intern. Also, yet again, the decision of selecting one intern turned into two! This will be the second summer that All West will host two interns during the same season.
We are pleased to introduce Kaycie Bajka and Kayla Golladay!
Kaycie Bajka was born in Northern California where she grew up as a competitive downhill ski racer and began traveling internationally with her family at a young age. She has already earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology along with a minor in Spanish from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and is now pursuing a Dairy Industries minor at the college. Her unique educational background is the result of her early interest in the medical field in combination with her love for animals. Before realizing her passion for dairy cattle, Kaycie completed an accelerated EMT certification program and gained experience as both an EMT and a caregiver while completing her studies in San Luis Obispo. It was not until she took her favorite college course, the Dairy Calving Enterprise, that she realized her passion for the dairy industry and decided to change her career path.
Kaycie is now gaining hands-on cattle experience by working at the Cal Poly Dairy where she has held multiple positions with increasing levels of responsibility including Outside Milker, Inside Milker, Trainer for new milkers, Calf Feeder, and an Enterprise Leader for the Dairy Calving Enterprise. She has also completed the All West A.I. Training School offered at Cal Poly. Kaycie believes her passion for the dairy industry, combined with her work ethic, science background, and ability to quickly adapt and grasp new concepts makes her the perfect intern for All West/Select Sires.
“I wish to learn as much as I possibly can,” said Kaycie. “So far, I have thrown myself into every dairy-related opportunity that has been presented to me and I am very excited about this one. I hope to gain more hands-on experience with animals and improve my artificial insemination skills.”
Kayla Golladay was born and raised on her family farming and ranching business, Stokrose Farms, in Warden, Washington. Growing up, Kayla was very involved in 4-H and FFA showing and judging livestock, and holding numerous leadership positions. It is no surprise that this involvement led her to be passionate about agriculture and her family’s business. She now helps with the farming business by irrigating and harvesting their crops and also feeding and caring for the cattle herd. Kayla has been inspired by the A.I. technicians who work with their herd, as they have allowed her to participate in the process and learn from them for the past seven years. Following the completion of two All West A.I. Schools, Kayla also began assisting with artificial insemination and embryo transplantation at Stokrose.
Kayla was originally pursuing an Animal Science degree as a student at Walla Walla Community College, but is currently pursuing a Bachelor Degree in Business, with a concentration in Marketing and Digital Media. She hopes to use this education to eventually work in the agriculture industry and her family business.
“My continued interest in the reproductive side of the cattle industry has made me incredibly excited for this opportunity,” said Kayla. “I have also found an interest in the marketing side of the business, especially through digital media. I want to continue to learn more about the industry by gaining hands-on experience within each component of the cooperative.”
The All West Internship Committee reported that from their virtual meetings with these young women, they already know they have selected determined, excited, and intelligent interns. Kaycie’s internship experiences will be based near our Turlock, California office and warehouse location, while Kayla’s will be based in Eastern Washington. We hope to have each of them travel throughout Washington, Oregon and California during their eight-week experiences with us. Both young ladies will begin their internship experiences with us in late June 2023.
We would like to thank our generous customers in advance for making this experience possible for the future of our industry by allowing our interns to visit your farms and ranches. If you happen to see Kaycie or Kayla at your dairy or ranch, say hello and snap a photo to share with us by tagging #AllWestSummerIntern on social media!
Congratulations Kaycie and Kayla! Welcome to the All West Family!
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