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Gillian Raese
LAVONIA – Gillian Raese, a resident of Hartwell, started Monday as a new staff writer for the Franklin County Citizen Leader.
Raese has an extensive background in agriculture, growing up on a cattle and chicken farm in Hartwell.
She was heavily involved in 4-H and FFA throughout her youth, participating on judging teams and showing livestock. She continued her passion for agriculture by raising show goats and mentoring kids while enrolled at Emmanuel College in Franklin Springs.
With her other experience working on her grandparent’s broiler farm, she interned with Fieldale Farms and then graduated from Emmanuel in 2020 with a Diversified Agriculture Bachelor’s Degree.
After college, she worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency in Hartwell and Elberton for two years, where she facilitated financial assistance to farmers in need in the surrounding counties during times of drought and commodity price fluctuations.
Raese currently raises show-quality Boer goats in Hartwell and leases them to youth across North Georgia to expose them to agriculture and to aid them in gaining valuable life skills.
She has also continued to mentor youth across the state on showmanship etiquette and to prepare them for state and national livestock competitions.
“The best way to make an impact is through today’s youth and I try my best to inspire them to get involved with agriculture to positively impact them for the rest of their lives,” she said.
Raese will cover the Franklin County Board of Education and the cities of Lavonia, Canon and Franklin Springs, as well as take photos and write feature stories, for the Franklin County Citizen Leader.
She also plans to write about Franklin County’s agriculture community to highlight and inform the public about the county’s biggest industry.
“Gillian’s background will fit well with our community,” Citizen Leader Publisher Shane Scoggins said. “We are excited to add her to our staff. We hope all of our readers and all of Franklin County will welcome her.”