CHIPPEWA FALLS — Shawn Bartholomew and Alicia Razvi have joined the Wisconsin Farmers Union team as regional membership coordinators.
Bartholomew grew up in the Eau Claire area and has been farming in Western Wisconsin for the past 15 years, mainly focusing on produce and hogs. He and his fiancé Dusti Larson have three young boys and reside in Elk Mound on their diversified produce farm.
Bartholomew previously led the team that developed the produce safety section at the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. In this role, he was able to build relationships across Wisconsin with produce growers and provided valuable education opportunities.
“As a WFU membership coordinator, I’m looking to help producers join together so their voices can be organized and heard and then acted upon, creating change for farmers that helps build them instead of putting up more barriers,” Bartholomew said.
Razvi lives in Middleton with her husband and three children. In her free time, she gardens, loves to bake pies, hike and explore our beautiful state with family and friends. Prior to a recent move to Dane County, Razvi spent 6 years marketing value-added goods from Wooly Thyme Micro Farm, her family’s two-acre CSA farm in Stevens Point. A first-generation farmer, Razvi grew up in Oshkosh on Lake Winnebago and was also closely connected to her great-grandparents homestead in Mineral Point. Razvi has been an active member of WFU since 2014, holding multiple board positions, serving on convention committees, and receiving the Bruce Miller Membership Award.
“This new position in membership coordination illuminates my favorite things about the Wisconsin Farmers Union,” Razvi said. “I am excited to bring awareness about our member-formulated policy, empower the voices we bring to rural and farm communities, showcase our youth and adult educational opportunities, and build relationships with new members and like-minded cooperatives that exhibit the same values. We are already a strong organization with great heart. I can’t wait to see how we grow.”
The membership coordinators will be responsible for membership engagement, chapter support, partnership development, and continuously improving outreach efforts for Wisconsin Farmers Union.
Bartholomew will serve members in northern Wisconsin, while Razvi’s region will extend in a diagonal line reaching from the Door Peninsula to the Southwestern corner of the state.
“We are so pleased to be able to bring some new energy — and add more boots to the ground — to our membership department,” said WFU Executive Director Julie Keown-Bomar. “Our Farmers Union chapters are doing wonderful things throughout the state, and we’re excited to have some added support for them and for outreach to prospective members and organizations that share our values.”
Bartholomew can be reached at sbartholomew@wisconsinfarmersunion.com and Razvi at arazvi@wisconsinfarmersunion.com.
Wisconsin Farmers Union, a member-driven organization, is committed to enhancing the quality of life for family farmers, rural communities, and all people through educational opportunities, cooperative endeavors, and civic engagement. Learn more at www.wisconsinfarmersunion.com.
