Hampton farmer featured on national Lifetime campaign

Hampton-based farmer April Hemmes has always been one to go against the grain.
She decided to be a fulltime farmer for her family operation in the mid-1980s when the agriculture industry was in a major downturn following the Farm Crisis of 1982. She's a female crop producer in a male-dominated industry. Yet, Hemmes is a leader for farmers and promotes Iowa's agriculture on a local, state and international level.
Her determination, dedication and individuality led Lifetime to include Hemmes in its recently unveiled "Her America: 50 Women, 50 States" campaign, which spotlights 50 women throughout the country with unique backgrounds and provides a platform to tell their stories.
Lea Goldman, Editor-in-Chief for Lifetime, said the campaign was inspired by misrepresentations and unfavorable depictions of women in the media and entertainment industries following the 2016 election cycle. This allows viewers to see women outside of short clips and sound bytes.
"It's gotten to a point where if you check one box in this country, whether it's your political affiliation, or your marital status or your race, assumptions are made about the rest of you," she said. "And we set out to explore those assumptions. Women are more than the boxes they check on a form. We are more than any one opinion and we wanted to hear those full stories."
The campaign went live on Monday and can be found at heramerica.com.
Read the full story in the February 14 edition