Wellesley Fall Fair ambassador launches Barnyard Buddies youth farm safety program

Pictured from left to right are Bethany Koch, Launa Seiling, Joel Koch, Liam McAuley, Isaiah Wight, Claire Koch, Rosey Verwer, Alexa Minten, Sophia Brenner, Chloe Scott and Anne Koch, all of whom lent a hand during the Barnyard Buddies program at Wellesley Public School Dec. 16, 2025. Wendy Richardson photo

Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Claire Koch, the Wellesley Fall Fair ambassador for 2025-2026, is using her platform as a representative of the Wellesley North Easthope Agriculture Society to help spread farm and rural safety messaging to elementary students through her new Barnyard Buddies program.

Launched at the end of 2025 with a presentation and hands-on activities for students at Wellesley Public School on Dec. 16, 2025, the children’s farm safety program focuses on spreading awareness about the dangers associated with agriculture, specifically large equipment, large animals and water/ice safety.

“My parents, they really reiterated farm safety just because we live on a dairy farm, so that was always important to them,” Koch told the Gazette. “They would always take me to the farm-safety days that were hosted by the Waterloo Rural Women … and then as soon as I was old enough, I started volunteering at them. I just became really passionate about the topic because I think it is something that isn’t really talked about enough, even for kids in town. I really do believe farm safety applies to everyone.”

While kids who live in rural areas of Wellesley and other local townships may not necessarily live on a farm, Koch says there are plenty of farm-related or rural dangers they need to be aware of, from sprayers and combines on the roads to large horses tied up at local businesses by David Martin Mennonites. In addition, the township is rich with ponds, pools, streams and rivers many kids use for swimming, fishing and skating, all of which come their own dangers.

Through the Barnyard Buddies program, Koch has the opportunity, with the help of community partners, to deliver safety messaging around each of the most prominent potential dangers facing rural children in a fun and engaging way, while encouraging them to continue those discussions with their parents and other family members at home.

“On Dec. 16, we had about 110 kids in the Wellesley Public School gym – so I think there were five classes and they were all in grades three and four,” Koch said. “It started with a 30-minute presentation and I talked for 10 minutes about large-animal safety, 10 minutes about water and ice safety, and then 10 minutes about large-equipment safety. I had a bunch of awesome volunteers there and we rotated the kids through five stations.

“The one station was a cow obstacle course that helped kids experience how large animals’ vision is impaired compared to humans’ sight, and then we did a “spot the hazard” activity where kids looked at unsafe scenarios and they thought of ways they could avoid that hazard, and then we did a “large equipment blind spot” station where the kids sat in little tyke cars and their classmates placed elephant-skin balls around the vehicles and explored how that would be a major blind spot for a big piece of equipment.”

With another Barnyard Buddies program set for students at North Easthope Public School on Jan. 9 and more to come, Koch said she hopes to gain enough traction with Wellesley township schools to eventually expand the program into Wilmot and other local townships, all in the name of keeping kids safe around farms and in their rural communities.

The program, Koch said, wouldn’t be possible without the funding and support of Jones Feedmill, Wellesley Home Hardware, Leis Feed & Supply, and Jantzi Plumbing.

To inquire about scheduling a Barnyard Buddies program at a local school or to support the program, email Koch at claire.lovescows7@gmail.com.