Some stories begin at birth. Lorilee Schultz’s dairy story began in seventh grade, when her summers included packing her bags and heading to her grandparents’ farm, about an hour away. This dairy farm became the place where her values took root, shaped by early mornings, long days, and a family mentor whose quiet grit defined what leadership could look like without ever needing the spotlight.
Beyond summers, Lorilee spent the rest of the year on her parent’s livestock farm, where there was a bit of everything: beef cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens, even a donkey. But, no Holstein dairy cows. “My grandparents farm was just the place that I wanted to spend all my free time.” Every summer, she would head to the dairy farm for the season, and it would become her classroom; a place where lessons were not taught through lectures, but through example. Lorilee said, “I have to give my mom a lot of credit. I think she instilled in me to pursue the things that I’m passionate about without fear.” Dairy farming was becoming one of those things.
Lorilee shared memories of being with her cousins on their little wash rack, giving heifers baths, singing along to Gretchen Wilson on the radio, and then just being in the barn milking alongside her grandmother. “My grandma was truly the grit,” Lorilee reflects. “She was the traction that made things happen.” Lorilee’s grandmother instilled trust in her granddaughter from an early age: Lorilee was expected to show up, to take responsibility and to grow.
While Lorilee’s grandfather was often the outward-facing visionary, it was her grandmother who embodied consistency and care. She milked cows for years, welcomed anyone who showed up needing help, and carried the weight of daily responsibilities with determination. Watching that partnership shaped Lorilee’s understanding of leadership and that it doesn’t need applause to be powerful.
That sense of stewardship extended to the cows themselves, particularly one whose legacy still defines the family farm. Roxy, purchased by Lorilee’s grandparents in the 1970s, would go on to earn international recognition and leave descendants throughout herds across the globe. For Lorilee, Roxy represents more than genetic success.
“It’s such a symbiotic relationship between the cow and the caretaker of the animals” Lorilee explains. “We depend on them, and they depend on us. You know, the cows are special to us, but some just are extra special, and Roxy was certainly an example of that. Legend has it that Roxy was actually my first word.”
Years later, Lorilee would find herself stepping into the role of primary operator of the family dairy farm, not by design, but by default. She had to fight for the opportunity to keep the cows when a herd dispersal was being discussed and she had to prove her commitment. What carried her through those moments was the foundation laid years earlier. A belief instilled by her grandmother who never doubted her capability. Lorilee shared you must
“have those true believers that can cheer you on and that you know you can go to for unconditional support. I think everybody needs at least one person that they can just count on.”
Over time, Lorilee stopped chasing external validation and began leading in a way that felt true. “I had to do it my own way,” she says. “In a way that’s authentically me.” That authenticity has been tested in seasons of extraordinary difficulty – none more challenging than the spring when her grandmother became seriously ill.
At the same time, her aunt (the primary calf feeder) had a hip replacement and Lorilee took over calf rearing duties during a record month for heifers born. Lorilee already had a full plate milking and feeding cows, but she helped care for her grandmother in between milking and calf chores while also raising her two-year-old daughter. “I don’t even know how I did it,” Lorilee admits. “You just keep going, one foot in front of the other.” Amid exhaustion and grief, she found strength in gratitude for shared moments, for time together and for the opportunity to show up one last time for the woman who had always shown up for her.
That experience deepened Lorilee’s commitment to advocacy and making sure others have opportunities. Her passion for elevating women in dairy is rooted in both past and present, from stories of how her grandmother was discouraged from pursuing college, and currently in an industry where women remain underrepresented in leadership. Lorilee has used her voice to challenge that reality, pointing out uncomfortable truths and pushing for change. “You don’t have to be an expert to have an impact,” she says. “By showing up, you can still make a difference.”
“You don’t have to be an expert to have an impact,” she says. “By showing up, you can still make a difference.”
That commitment has translated into tangible leadership beyond the farm gate. Lorilee has stepped into influential spaces where decisions are made and perspectives are shaped, including as Chairwoman of the Young Cooperators Board within the National Milk Producers Federation and engaging directly in national and global conversations about the future of dairy. She has taken stages to speak candidly about representation, leadership, and opportunity, including at the IDF World Dairy Summit. In these roles, Lorilee leads not by positioning herself as the loudest voice in the room, but by showing up with honesty, lived experience, and a willingness to ask the questions others may hesitate to raise. Her leadership is rooted in presence and persistence, proof that advocacy doesn’t require perfection, only participation.
Looking forward, Lorilee is hopeful. With women now making up the majority of animal science graduates, she believes the future will look different, even if change comes slowly. She imagines a dairy community where her daughter can lead without question or label. On her own farm, she dreams of innovation and longevity, healthy cows, healthy soils and strong community ties.
As the International Year of the Woman Farmer shines a spotlight on stories like hers, Lorilee reflects on a moment that shifted her own perspective. A reporter once referred to her simply as a farmer – not a female farmer, just a farmer.
“It felt like before I was a farmer with an asterisk,” she says, “to have that reporter just say, “dairy farmer Lorilee Schultz from Orangeville, Illinois” and not female farmer… I feel like my brain just had this shift, like, yeah, I am a farmer. Full stop.”
That truth, simple and powerful, is part of the legacy her grandmother helped build: belief, grit and quiet leadership. Lorilee is a woman who grew into her role knowing, deep down, that she belonged, and fought for it to become a reality – and now, she advocates for other women to step into their roles with confidence and an understanding that, yes, they should be there, too. This is Lorilee Schultz’s story.
This story is part of Taking Root and Growing Legacy, a Dairy Girl Network (DGN) storytelling project celebrating the International Year of the Woman Farmer.
Lorilee Schultz was interviewed by Laura Daniels.
This feature was written by Amanda Kohls.
You can find a PDF of this story here.