Renee was my friend and colleague, someone I had the privilege to know since 2009 and to work with as a Farmshine writer since 2023. We mostly just bounced ideas back and forth; she needed no real mentorship from me. She was already a naturally gifted writer. I only wish I had reached out to her sooner about doing articles. I will miss her insights, her direct, get-to-the-point style, her quick wit, and her voice.

Long before she ever wrote an article, Renee’s voice stood out in thoughtful letters to the editor that were clear and strong, grounded, and written from lived experience as a dairy farmer, a home-schooling mother and someone who stayed well-informed. Steadfast for freedom, Renee loved and often referred to tenets of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution, lest we forget.

In 2019, she wrote what I still believe was one of the strongest letters to the editor Farmshine has ever published, titled “Even in the worst of times, milk stayed true.” She put whole milk into historical perspective and reminded readers why it matters.

Farmshine Editor Dieter Krieg placed that letter in a golden scroll on the front page, a rare honor. I still remember sending Renee an electronic copy of that cover. “Wow,” she said, genuinely surprised. “I didn’t think it would make the cover, but really, a golden scroll? I wouldn’t have thought it was that good.”

Oh yes, Renee. It was that good.

That same practical clarity showed up earlier in 2018, when Renee came up with the now-familiar “Whole Milk. Whole Nutrition. Naturally.” tagline and asked former Allied Milk Producers Board member Mike Eby to take it to the Board, which holds a national license for local dairy checkoff.

Today, that simple message appears on billboards, bus wraps, and more. Renee never sought credit or praise. She just wanted to share good ideas and see good things get done.

Renee leaves behind her husband Justin, their five children, roughly ages 10 to 20, and the dairy farm they operated together, Re-Ju-Venade Holsteins, near Myerstown, Pennsylvania. Their children are deeply involved in agriculture, youth activities, and dairy promotion, including the dairy princess program.

She was also the daughter-in-law of Nelson Troutman, whose painted round bales helped spark the grassroots whole milk effort known as 97 Milk. She was on the ground floor of that movement, photographing bales and texting me: “Nelson is at it again.”

The 97 Milk volunteers shared this week what many of us feel: “We always appreciated Renee’s genuine approach toward all things, especially whole milk education. Our sympathies, thoughts, and prayers are with the entire Troutman family.”

It was in 2023 when a family emergency prevented me from covering an event. I called Renee and asked if she would like to go and write it up. She said she had often thought about doing that. She did such an excellent job that it soon led to more requests from Dieter, taken on amid an already full life of milking cows, tending calves, home-schooling, and caring for her family.

After one particularly difficult assignment — covering a tragic farm accident — Renee shared with me her thoughts about writing that revealed both her care and her work ethic.

“Writing articles has given me much more respect for what you do,” she wrote. “This is not easy. I worry about getting people’s stories wrong or spreading falsehoods if I’m not careful.”

She told me she had no formal journalism training, adding with humor that being a home-school mom probably helped more than anything, along with reading Farmshine and many other things “voraciously” her whole life. She said she kept her style short and to the point because farmers don’t have a lot of time to read.

“I hope people feel like reading my words was worth their time, and that they’re better for it,” she wrote. Those words stick with me.

Even as her health declined, Renee was grateful to be home around her “good things.”

During a visit about 10 days before her passing, she spoke with gratitude about the cards and letters sent by Farmshine readers after our late-December update. She talked about her children, homeschooling, and worrying whether the display boards would get finished in time for the Pennsylvania Holstein Junior Convention that weekend.

“There is so much I want to do with my kids,” she said.

Looking back on Renee’s golden scroll letter from the Feb. 15, 2019 cover of Farmshine, it stands as a reminder to future generations that God created good things for humanity.

We would add that sometimes God helps us recognize and defend those good things through people of quiet courage, humility, and conviction, like Renee Troutman herself.

Renee loved the Lord, her family, her cows and calves, and then education and writing — in that order. She believed God would heal her, and He has, though not as we would have chosen. She was a good and faithful servant.

Even though she didn’t write every week, Farmshine readers will miss her voice. I will miss her, more than she could have known.

Please continue to pray for Justin and their five children, and for all who loved Renee. She leaves behind family, friends, and words that still speak, full of faith, family, farming, and truth.

Those wishing to reach out to the Troutman family may send cards or words of encouragement to:

The Troutman Family

1479 Katterman Hill Rd.

Myerstown, PA 17067

The family is planning a celebration of Renee Troutman’s life on Saturday, Feb. 28 at New Beginnings Church in Myerstown, Pa. There will be a milk social from 10 a.m. to noon, and the service will begin at noon.