WROF, Inc. 2026 Premier Scholar Lillian Harmon

You are part of something pretty special.

Across Wisconsin, talented young people are growing up in small towns, on farms and in rural communities. They understand what makes these places special — and they also understand the challenges.

WROF Premier Scholar Lillian Harmon of Dallas, Wisconsin understands both.

Dallas is a village of about 360 people in northwestern Wisconsin. Lillian, the daughter of Jared and Angela Harmon, recently graduated from Barron High School and lives just a mile from her grandparents’ beef cattle farm, where she has been actively involved for years.

And it was on that farm that Lillian’s future became more personal.

Last year, her grandfather was involved in a serious farm accident.

For Lillian, the experience reinforced something she had already seen growing up around farmers through her family, 4-H and showing livestock:  rural people work hard, farming can be dangerous, and getting the health care you need isn’t always easy.  “Despite the risks, many put their own health last because medical care is far away, difficult to access, or simply not a priority until something becomes serious,” Lillian says.

She has watched farmers work through injuries, exhaustion and chronic pain because the work still needs to get done.

Lillian wants to do something about that.

This fall, she will attend Viterbo University, beginning her education to become a physician and ultimately serving rural and agricultural communities like the one that raised her.  “I hope to provide quality medical care, promote preventive health, and advocate for better access to healthcare,” she says.

And THAT is what your support of WROF is really about.

You aren’t simply helping a young person pay for college.

You are investing in the future of rural Wisconsin.

You are helping Lillian take what she learned growing up in Dallas — on the farm, through 4-H, from her family and from watching the people around her — and turn it into a career she hopes will bring her talents  back to rural communities.

The  WROF Premier Scholars Program provides $3,000 awards to rural Wisconsin high school graduates pursuing post-secondary education who plan to use their education to help Wisconsin’s farms and rural communities thrive.

Lillian is one of them.

And someday, when a farmer needs care from someone who understands that you can’t simply abandon the chores because your back hurts…  perhaps that someone will be Dr. Lillian Harmon!

You are helping make that possibility possible.

With gratitude,