Lorilee Schultz is a legacy dairy farmer, taking over the dairy operations from her grandfather.
The Illinois State Fair is churning out its annual butter cow, with this year’s sculpture taking inspiration from a local farmer.
The theme for the butter cow sculpture is “Harvest the Fun” and was sculpted by Sarah Pratt. Lorilee Schultz from Mill-R-Mor Dairy in Orangeville, along with her daughter Lucy, were chosen as muses for two sculptures.
The 500-pound sculpture shows Lorilee milking a cow.
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A second sculpture of Lucy with a calf was created by Pratt’s daughter. Lorilee says it means a lot to her and her family, cementing her place in Illinois farming history.
“Definitely a huge honor,” Lorilee said. “Just being able to represent the 400 dairy farms across Illinois, most of which are family owned. So you know, it’s cool that it’s our farm, but it’s also all of our farms.”
Fairgoers have until August 20 to see the 2023 Butter Cow in person. It can also be viewed on the live Butter Cow webcam here.
