Susan Sonne — Farm Bureau Women Member of the Month

By SLO County Farm Bureau Women · Thu May 14 2026

SLO County Farm Bureau

Women's Member of the Month

Susan Sonne has been part of the agricultural world her entire life. As a member of 4-H for 10 years — five of those as a junior leader — she achieved the rank of All-Star for San Luis Obispo County. With a strong commitment to giving back, she later served as a 4-H sheep leader until the birth of her first child. She is married to Guy Sonne, who also comes from a longtime Paso Robles family, and together they have three daughters and three grandchildren. Agriculture and community involvement run deep in Susan's family. Her grandfather, Frank Hamm, joined the Farm Bureau near its founding in 1923. Her father became a member after returning from World War II, and she followed in 1975. Susan is one of three children born to Rudy and Virginia Hamm, alongside her siblings Ted and Lynette. Their parents instilled in them the importance of caring for family, land, animals, and community, and remained active volunteers with both Farm Bureau and Farm Bureau Women well into their 90s. Susan's grandchildren now represent the fourth generation to show market animals at what is now the California Mid-State Fair. The earnings she made from her own animals helped fund much of her college education at Cal Poly, supplemented by a Farm Bureau Women's scholarship. Following in her mother's footsteps, Susan became an elementary school teacher, working at Lillian Larson School in San Miguel and both Templeton elementary school sites for a total of 32 years. After retiring, she continued her mother's legacy of service by joining Farm Bureau Women. Susan's mother served two terms as chairwoman, and today she proudly holds that same role. Her early experiences on the farm shaped her strong work ethic. One of her responsibilities was driving a truck to collect hay from the fields — something she began doing before she was tall enough to fully depress the clutch or see over the dashboard. Her focus was on driving smoothly to avoid knocking her father or brother off the truck. Later, she graduated to driving the tractor, which finally allowed her a clear view of the road ahead. Susan's first paid job involved digging weeds out of an alfalfa field with a screwdriver, working on hands and knees for the Booker brothers. The task became far less pleasant after the fields were fertilized with chicken manure. She also spent many years helping harvest her family's walnut trees by hand, running them through the huller and across a conveyor belt to remove rocks and damaged nuts before drying — a process repeated annually for more than 50 years. Aside from one year spent living in college dorms, Susan has lived in the country her entire life. To this day, the smell of freshly cut hay or newly plowed fields brings back fond memories of her childhood. San Luis Obispo Farm Bureau Women meet every second Monday of the month from September through June. If you're inspired by these stories and would like to learn more about becoming involved, contact Susan Sonne at (805) 610-1375 or shortsuecakes@gmail.com