With Strong Faith and Sharp Focus, Wilkie Found Her Way

We have been so fortunate to have Maycee Wilkie as a marketing intern this summer! Even if you didn’t have a chance to meet her in person, her fingerprints have been everywhere behind the scenes — because she has done a lot for our team.

Maycee, you see, is the definition of resiliency. It goes beyond her inherent marketing skills and maturity as a senior at Iowa State University. It goes beyond her poise and ability to help navigate swift changes at Latham Seeds this summer. It also goes beyond her positive nature — even when stress bears down.

Maycee and her mom, Colleen

For Maycee, resiliency started when she was just six years old and lost her mom to cancer. She and her dad, Mark Wilkie, helped each other move on together. Her dad always told Maycee she was “destined for greatness.” We couldn’t agree more.

Maycee grew up in the small town of Springbrook, Wisconsin. She grew fond of agriculture — mostly because her dad dreamed of being a farmer. Although they never had a big farm, Maycee remembers “the perfect hobby farm” with a cow, chickens, pheasants, hogs and turkeys.

“Who needs an alarm clock when you have a cow mooing and rooster crowing?” she recalls fondly.

Six years after her mom passed away, Maycee’s dad started showing symptoms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This nervous system disease affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Mark’s symptoms first appeared in 2016 and was officially diagnosed in 2018. At 11 years old, Maycee stepped into the role of her dad’s primary caregiver. She recalls balancing middle school with the responsibilities at home assisting Mark with tasks like lifting him from his chair or bed, managing his medications and feeding him.

Mark and Maycee

She remembers being able to rely on her dad for help even when he was sick. At the same time, he prepared her for a future without him.

“I would do math homework and would get confused about how to do an equation,” Maycee says. “Instead of showing me how to do it right away, he let me “struggle” for a bit while I tried to figure it out on my own. I did end up figuring out how to do the equation on my own.”

By the summer of 2018, her dad was almost fully paralyzed and could hardly speak. An aunt stepped in and brought Maycee to Clear Lake, Iowa. Together with grandparents, aunts and uncle it was decided to move Mark into a nursing home to transition Maycee from being a caregiver to live high school as a teenager and not a caregiver.

Maycee started her freshman year of high school in Clear Lake where she was the “new girl.” She quickly made her mark by getting involved in activities including choir, band, Spanish, Model-UN, tennis, cross country, speech and theatre. Maycee was also very active in FFA having served in three officer positions and being a member of the Clear Lake FFA Vet Science Team that placed first in the state.

She also stayed active in her church, and she leaned into her faith when her dad passed away in January 2019.

“My dad and family always taught me to lean into God and His love,” Maycee says. “Even when everything feels like it isn’t going to be okay, it will all turn out just how it is supposed to.”

Today Maycee is a public relations major at Iowa State University (ISU) with a minor in event management. The memory of herself as a middle school student who wasn’t sure if she’d even get to high school — much less college — is not lost on her.

She continues to lean into God, just like her dad and family taught her.

“God gave me a challenging story to juggle, but I think that is what is beautiful about the journey called life,” Maycee says. “My faith is what sustains me on the hard days and what motivates me on the good days.”

Wilkie family at Maycee’s high school graduation

At Iowa State, Maycee has found strength in her faith through her involvement with the college ministry, SALT company. This has helped her deepen her relationship with the Lord and remain in fellowship with other sons and daughters of Christ. A guiding light for Maycee and her family has always been the Bible verse, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

Upon graduation, Maycee wants to work where she can advocate for those affected by ALS. When she’s not in school or working on campus, she enjoys watching sports, dog sitting, reading, playing pickleball, as well as spending time with friends and family.

Speaking of family, Maycee is sharing with us one a recipe for Swedish meatballs. Maycee’s Farmor (father’s mother in Swedish) always made Swedish meatballs for special holidays.

Swedish Meatball Recipe

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided in half
• ½ cup yellow onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
• 1 large egg, whisked
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon oregano
• ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• ¾ lb. ground beef, 80% lean
• ½ lb. ground pork

Sauce

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cube chicken bouillon, see notes
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, can sub mustard powder
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• ½ cup sour cream, at room temperature

1. Heat ½ of the olive oil in a large, high-walled skillet over medium heat. Add the finely diced onions and garlic. Soften for 5 minutes. Set aside and let cool.
2. In a large bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, whisked egg, milk, cooled onions/garlic, salt, oregano, allspice, nutmeg, and pepper. Gently incorporate the meat until evenly combined, but without overworking it (otherwise the meatballs will be tough instead of tender).
3. Roll into 1 ½-inch meatballs and place on a plate. (A small cookie scoop makes it easier to roll balls of uniform size.) Transfer to the fridge and let them chill for 15 minutes, or up to overnight. Cover if chilling overnight.
4. While the meatballs chill, combine the beef broth, chicken bouillon, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon, and parsley in a large measuring cup with a spout. Set aside.
5. Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
6. Brown the meatballs in batches, leave plenty of room around each so that you can easily rotate them with a spoon to brown on all sides. Brown for about 1 minute per side. Remove and set aside. Add additional oil and/or decrease heat slightly as needed throughout cooking.
7. Melt the butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Use a silicone spatula to “clean” the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, stirring continuously, until it begins to brown.
8. Add the beef broth mixture in small splashes, stirring continuously. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
9. Place the sour cream in a medium bowl. Spoon some of the sauce into the bowl (about ¼ cup), and stir until well-combined. Stir it into the sauce over low heat until incorporated.
10. Add the meatballs back to the skillet along with any juices from the plate. Spoon the sauce on top. Allow them to heat through over low heat for 10-15 minutes (or until cooked through), partially covered. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve over mashed potatoes or egg noodles.