Having moved to New Zealand from the United Kingdom, Mrs Wells could relate to her situation and the pair, who live 5km apart, quickly became close friends.
"It was uncanny how much we had in common. It was pretty exciting from my perspective, as we didn't really know anyone in Taieri well at that stage,'' Ms Wilson said.
Inspired to help connect other rural people in the area, particularly women, the pair set up the Taieri Rural Community Group.
The typical farmer's wife role seemed to be, for many, doing the bookwork and looking after the children.
That meant they were often isolated and seldom interacted with anyone aside from their partner and children.
It was even more challenging for those without children, as schools were often the meeting hub in a small community, she said.
The goal of the group was to make it easier to meet new people when it could be challenging to get time off farm.
But the group was not just restricted to farmers, it was open to anyone in the community.
It was proving popular; 40 women attended the first meeting and there had been a strong turnout since.
Events ranged from coffee catch-ups to discuss quick meals to prepare during calving, to practical sessions on rose pruning and reversing a trailer.
The pair encouraged anyone new to farming or who had any questions to get in touch with Dairy Connect.
Mrs Wells found it rewarding to be part of Dairy Connect. She jumped at the opportunity when asked to be a mentor, to help give back to the sector by building capability within.
"Farming is different to other sectors as it's very open and people are happy to share what works, because we're not in competition with one another. We're all working together,'' she said.
It was nice to have a support network of people that understood each other.
"I appreciate how difficult it can be to ask for help and Dairy Connect makes it that little bit easier. If you offer someone advice and it makes a positive difference for them, that's such a good feeling,'' she said.
Mrs Wells was recently selected to join DairyNZ's board of directors this year. She and Cole Groves, from Canterbury, will work alongside the directors for six board meetings.
The associate director roles have been in place for five years since being established to support the sector's future leaders.
"These roles are a way for interested dairy farmers to gain governance experience and support the board in decision-making and strategy discussions,'' chairman Jim van der Poel said.
The associate director positions were non-voting roles and were for dairy farmers wanting to move into sector governance.
Mrs Wells, who will join the board from October, valued the opportunity to work with experienced directors and participate in corporate level board meetings, she said.
"I am looking forward to gaining first-hand experience in assessing opportunities and strategic decision-making in an organisation of this scale, which will equip me to help others make sound decisions in the future,'' she said.
Her career ranged from being a software engineer and business analyst to her current role in dairy farming, where she is growing the strategic and operational excellence of the farming business, while pursuing an interest in governance.
Seven other farmers have been associate directors with DairyNZ since the initiative was introduced in 2013.
