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FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
LOUISVILLE, KY, January 23, 2008: With more than 250 members participating, Kentucky Farm Bureau had a strong presence at American Farm Bureau's convention in New Orleans.
The 89th AFBF annual meeting, held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, eatured a long list of distinguished speakers which included General Colin Powell and Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner. The program also was highlighted by numerous educational sessions and entertainment provided by country music stars Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers.
Kentuckians competed for national awards in three contests for young farmers: Ryan and Brooke White of Union County, represented the state in the national Achievement Award competition. Also representing Kentucky was Kirby Hancock of Columbia who finished in the "Top Ten" of the Excellence in Ag contest and Jay McElwain, of Belton, who competed in the "Sweet Sixteen" round of the Discussion Meet. The Whites, Hancock and McElwain won state-level competitions at the recent Kentucky Farm Bureau annual meeting in Louisville.
Kentucky Farm Bureau, the nation's third-largest state Farm Bureau, was recognized for program excellence in five areas --leadership and organizational development, policy implementation, information and public relations, agriculture education and promotion and member services.
Four Kentucky farmers put their innovative ideas on display at an Idea Exchange which is part of the trade show. Those participants were Joe Paul Mattingly, Raywick; Mike Bach, Owingsville; Matthew Castlen, Maceo; and Terry Osbourne, Greenup.
Frieda Heath, a Hickory native and Kentucky Farm Bureau State Women's Advisory Committee chairperson, accepted an award for Kentucky’s Women's Committee in the AFBF Gold Star Recognition program.
Kentucky country ham was featured in a Kentucky Farm Bureau exhibit at the convention trade show. The ham, from Broadbent B&B Foods of Cadiz, was offered as samples to convention attendees.
Marshall Coyle, a Bath County farmer recently elected to his third term as KFB president, led Kentucky's delegation to the national convention and was re-elected to the AFBF board of directors.
Recipe for Success” was the theme of this year's convention, which included conferences about the ongoing farm bill debate, farm animal welfare, immigration reform, economic outlooks and more. The primary focus of the conferences, as well as the overall convention, is equipping members to build strong, prosperous agricultural communities through unique and proactive policy development and programs.
More than 4,000 Farm Bureau members from across the United States attended.
Kentucky Farm Bureau had 25 voting delegates and three alternates to represent the organization on matters of policy and leadership selection. Only two states - Tennessee and North Carolina - had more delegates.
Besides Coyle, Kentucky's delegates were First Vice President Mark Haney of Nancy, Second Vice President John Hendricks of Winchester, plus Alex Barnett, Cynthiana; Charlie Benge, London; Ryan Bivens, Hodgenville; Steve Bolinger, Pembroke; David Campbell, Stanford; and David Chappell, Owenton.
Tripp Furches, Murray; Fritz Giesecke, Horse Cave; Terry Gilbert, Danville; Frieda and Randall Heath, Hickory; Pat Henderson, Irvington; Bige Hensley, Manchester; Paul Hornback, Shelbyville; Kim McCoy, Burkesville; David McGlone, Grayson; Russell Poore, Russellville; Terry Rowlett, Campbellsburg; Larry Thomas, Elizabethtown; Kelly Thurman, Livermore; Scott Travis, Cox's Creek; and Danny Wilkinson, Columbia.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT TERRI BRADSHAW
Office 502-495-5191
Cellular 502-718-1164 |
