By Steve Rickman
UT Extension Agent
Chester County 4-H Ag Day was held May 13. An amazing day for approximately 450 students/teachers and staff from Chester County Middle School. Ag Day is a product of UT Extension-Chester County, our way of teaching agriculture through 4-H. Students rotated through 7 stations including: small animals, large animals, TCAT Crump, TWRA, farm equipment, CCHS FFA, and TN Farm Bureau. Each class received an agriculture educational package sponsored by the TN Beef Council, TN Farm Bureau, and the Dairy Alliance to use in their classrooms in the future.
The day started out with a coolness in the air as all the 4-Hers and adult volunteers arrived way before the first group of students arrived. Many of our 4-H students from grades 4-12 participated by bringing their projects to display. Ag Day is the first opportunity that many students that don’t grow up on a farm have to interact with farm animals, or see up close large farm equipment that our local farmers use to produce the food that feeds our world.
Many thanks go out to everyone who helped make this event successful. Our students deserve all the credit, but their parents/grandparents/family are the ones that took time out of their day to help us make this happen by transporting animals and farm equipment. First Farmers Coop Henderson provided all the livestock penning. TCAT Crump, TN Farm Bureau and TWRA sponsored stations, Mesa Trail Alpacas from Jacks Creek provided alpacas for our farm animal stations. Last but not least I want to thank Mrs. Tereasa Crouse the 4-H/FFA advisor from Chester County High School. She has been a huge help building our high school ag program this year. Her students have taken an ownership to Ag Day, their excitement for this event is what makes it so special.
4-H Ag Day added a new wrinkle in 2021. For the first time this event was open to the public after school was out. Thanks to all the families who came out to visit, and we hope you all had a great time. Hopefully everyone who attended now has a better understanding were their food comes from in the agriculture industry.
For more information on getting involved and having tons of fun in 4-H, call the UT Extension-Chester County office at 989-2103. Check out our Facebook page @ UT Extension-Chester County for the latest news/events.
