Published: October 24, 2009 07:07 pm      

Learning about the Ag Life

By Daniel Piotrowski

editor@jacksonvilleprogress.com



About 400 Jacksonville ISD fourth-graders will take part in the Cherokee County Farm Bureau's Fall Ag Day on Monday at the Texas Forest Service office on Loop 456.

Fourth-graders from the four JISD elementary campuses will attend one of two sessions, one from 8:30 to 11 a.m. and the other from 11:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. Each session will include a dairy presentation, according to organizer Nikki Penn, of the Cherokee County Farm Bureau office in Rusk.

“We want to get out in the community and introduce the youths to the role Ag plays in our lives,” Nikki Penn said.

The TFS is playing host for the program, which is sponsored by the Cherokee County Farm Bureau. The TFS, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Southwest Dairy Farmers, Cherokee County Master Gardeners, Texas Agri-Life Extension Service will make presentations for the children to view.

“Ag Day exposes students to a variety of careers available in the agricultural field and helps them develop an interest at an early age. The students love it; the teachers love it. It's a fun and educational way for the schools to take part in a very important aspect of our community,” said Fred Douglass Principal Amber Penn.

TFS District Forester Jason Ellis said the Ag Day presentation will be moved inside if it rains.

Ellis said the TFS will have two stations, one on wood products and the other on equipment used to fight wildland fires. He said they will display different items for the students to look at and decide if they are made with wood or not, including some items that may surprise them. The firefighting items will include a dozer, transport truck and firefighting gear.

Nikki Penn said the students enjoy the wood product question-and-answer session with the TFS, which will also explain the importance of timber to the environment.

She said TPWD game wardens will discuss poaching and show some animals seized from poachers. They will also show some animals found after natural disasters.

Aaron Sanders of Southwest Dairy Farmers will bring a mobile milking trailer complete with a dairy cow for a live demonstration. Sanders will discuss the importance of milk and calcium in people's diets.

The Master Gardeners will talk about landscape, plants and the importance of vegetation and nutrients found in foods. Master Gardener Keith Billings will present the program at the Demonstration Garden at the TFS office.

Wendi Green, County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences, will give a presentation on nutrition, including explaining the food pyramid and serving a healthy snack that incorporates what the Master Gardeners are growing in their Demonstration Garden.

County Extension Agent for Ag/Natural Resources Rene McCracken and Monica Thomasson will give a program on goats at their station. McCracken will discuss the 4-H element and talk about other animals that students can raise. Thomasson will use a milking stand to do a presentation on dairy goat farming.

County Extension Agent for 4-H/Youth Development Willie Arnwine and County Extension Agent for Ag/Natural Resources will set up an archery booth. Their program will promote 4-H, discuss archery as a 4-H activity and teach the kids about archery safety.

The Ag Day event is one of two sponsored annually by the Cherokee County Farm Bureau, Nikki Penn said.

The one in the fall is held in Jacksonville for northern Cherokee students and the one in the spring is held in Rusk for Alto, Rusk and Wells students.