The Annual Chamber of Commerce Ag Appreciation Dinner was held on Thursday night, March 11 in the Reddy Vineyards Red Barn Event Center.
A great meal of steak, green beans, mashed potatoes and tiny bundt cakes was served to the over 100 guests in attendance. Guests agreed that the first outing after the COVID Mask Mandate was lifted was literally like a breath of fresh air. The steaks were prepared by Jerry Weaver and his cooking crew. Tencha’s provided the extras.
President of the Chamber, Layne Marlow welcomed guests to the event and Board Secretary Gina Kelly offered the invocation reminding folks to look for the blessings even in hard times.
Dan Jackson, Manager of the Meadow Farmer’s Coop Gin, was the featured speaker. He talked about the resiliency seen in producers and how they rally to help each other on any occasion. He closed with the famous, “So God Made a Farmer,” by Paul Harvey.
The Terry County Ag Champion award was given to Dr. Jim Ridenour for his work for the students in Terry County, as well as his contributions to farming in general. Dr. Jim was surprised by the award and was gracious in his acceptance.
The last event of the evening was the reverse drawing for the Kubota Tractor given by Terry County Tractor. After many drawings and bids on tickets, the final ticket was drawn and the Kubota was won by Kayla Hale. This was a fundraiser for the Charles Orum Scholarship. Several past winners of the scholarship spoke about receiving the scholarship and how it has helped them.
Dr. Jim, who is in charge of the Orum Scholarship Foundation stated, “I am so thankful the Chamber let us partner with them. It really made a great evening. We have had to change so many things up this year. It was nice to be able to actually do the drawing in person.”
Sponsors for the event were Farmhouse Vineyards, MIVA Equipment Rentals, Carter and Company Irrigation, Prosperity Bank, Brownfield Farmers Coop, Terry County Tractor, Terry County Vet Hospital, Gore Cold Storage, Lyntegar Electric, Nutrien Ag Solutions, and Birdsong Peanuts.
Special thanks to Chamber Executive Director Lorena Valencia for all the hard work getting ready for this event.
A great evening of fun, celebrating the farmers who work the land!
