Ohio Farmer

Ohio Bits: Slots open for OFB’s leadership program; Cattlemen’s youth raise over $22,000.

March 3, 2022

3 Min Read
John Wilson
STATE CONSERVATIONIST: USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service recently named John Wilson as the new Ohio state conservationist.Courtesy NRCS

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service recently named John Wilson as the new Ohio state conservationist. Wilson recently served as the deputy state conservationist for NRCS in Arkansas.

In his role as the state conservationist, Wilson will provide soil, water and natural resource conservation leadership, overseeing programs and partnerships that provide both financial and technical assistance to private landowners to improve the health of their operations while protecting natural resources for the future.

Wilson is a graduate of Alcorn State University and earned a bachelor’s degree in both agricultural economics and agricultural education. He began his career with the Soil Conservation Service (which later became NRCS) as a student trainee in Michigan.

In 1998, Wilson moved to Ohio as an assistant state conservationist for field operations. In 2007, he became the state administrative officer. In 2014, he was appointed to the assistant state conservationist for programs position and oversaw Ohio’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program, Conservation Stewardship Program, Regional Conservation Partnership Program and Conservation Innovative Grants program until 2020, when he became the acting Ohio state conservationist. 

Apply for OFB’s AgriPower leadership program

Ohio Farm Bureau Federation will select 10 individuals to participate in AgriPower, a leadership and advocacy development program designed for farmers and agribusiness professionals. It will consist of seven multiday institutes over a total of 17 days. Applications are due April 22.

Topics covered will include public policy matters facing local communities, the state of Ohio, the nation and the world. Additionally, specific sessions will help class members develop important skills necessary to become an effective leader and advocate for agriculture.

Two of the institute sessions will be held out of state (one in Washington, D.C., and the other location will be decided at a later date) to help class members gain a valuable understanding of national and global issues.

For application details, a schedule of sessions, more about the program, and tuition and scholarship opportunities, visit ofbf.org/agripower.

Cattlemen’s youth raise money for Ronald McDonald House Charities

Youth ages 8-21 in Ohio Cattlemen's Association BEST Program like to dress up their cattle. In doing so, and in conjunction with an online auction, they raised more than $22,000 to benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio.

The Celebrity Showdown on Jan. 28 at the Champions Center in Springfield, Ohio, challenged participants to raise a minimum of $100 to dress up cattle to present them to the celebrity judge. This year’s judge was Shawn Flarida, owner of Shawn Flarida Reiners, of Springfield, Ohio. Youth participating in the Celebrity Showdown raised $8,334 for the show.

The team that took the lead with fundraising was HR Cattle Company with $2,025 total raised. The other teams or participants with the highest fundraising numbers were Austin Sutherly with $1,500; Jordan Flax and Sophie Wilson with $1,300; Lara, Lexi and Rylan Rittenhouse with $830; Ella and Emma Grimwood with $759; and Cassidy Harris, Annabelle Harris, Eli Creech, Andrew Johnson, Annabelle Johnson, Annie Johnson and Harper Creech with $500.

The overall Celebrity Showdown winners chosen for having the best costume were Jordan Flax and Sophie Wilson, both 14 years old, with their U.S. military costume.

Additionally, an online auction was held with numerous items selling. Thanks to the many generous supporters, $14,614 was raised.

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