by CrownRandall | Jan 26, 2025 | Agriculture
VERSAILLES – On Saturday, February 22nd from 7:30 am until 12:00 p.m., the Versailles FFA & FFA Alumni will be hosting an Omelet Breakfast to recognize the local agriculturalist and promote the agriculture industry. There will be free omelet breakfasts for all in attendance. This breakfast is free but will require RSVP to ensure proper breakfast.
The breakfast will also include: a farm toy show, kiddy tractor pulls, agriculture displays to promote the industry, and farm displays created by the local youth. This event will be open for all of the public to enjoy.
Toy Show Vendors that will be present at the breakfast include: Kris Hinton from Rockford, Kris’s collection includes custom farm toys, small-scale livestock and machinery buildings, Jim Ford of Athens collection focuses on: 1/64 scale farm toys and custom-built farm toys, Tom Barga of North Star collection focuses on custom and scratch built farm toys and 1/64 scale farm toys, Roger Heckman of Versailles with various tools and 1/64 scale farm toys and Winner Farm Toys of North Star with assortment of Ertl and New Ray farm toys from 1/64 scale up to 1/16 scale. Buckeye Farm Toys will be available from Austin Timmerman and he will be selling 1/64th scale farm barns, buildings and more.
On behalf of the Versailles FFA chapter, we like to personally invite and encourage the youth of Darke County to participate in a farm toy display contest. Again, this contest is completely cost-free. Awards and monetary prizes will be awarded for each division sponsored by the Darke County Farm Bureau. All participants will receive a small prize; however, first place in each division will receive $25.00, second place $15.00, and third place $10.00. All displays along with a tag with your name and age must be delivered to the Versailles FFA advisor, Mrs. Dena Wuebker, at Versailles Schools near the Greenhouse door (door 4) from 7:30 am to 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 20th. All displays will be judged prior to the breakfast and the Farm Displays will be displayed on the stage of the cafetorium all attendees will be enabled to view the displays. Farm displays can be torn down and loaded out between 12:00 p.m. and 1:30 pm on Feb 22nd.
The rules and regulations for the Farm Youth Display can be received by emailing [email protected] find the information on the Versailles Exempted Village School website under the high school followed by the FFA link.
Please RSVP for the breakfast to either Dena Wuebker at 937-423-2369 or through the above email, or contact Taylor Bergman at [email protected] or 937-621-9136 or contact Versailles FFA President Colin Batten at 937-621- 6909. Please RSVP for the breakfast by Feb 18th.
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by CrownRandall | Jan 26, 2025 | Agriculture
VERSAILLES – Versailles FFA & FFA Alumni Soup & Sandwich Social Set for this Friday, Jan 31st. The Soup and Sandwich Social will be in conjunction with the Versailles Home Basketball Games Varsity Basketball game against Delphos St Johns. Due to scheduling conflicts, the soup and sandwich social will be held on Friday, Jan 31st and we will be serving from 4:00 pm to 8:30 pm.
The Versailles FFA Alumni & FFA Chapter will conduct their 29th Annual Soup and Sandwich Social this Friday, January 31, 2025 in the Versailles Schools Cafetorium at 280 Marker Rd, Versailles, Ohio. Serving will run from 4:00 pm to 8:30 pm. All the proceeds benefit the Versailles FFA and Versailles FFA Alumni Activities and Scholarships.
The menu for Soup and Sandwich Social will consist of Homemade soups, sandwiches and desserts. Carry-outs are available; make plans to attend the 29th Annual Versailles FFA Alumni & FFA Chapter Soup & Sandwich Social on a new date this Friday, Jan 31st.
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by CrownRandall | Jan 26, 2025 | Agriculture
DARKE COUNTY – A project involving local community members with lived experience of substance use disorder (SUD) is being featured as a success story of the HEALing Communities Study (HCS) in Ohio. In 2022, the Adult Probation Department of the Darke County Common Pleas Court assisted with the recruitment of participants for a Photovoice project led and funded by the HCS.
Photovoice is a research methodology where participants take photographs to highlight strengths or concerns in their community. They then meet as a group, along with researchers, to discuss, assess, analyze, and propose solutions to the issues, assigning captions to the photographs, and ultimately sharing the project with community leaders and decision-makers. The goal is to amplify the voices of and empower vulnerable and marginalized individuals, like those experiencing or in recovery from substance use.
Darke County’s HCS Photovoice Project featured themes related to stigma toward those with SUD and the successes and challenges faced during recovery. Their work has been shared with the Coalition for a Healthy Darke County, members of Governor DeWine’s RecoveryOhio Advisory Council, and other organizations.
One participant notes the project’s positive impact: “This was probably the first time I felt it was okay to share my feelings of being an outcast, a throw-away, and someone who didn’t deserve another chance.” They continue, “My hope through this research is to remove the barriers and stigma…and to encourage people to not be ashamed or afraid to get some help.”
From January 2020 through June 2022, Darke County took part in the HCS intervention as one of 19 participating counties in Ohio. The study allocated funding for county coalitions to lead a community-engaged, data-driven process to select and implement evidence-based practices. A health communications campaign was also implemented in each county to reduce stigma and increase demand for evidence-based practices. The study was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)’s HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-term®) Initiative.
“People in recovery from or living with substance use disorder can provide us with guidance on how best to support them along their journey. As researchers, we need to listen to and work with them to identify solutions that lead them to recovery and help them maintain recovery long-term,” says Bridget Freisthler, Ph.D., who worked as one of the principal investigators of the study at The Ohio State University. “We are so appreciative of the community members who participated in this project and taught us about their experiences with addiction.”
More information about study results, as well as the full success story, can be accessed by visiting https://u.osu.edu/hcsohio
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by CrownRandall | Jan 24, 2025 | Agriculture
GREENVILLE – We’re thrilled to share some exciting news about a group of talented students from our community who recently showcased their skills at the County Ag Power & Diagnostics Competition, hosted by Koenigs Equipment!
Mason, Marissa, Bo, and Wyatt each competed in this highly competitive event, testing their knowledge and expertise in agricultural mechanics, diagnostics, and problem-solving. Their hard work, preparation, and passion for agriculture were on full display as they took on a variety of hands-on challenges, from troubleshooting machinery to diagnosing and repairing complex systems.
Highlights from the Competition:
Mason demonstrated exceptional problem-solving abilities, quickly diagnosing issues with agricultural equipment and applying his technical skills to repair and optimize performance.
Marissa impressed the judges with her precision and attention to detail, excelling in the diagnostic challenges and showing a true knack for understanding the mechanics of agricultural machines.
Bo brought his team spirit and determination, tackling each task with confidence and a keen understanding of agricultural technology, proving that teamwork and skill go hand in hand.
Wyatt showcased his advanced knowledge of agricultural systems, solving difficult issues with efficiency and demonstrating a true passion for working with cutting-edge machinery.
This competition was a fantastic opportunity for these students to apply their classroom learning to real-world scenarios, and we couldn’t be more proud of their achievements. They’ve gained valuable experience that will serve them well in their future agricultural careers.
A huge thank you to Koenigs Equipment for hosting such a fantastic event and for providing these students with the chance to shine. We look forward to more opportunities like this to support and nurture the talents of our young agricultural professionals.
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by CrownRandall | Jan 24, 2025 | Agriculture
GREENVILLE – Lucas Timmerman, Jeremiah Wagner, Caden Adkins and Levi Subler represented the Versailles FFA in the Darke County Agricultural and Industrial Diagnostics Career Development Event (CDE) Contest on Thursday, January 23rd at Koenig Equipment in Greenville, Ohio.
Lucas and Jeremiah placed 1st overall and Caden and Levi placed 6th overall. A total of 12 teams competed in the county contest.
As part of the contest, they took a written test and participated in 6 stations in which each piece of equipment they worked on had several malfunctions. Each team had 20 minutes to detect the problems and use diagnostics equipment to detect issues.
A special thanks to Koenig Equipment in Greenville for hosting the Darke County Contest. A special thank you to Noah Shimp and Noah Barga for helping coach the team and Koenig Equipment and North Star Hardware and Implement for hosting the Versailles FFA for a practice.
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by CrownRandall | Jan 24, 2025 | Agriculture
I hope this Newsletter finds you well. The temperature has been quite cold overall, and we’ve had some snow in Darke County (https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?fips_39037). Continue to travel safely in these winter conditions.
The next Darke County Garden Roundtable and January 30th at 6:00 p.m., at the OSU Learning Center. The agenda is attached to this email.If you have any questions or topics you would like me to discuss ahead of time, please use the following survey link: https://osu.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_06zzY8Kwhnmd4Nw.
For those needing to renew their pesticide or fertilizer licenses, there will be two training sessions in Darke County to recertify. The first will be January 31st, with pesticide training beginning at 9:00 a.m. and fertilizer training beginning at 1:00 p.m. The second training date will be February 20th, beginning with fertilizer training at 4:30 p.m. and pesticide training at 6:00 p.m. Both sessions will take place in the meeting room at Darke DD, 5844 Jaysville-St Johns Rd, Greenville, OH 45331. Please note that on the notification letters sent out, I made an error. The letter states that the 31st is a Thursday, but it is a Friday. Please also note that these recertification trainings will be taking place in neighboring counties as well, if you are unable to attend in Darke County. If you need to register for one of these sessions, or if you have any questions, please reach out to me.
If you are in need of Beef Quality Assurance Certification, I will be providing a training session in partnership with the Darke County Cattlemen’s Association. The event will take place on February 1st, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., and will be in the Ansonia High School Cafeteria. The training is free for all DCCA members and youth, and is $10 otherwise. More details can be found in the attached flyer.
HPAI in Western Ohio and Indiana remains an important matter. The number of HPAI cases can be tracked using the ODA website at the following link: https://agri.ohio.gov/divisions/animal-health/hpai/01-poultry. Continue tracking the number of cases and follow biosecurity principles to best prevent the spread of HPAI and other diseases. Biosecurity practices are important for both commercial and backyard poultry raisers to do what we can to minimize the spread of HPAI. The recording for the recent HPAI webinar can be found at the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/FSbbJWROqvLE845lyQYCVa-2bpIVbfpxi8xWn_g77oceOn2k5-7DGZtdoFUNCmrm.PNKcUUWIpdmvA9Ua. The passcode to join is V!8BYZ=H
I will be at Worch Library on February 13th at 6:00 p.m. to discuss Making Pesticide and Fertilizer Decisions. Here, we will discuss the considerations that go into applying pesticides and fertilizers to your fields and gardens. I hope to see you there!
The next Darke County Ag Breakfast will be February 21st at 7:30 a.m., held at Jack’s Cabin in Greenville.
Let me know if you are interested in a copy of the eFields Report, or if you have any interest in working with OSU Extension on future research projects.
This week’s Newsletter topics include:
· Cattle in a Cold Snap
· Conducting a Feed Supply Checkup
· Foot-and-Mouth Disease Outbreak in Germany
· Long-Term Care Planning on the Farm
· Using Antibiotics on the Dairy Farm
I hope you enjoy this week’s Newsletter, and as always, never hesitate to reach out to me and let me know how I can best serve you and all of Darke County.
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