Department of Agriculture Honors 2011 'Women in Agriculture'

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
9/29/2011?
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) has chosen four West Virginia women as its “Women in Agriculture” honorees for 2011. The Department started the program in 2010 to recognize the contributions of women to West Virginia’s agricultural community and its rural heritage. Induction is granted to those women who have aided in the establishment, development, advancement or improvement of West Virginia agriculture, forestry, specialty crops or public services.

“West Virginia women have been a fundamental force in farming since the first pioneers crossed the mountains to settle this land,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass. “This year’s honorees embody the spirit of those early settlers and are keeping our state’s rural traditions alive through their work today.”
The 2011 honorees:

Jennifer Ours Williams is the first permanent female director of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Division of the West Virginia University Extension Service and is co-owner of Ours Valley View Poultry Farm, which raises more than 1 million birds yearly. The farm is also recognized as one of the leading cattle breeding operations in the state. She was a member of both the winning state FFA and 4-H poultry judging teams, and placed in the top five at the national 4-H contest. As an undergraduate, she represented WVU at the National Poultry Judging Contest. She was the first livestock marketing specialist at the WVDA. Jennifer has served on the statewide committee for the Summer Agriculture Institute, which provides educators from around the state with ideas on how to incorporate agriculture-based curriculum into their classrooms.

Pam West is the driving force at West Farm, which was the state Conservation Farm of the Year in 2009. Located outside Lewisburg, West Farm produces food and 120 varieties of flowers for The Greenbrier Resort, and is a major supplier to the local farmers’ market. Pam is also a sought-after speaker at conferences where she helps other farmers learn how to become sustainable, diversified and profitable. West Farm is one of the state’s pioneers in the use of high tunnels to extend growing seasons. During the winter, she grazes her sheep on rye grass planted in the tunnels.

Jane Tabb is the owner of Fresh Feast on the Farm and secretary of her family’s farm, Lyle C. Tabb and Sons, LLC. Fresh Feast hosts locally sourced, multi-course dinners at local farms to build appreciation for West Virginia’s agricultural products. The Tabb farm produces corn, soybeans, wheat, sorghum, hay and cattle. The farm also includes a recycling operation that collects manure from the nearby horse track and scrap material from the numerous construction projects in the area to produce mulch, horse bedding, sifted topsoil and compost. Jane has served on the state and county farmland protection boards, as a county commissioner, on the local economic development authority, and in various capacities with the Jefferson County Fair. She is the founder and primary organizer of the Jefferson County Farm Day, which began in 2002. Among other awards, she was named Jefferson County Citizen of the Year in 2007, and also won the Jefferson County Farm Bureau Distinguished Service Award in 2007. She is a 4-H All-Star and a 2000 recipient of the Governor’s “Salute Award.”

Cinda Francis is a registered forester and is employed as the sustainable forestry initiative forester with the West Virginia Forestry Association (WVFA). She and her husband also own Farmer’s Feed, a farm supply store in Ripley. She has given numerous presentations on safety, wood preservation, OSHA compliance and tax issues at numerous conferences. She has chaired the Jackson County Junior Fair Association’s trophy and ribbon committee for the past eight years and was also instrumental in raising funds for the construction of a new hog barn at the fairgrounds. She is completing her fourth year as president of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce and just completed a four-year term as president of the Gilmore Elementary PTO. She was WVU’s Outstanding Forestry Senior in 1993, WVFA Forester of the Year in 2008 and was selected as one of the State Journal’s “40 Under 40” in 2009.

For more information on the WVDA’s WIA program, or to nominate someone for the 2012 recognition, contact WVDA Marketing Specialist Tracy Fitzsimmons at 304-558-2210 or tfitzsimmons@wvda.us. Learn more about West Virginia’s Women in Agriculture at www.wvagriculture.org/Centennial/womeninag.html.

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