Ross SWCD To Celebrate 75th Anniversary
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(Chillicothe) – The Ross Soil and Water Conservation District will celebrate its 75th anniversary at the district annual meeting and banquet on August 18th at the Ross County Fairgrounds. The Annual Meeting Banquet will be held inside the Ross County Fairgrounds Multipurpose Building with doors open at 6pm and dinner served at 6:30pm.
This 75-year milestone is shared by nearly 300,000 farmers nationwide. Over a million farm producers are over age 65, and in the last 40 years, the average age of a farm’s principal operator has risen from 50 to 59. With these kinds of demographics revealing an aging farm population, the district will present an informative program about farm transition planning. Attorney Ryan Conklin, president of the Wright and Moore Law Firm, works with farmers and farm families to hand down their farm to the next generation, keep the farm in the family and pass on a viable farming operation.
Antique tractors and a history of the district’s 75 years of soil and water conservation will be on display at the Ross County Fairgrounds Multipurpose Building. Supervisors will also present the district’s annual report to residents, introduce new supervisors running for 2023, and present the district cooperator of the year award to recognize farmers who practice conservation to prevent soil erosion and protect water quality.
Doors open at 6:00 p.m. and a dinner buffet will be served by Sunroom Catering at 6:30 p.m. on August 18th at the Ross County Fairgrounds Multipurpose Building at 344 Fairgrounds Road in Chillicothe, Ohio. Tickets are $12 per person. Residents can make reservations at 740-772-4110, extension 116 or email the district office at admin@rosscountyswcd.org or visit www.rosscountyswcd.org. The RSVP deadline is August 11th.
Ryan Conklin, the speaker for the evening was raised on a family dairy farm himself and has unique experience with the law to assist clients with a variety of issues related to agritourism, wind and solar leases, farmland transactions, dispute resolution, and farm transition planning. The Ohio State grad joined the Wright & Moore law firm in August 2015 and became the president of the firm in January 2022.
With its history dating back to the dust bowl era of the 1930’s, and organized in 1947, the conservation district was formed to encourage and implement practices to prevent soil erosion, protect water quality, and encourage the stewardship of natural resources. The district receives most of its funding from the Ross County Commissioners, additional funds from the State of Ohio and is governed by a volunteer Board of Supervisors.
Ross SWCD provides free technical assistance to landowners implementing conservation practices through the farm bill or for the CAUV tax program. The district provides county services related to geographic information systems, residential neighborhood drainage and runoff, wildlife habitat, and a broad range of conservation initiatives. Residents can find more information about Ross Soil and Water online at the district website www.rosscountyswcd.org or call the district office at 740-772-4110, extension 116.
