By Emmy Powell
Communications Specialist

Madison County Farm Bureau and Waller County Farm Bureau were recognized by Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) for an event connecting Texas A&M AgriLife Extension agents with Farm Bureau.

Leaders from Madison and Waller County Farm Bureaus joined Extension agents from 18 counties for the Agricultural Agent Retreat. The two-day event was designed to strengthen partnerships, share ideas and highlight how collaboration can better serve their communities.

The counties were recognized with the County Activities of Excellence Award during TFB’s 92nd Annual Meeting Dec. 5-7 in Arlington and also earned the same distinction from the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). The award celebrates unique, volunteer-driven programs led by county Farm Bureaus.

Sessions focused on program planning, youth livestock validation and community engagement.

“We met with the county Extension agents over dinner where we talked about Texas Farm Bureau programs,” Kevin Counsil, Madison County Farm Bureau president, said. “One of our high school students talked about her experience at TFB’s Thrive Conference and how it impacted her. Another young lady, who was a scholarship winner at the local level, talked to them about scholarships at the county and state level.”

County leaders also highlighted TFB’s Ag in the Classroom efforts and other educational programs that can benefit schools, as well as advocacy efforts in Austin and Washington, D.C. that helps agricultural producers.

The Extension agents also toured several agricultural operations, including a mushroom processing facility and two cattle operations.

“We invited them out to a few operations while they were in our county,” Counsil said. “Some of these Extension agents came from urban areas like Houston and Beaumont where agriculture isn’t as prominent.”

The tours offered a broader view of the diversity of Texas agriculture, reinforcing that farming and ranching take many forms across the state.

Partnerships between county Farm Bureaus and Extension agents help amplify agricultural education and producer outreach efforts at both the state and local levels.

“This retreat helped bridge that gap and show Extension agents the grassroots side of Farm Bureau and how both groups can collaborate to promote agriculture,” Wesley Paben, Waller County Farm Bureau president, said.

Paben noted the joint effort also encouraged learning between counties..

“It’s a way to be a united front and learn from each other,” Paben said. “If one county has a program that is really working, then it can be picked up by other counties and help promote agriculture that way.”

Madison and Waller County Farm Bureaus displayed a booth at the TFB 92nd Annual Meeting in Arlington. The counties were also recognized on stage and received a $1,250 cash award and a County Activities of Excellence plaque.

They will also be highlighted during AFBF’s Annual Convention and Trade Show Jan. 9-14 in Anaheim, Calif.