By Emmy Powell
Communications Specialist

An activity designed to boost agricultural awareness and knowledge among the community was recognized by Texas Farm Bureau (TFB).

Montgomery County Farm Bureau (CFB) created a hands-on activity for children to build their own bag of reindeer feed to learn about the nutritional value of each ingredient and showed participants how agriculture ties into everyday life and Christmas at the Downtown Conroe Christmas Celebration.

For these community outreach efforts, Montgomery CFB was one of three county Farm Bureaus recognized by TFB during the organization’s 89th annual meeting Dec. 2-4 in Waco. The award, County Activities of Excellence, recognizes unique, volunteer-driven programming by county Farm Bureaus.

It was also one of 24 county Farm Bureaus nationwide to receive a County Activities of Excellence Award from the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).

“This event allowed Montgomery County Farm Bureau to provide a hands-on activity, which created increased levels of engagement for both youth and adults while maintaining an agricultural focus during the well-attended Community Christmas Celebration, which previously did not have agricultural representation,” Mason Parish, Montgomery CFB board member, said.

County leaders developed the activity with the goal of reaching community members of all ages in the increasingly urban area.

“With a rapidly growing urban population, the county board identified the need to develop a unique activity to gain the interest of a diverse audience. The Reindeer Feed Store allowed us to teach agricultural principles through a hands-on activity,” Parish said.

At the Reindeer Feed Store, Montgomery CFB members guided children and helped them add hay for roughage, oats for protein and corn for energy into a feed bag they could take home and leave out for Santa’s reindeer.

The Reindeer Feed Store allowed for broad conversations about the nutritional needs of humans and livestock, while engaging in dialogue about how agriculture fits into Christmas.

“While the Montgomery County Farm Bureau anticipated that children might not fully understand all the agricultural principles on display, they could likely grasp the need to help Santa’s reindeer to be healthy and strong,” Shannon Parish, Mason’s wife and Montgomery CFB member who played a large role in the event, said. “We knew this would create a space for a shared interest in feeding Santa’s reindeer and open a unique door to teach youth and adults about agriculture by learning about different types of livestock feed.”

Montgomery CFB displayed a booth at the TFB 89th Annual Meeting in Waco. The county organization was also recognized on stage and received a $1,250 cash award and a County Activities of Excellence plaque.

Montgomery CFB will also be highlighted during AFBF’s Annual Convention and Trade Show Jan. 6-11 in Puerto Rico.