Don and Meredith Halcomb, who have an Adairville address but are equally at home in Logan and Simpson counties, are a duo counted as one of three finalist for a prestigious award and a $10,000 prize in November.
The theme for the 2013 Kentucky Ag Summit is a subject of extraordinary and growing importance to us all: Farming – Stewardship of Our Resources. The Summit takes place on Thursday evening, Nov. 14, and Friday morning Nov. 15, at the Louisville Marriott East (Hurstbourne and I-64) in Louisville.
In order for farmers to farm, they need land, clean water, and healthy soil. From the pioneering of no-till farming in the 1960s, through today’s many and varied farm sustainability efforts to leave this place better than they found it, Kentucky farmers have a proud tradition of feeding, clothing, sheltering and fueling our nation and our world.
This year’s summit brings the Leopold Conservation Award east of the Mississippi for the first time! The winner of Kentucky’s inaugural award will be announced at our gala Thursday evening dinner. This is a great opportunity to showcase the outstanding work that has taken place across the state, to celebrate, and to learn from the examples of Kentucky farmers who have taken a thoughtful approach to conservation and stewardship of our natural resources.
“The Kentucky Agricultural Council is proud to be part of the Leopold Conservation Award program,” said Tony Brannon, 2013 chair of the Kentucky Agricultural Council. Given in honor of renowned conservationist Aldo Leopold, the Leopold Conservation Award recognizes extraordinary achievement in voluntary conservation. It inspires other landowners through these examples and provides a visible forum where farmers, ranchers and other private landowners are recognized as conservation leaders.
In addition to the Halcombs, the finalists are John Bednarski of LaGrange and Todd Clark of Lexington. “In this very first year, we received 19 high-quality applications for the Leopold Conservation Award from all across the Commonwealth,” said Brannon. “These three finalists — two of which are proud first generation farmers — truly represent award-winning Kentucky farmers who have taken a successful and thoughtful approach to modern production agriculture while practicing conservation and stewardship of our land.”
The three finalists will be recognized at the Leopold Conservation Award Dinner on Thursday, November 14, with the winner receiving a $10,000 award.
In the spirit of Aldo Leopold’s thinking, on Friday morning attendees will get a fresh view from an irrepressible spokesperson for these values – former Chief of the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Dave White. His talk will be followed by a panel discussion with other national, regional, state and local leaders about conservation policy, programs and practices. This continues to build on key issues featured in the KAC’s strategic plan for 2013-2018, and the theme of last year’s Ag Summit: Next Generation Farming.
For additional information, visit www.kyagsummit.com. Register online or by mail.Early registration ends October 24.