Jennifer Osborn of University Extension told the Worth County Commission as well as Monday’s Extension meeting that $11 million worth of Food Stamp Education funding (SNAP) for the state was eliminated in the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” recently signed by President Donald Trump. That means that plenty of specialist positions will be eliminated. University Extension will be able to keep the curriculum that they developed over the years; they will have to find another way to deliver it.
In better news for the area, Worth County will have its own Youth Program Associate. Funding for that position will come from the state, the Extension Council, and the Worth County Progress Organization. There are two applicants for the position, and the next step will be interviews.
The hope is that a Youth Program Associate will be able to revitalize 4-H around the county; in past years, there have been 40-50 kids involved in the county. But travel sports, school athletics becoming a year-round program just to stay competitive, and pressure on kids to work has hurt 4-H participation. The goal now for the state is for every county to have its own YPA.
The new Strategic Plan for Worth County has been put together; the next goal will be to identify and work with existing resources.
At Monday evening’s Extension meeting, Kyle Dignan reported that the Livestock Show that was held with Gentry County this year was a success. There were more participants involved, and chickens and rabbits were shown for the first time. The tentative plan is to have it at the same time next year.
Gwen Funk reported on All-America Selections, which researches and tests the best garden items that people can grow. They are one of the oldest such organizations, having started in 1932. They have 200 places around the US, including nine in Missouri, including at the Hundley-Whaley Farm in Albany.
There are many vegetables that have stood the test of time, such as the Imperator Carrot, which was given an award by the organization in 1933. But they are constantly looking to develop new food plants and flowers which will thrive today.
Many of the new items they selected include varieties such as the Black Forest Ridge Dahlia, which can handle both drought and flooding. Hundley-Whaley has experienced both this year. Despite that, nearly all of theirs germinated.
Among other vegetables and flowers Ms. Funk highlighted that got awards were the Konstance Kohlrabi, a purple kohlrabi, the Purple Magic Broccoli, which is purple as its name implies, the Captain Magnifica Dianthus Carnation, the Dekka Maxx Pink Petunia, the Bauer Lettuce, which can grow in almost any setting, the Yellow Red Heart Snapdragon, and the 1984 Tomato Celebrity, which has stood the test of time for 40 years.
A new regional mental health task force was formed a few years ago by Judge Robert Rice, and there is a lot of interest in improving peoples’ mental health in the area. Research has shown a lot of mental health benefits from gardening, including stress and anxiety reduction, mood enhancement, mindfulness, focus, improved attention span, especially for people with ADHD, memory retention, self-esteem, connection, belonging, exercise benefits, improved Vitamin D exposure from being in the sunlight, and improved sleep cycles.
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