7-18-07
Contact: Larry Kemmerlin, (803) 936-4246

YOUTHS ATTEND
STATE LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

Some 62 high school juniors and seniors from around the state recently participated in the 2007 South Carolina Farm Bureau (SCFB) Youth Leadership Conference.

The annual SCFB conference was held on the campus of Columbia College and featured a number of workshops that focused on developing leadership, team building and legislative involvement along with programs that built understanding and awareness of agriculture. The students had the opportunity to tour Clemson University and learn about the opportunities available in agriculture, and visit a diverse midlands farm where an Ag Olympics competition was held.

According to SCFB Women’s Program Coordinator Faith Lawrimore, “Today’s youths have a greater opportunity to succeed than the generations before them. They have more knowledge and information at their disposal and have higher degrees of technology at their fingertips. This conference is designed to entice participants to learn about the many opportunities in agriculture while enhancing their leadership skills.”

Lawrimore added, “They can be the new blood of agriculture keeping South Carolina’s agricultural industry a vital part of the state’s economy.”

The conference was coordinated with the assistance of state and county Farm Bureau Women’s Committees, who, in addition to working with this event, sponsor a variety of other educational and promotional programs each year.

SCFB is a non-profit organization designed to promote the interests of agriculture in South Carolina. There are more than 130,500 member families statewide, with more than 33,000 of those families directly involved in South Carolina farming.

Persons interested in supporting agricultural education are encouraged to contact their county Farm Bureau office or the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation at www.scfb.org for additional information.

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