Barren County has had a county agriculture extension agent since 1920.  I am the fourth, so needless to say folks in this position stay.  The South Central Kentucky Cultural Center holds an annual program entitled, Harvest of History.  The Harvest of History is held general close to Halloween, and is features local historical figures portrayed by community members.  The program takes place in the historic Glasgow Municipal Cemetery.  In the 2022 Harvest of History I was able to portray J.O. Horning, Barren County’s first county agriculture agent.  I use the opportunity to teach people not only about Mr. Horning, but Extension, the Land Grant System, and the impact they have on rural America.  Over the course of 3 nights over 175 people came through on the lantern guided walking tour.  Attendees would stop along the paths in the cemetery and hear a 15 minutes monologue by the actor portraying the historical figure.  I never meat Mr. Horning, but over the course of the event, I had the opportunity to visit with several folks who knew him.  Each had a story of how he and Extension impacted their family.

Many, many folks have expressed their enjoyment for the event and commented on how much they learned.   A video was sent to Mr. Horning’s last living child and she in turn sent me the handwritten note.  The note was very complimentary and she reiterated her father’s love for this community.

Even after Extension working in this county for over 100 year, citizens still need to be educated on the mission of the Land Grant and Cooperative Extension.  Community engagement activities such as this one help to advertise the extension service in the nontraditional ways and therefore reach nontraditional audiences.