The river counties of Ballard, Carlisle, Hickman and Fulton are situated along the far western boarder of Kentucky. These counties consist mostly of rural farmlands and wildlife reserves, leaving limited access to many resources available to residents of more populated areas. The number one industry in the area is agriculture, with many residents having ties to farming in one way or another. FCS & ANR Extension Agents in the four river counties saw a unique opportunity to collaborate to provide the often overlooked and underserved women of the agriculture industry with an innovative, educational program: “Women in Ag.” By combining efforts into one location centralized among the four counties, the collaborative was able to maximize reach and provide a larger audience with a higher quality experience than available in each small individual county. Community partnerships with local ag businesses provided sponsorship for reinforcement items and a catered meal. Agents would work together to promote the program in their local counties and communities using flyers, promotional materials, newspaper announcements, and social media. The agents worked with Extension Specialists and local agriculture professionals to identify pertinent issues and information.  “Women in Ag,” a half day seminar, was created that would include rural mental health and farm stress, affordable and nutritious ways to prepare pork, and updates from the USDA Farm Service Agency and a Farm Analysis update from a local tax professional. 

Recent tragedy in the area highlighted the need for resources regarding rural mental health, farm stress, and the challenges associated with living in an area with extremely limited mental health resources. Dr Paul Norrod was brought aboard to address these disparities and normalize the conversation about mental health by providing an engaging presentation about Rural Mental Health & Farm Stress. Dr Norrod discussed mental health challenges, identified farm-specific stressors, explained the biological effects of stress, and explored methods of helping yourself and others. 

The collective audience of women in agriculture provided a perfect opportunity for a local tax professional to provide a Farm Analysis Update, informing the audience with up-to-date tax and financial information that could benefit their farming practices. The USDA Farm Service Agency also gave an update, provided the participants with current farm assistance programming and information. 

Having many pork producers in the area, the collaborative team decided to include a demonstration of pork preparation using recipes from the USDA Kentucky Nutrition Education Program (KYNEP). The FCS Agents assisted Hickman Co FCS Agent Mike Keller as he demonstrated how to safely handle and prepare a pork tenderloin. Participants were able to sample the dish, KYNEP recipe Autumn Apple Pork. 

A catered meal was provided for all participants by sponsor River Valley AgCredit, a local ag credit cooperative. The program concluded with post participation evaluations and door prizes from community sponsors. Informal follow-up interviews were conducted with key informants representing the different counties to determine satisfaction with location and programming.

Impact

Participant surveys revealed an overall positive outlook on the program. 

1. 98% of those surveyed said they were some to very capable in making changes in their farming and family life after the farm stress presentation
2. 95% of those surveyed said they increased awareness of farm programs that could benefit their farming practies
3.  65% mentioned that they were very capable of dealing with taxes and financial planning. 
4. 73% of those attending felt they would use information in the slow cooker demonstration. 
5. 100% of those surveyed said the sessions were just right in length and to the point.