Madison County Extension Agents want and need to bring attention and awareness to the local community to keep Extension from being the "Best Kept Secret." Madison County Extension Council decided to host an event that will help bring attention and awareness to the unique resources available through the Madison County Extension Office.

The Madison County Extension Farm, Home and Garden Expo utilized various options for outreach for the event including billboards, radio announcements, and social media videos shared from Extension volunteers.  Local FM radio station, WCYO FM The Coyote, provided their live, local, on-location mobile van to share live updates during the Expo. We also utilized newspaper articles, newsletter bulletins, and flyers shared by volunteers across all program areas. The Expo was hosted by the Madison County Extension Council and supported by Extension volunteers as well as collaborative partners who are invested in the future of Extension. The event was held at the Madison County Fairgrounds in Richmond KY on Saturday September 28^th, 2024Than. There were more than 100 volunteers total for the event, spread across all four program areas.

Program areas featured various topics in booths or with guest speakers and demonstrations to ensure something useful and interesting for everyone.

The Agriculture and Natural Resources agent featured topics such as a meat cutting demonstration, honey and beekeeping, Ask a Farmer station, beef production, pasture/ hay/ and forage and weed identification. We also as hosted a panel of speakers consisting of local farmers who sell freezer beef for a question and answer session.

Despite rain and wind remnants of a major hurricane affecting our event, approximately 586 people attended the Expo. Of the total, 354 were adults and 232 were youth.

Evaluation data and program impact is still under review.