Sometimes effective programming isn’t reinventing the wheel but finding new ways to engage your community with new resources.
That’s the strategy Barry County Farm Bureau took with its Connecting Communities initiative at Hasting Public Library’s Family Science Night. Barry had a booth among MSU Extension, the Kellogg Bird Sanctuary, 4-H and other STEM-friendly community organizations. While this wasn’t their first time at the event, they brought their A-game and reached 350 kids and 170 adults making their way through the exhibit space.
A sensory bin filled with shelled corn, soybeans and animal figurines kept little hands busy while meaningful conversations took place about food and farming with interested parents.
Andrea Ellens is a farmer, registered dietician and Barry County member who volunteered at the event.
“It was a very laid back and something we loved being a part of,” she said. “Even though the activities are directed at the kids, there was a lot of passive listening and great conversations with adults.
“The soybeans in the sensory bins brought up a lot of questions, from explaining what they’re used for to how they’re dried. There were a lot of adults who had never seen a soybean before.”
The star of the show was the debut of Barry’s new farm directory fridge magnet (pictured), which features kitchen conversions and a QR code to the county’s new farm directory.
Promotion & Education Chair Katie Christie, a driving force behind compiling the directory shared the origin for the idea.
“I noticed people on Facebook asking where they could buy local farm products, from beef to honey to elderberry,” Christie said. “I thought it would be helpful to have one centralized place for community members to reference rather than filtering through posts and social media.
“Since we started the directory, we’ve had a wonderful response from the community and have been working with the local food council to promote it.
“It also has been a great way to show local consumers that Farm Bureau is more than an insurance company. There’s no charge to be included and we don’t limit it to members. It’s an initiative of the county Farm Bureau and it’s started a lot of conversations about what we do — that we’re here to work with farmers and the community.
“It aligns with our initiative in recent years to focus on community engagement.”
The newly launched resource features more than 20 local farms, where to find them, business hours and contact information.
Ellens shared how Connecting Communities grant funds helped launch the new resource.
“The Connecting Communities dollars helped buy the fridge magnet, which has been instrumental in getting the website out and driving interest in the directory,” she said. “The directory helps showcase our county’s farmers, and the adults were really excited the kitchen conversions magnet, so we know they’ll put it on their fridge and see our directory every day.”
The 2024 Connecting Communities Grant program awarded 54 county Farm Bureaus $1,000 grants to meet the consumers where they are. Looking to hold a similar event with your county Farm Bureau? Contact Barry County Farm Bureau for more information.
