Clint Thompson
Country Financial continues to support the educational investment of today’s youth learning about agriculture, the No. 1 industry in Georgia.
Bart Hester, agent with Country Financial in Moultrie, Georgia, talked about his company’s support of the Youth Challenge, a competition for Georgia teens held in conjunction with the Sunbelt Ag Expo in October.
“The youth challenge is from grades 6th through 12. It’s agribusiness, agrimechanics, floral arrangements, horticulture and overall knowledge of it. They compete in two divisions; the junior division, which is 6 through 9, and the senior division is grades 10 through 12,” Hester said. “It’s during the whole Expo up until late Wednesday afternoon. It’s a really cool way that Country invests in the growing knowledge of farm and agribusiness industry for the youth. We really enjoy it.”
He said the event involved youth from such organizations as Future Farmers of America and 4-H. It was open to any individuals that wanted to participate.
“We had them from all over the state of Georgia. It was incredible; from as far as Rabun County to Walker County to all through the state this year. It was really cool to hear the groups that were there,” said Hester, who emphasized the importance of supporting youth-based events. “If we don’t have young folks coming up in it and wanting to do this kind of work, we’re all going to be in a world of hurt. That’s one reason that Country does it; it’s just a solid, great program to sponsor those kids.”
Hester also sponsored the Young Farmer dinner, which allowed him to talk about the important role Country Financial plays in providing insurance options for producers.