Ohio Governor Mike DeWine will be the keynote speaker when the eighth annual Ag is Everyone’s Business event is held Monday, Feb. 24 at the Southern State Community College Patriot Center in Hillsboro.
A new feature to the event presented by the Highland County Chamber of Commerce will be breakout sessions, where ticket holders will have their choice to choose from three topics:
* Agriculture Business Roundtable to discuss solar energy in Highland County and other hot topics with Dr. Brooke Beam, Ohio State University Extension Highland County agriculture and natural resource/community development coordinator, and guest elected officials.
* Rules and Regulations of Ohio’s Hemp Program with Jim Belt, Ohio Department of Agriculture hemp inspection manager.
* Meat Production Practices lecture and taste evaluation with Dr. Lyda Garcia, assistant professor of meat science at Ohio State University.
Destiny Bryson, Chamber executive director, said landing the governor to speak at the event was possible because of committee members that help plan the event.
“Once the committee approved the idea of seeking the governor as our keynote speaker … I reached out to state Rep. Shane Wilkin, and he was able to get the information and the request to the right people in Columbus, and once the governor accepted our invitation, I worked with the his scheduler to get the date set. All of this coupled with the fact that Rick Williams is a lifelong friend of Governor DeWine, and may have asked him personally, also didn’t hurt our chances for him to accept. In all seriousness, I am thankful for Rep. Wilkin’s support of the event and for Rick’s dedication to serving on this committee year after year.”
Tickets for event are $20 presale and can be purchased by calling the Chamber at 937-393-1111 or by visiting the website at www.thehighlandchamber.com. Tickets will be available at the door for $25.
The doors open at 7:30 p.m. The catered breakfast begins at 8 a.m. and DeWine will speak from 9:15 to around 10 a.m. The breakout sessions will be from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m. in a designated area of the Patriot Center gym.
Andrea Holt of Ponderosa Catering will cater the breakfast including biscuits and gravy, sausage patties and potatoes. Water, coffee and orange juice will be provided by Highland District Hospital.
“The Chamber organizes this event for the ag community each year because ag truly is everyone’s business,” Bryson said. “It doesn’t take long to make a connection between our Chamber membership and the ag industry. The chamber is here to connect businesses and the community. This event is an opportunity to join our business community with our farmers and our future farmers. It is a chance to recognize how everyone is working together to bring the best products to the table… Agriculture is the number one economic driver here in Highland County, and for the state of Ohio. We have a true advocate in our corner with Governor DeWine, and his initiatives for better roads and clean water, coupled with funding measures that demonstrate his commitment to supporting the entire agricultural, food production and food service chain.”
The event committee members are Williams, Amy Hamilton, Brad Elmore, Jeff Dickey, Tim Parry, Jim Hamilton, Randy Lennartz, Austin Trueblood and Seth Phillips.
“The governor recognizes the importance of agriculture in Highland County and South Central Ohio and we are honored to have him as our keynote speaker,” Bryson said.
Reach Jeff Gilliland at 937-402-2522.
