Extension Matters: Volume 3 Number 3

  • 2 young men in green field with calf on a sunny day

    All in the Family

  • 4 women holding mastectomy drain pouch bags—small, square sacks laced with ribbon

    Extension Where You Are: Strategic Stitches

  • Woman standing on pier in lake holding cup of water

    Clear, Cool Water

  • wooded paved road at dusk

    Picturing Mississippi

  • brightly colored wooden fence and gate

    Ruth’s Roots Rehabilitation

  • young males and females of various ages with black Angus heifers in livestock show

    Celebrating Steers

  • Joe Davis with two 4-H'ers with a champion heifer

    A Cattleman's Calling

  • A 4-H volunteer leader with two 4-H members at a 4-H Shooting Sports event.

    Doing the “Heart” Work

  • A child uses colorful LEGO bricks at a 4-H Robotics competition.

    What's New in Extension

  • Wild hogs caught in a trap.

    Going Hog Wild

  • Russell Carroll, a housing authority official, shares his story about Extension training.

    Healthy Homes Awareness

  • A male retiree in a plaid shirt and khaki slacks sits in front of a piano. On its soundboard is a picture of his late wife in her wedding gown and gloves.

    Leaving a Legacy

2 young men in green field with calf on a sunny day

Cayleb and Landry Dyess are two of only a handful of siblings ever to have two grand champion animals auctioned in the same Dixie National Sale of Champions, but they prepare for each event the same way as every 4-H’er who competes.

They start getting ready for the next show the day after they come home from the last one.

4 women holding mastectomy drain pouch bags—small, square sacks laced with ribbon

When the Delta Cotton Belles needed help with their breast cancer support program, they called on the Greenville Area Town and Country Mississippi Homemaker Volunteers club.

Woman standing on pier in lake holding cup of water

Not all water is so delicious that people ask for it to be carried across state lines.

Kate Lartigue of Poplarville is particularly pleased to share her water after attending a Mississippi Well Owner Network workshop offered by the Mississippi State University Extension Service and the Private Well Class. 

wooded paved road at dusk

Jonah Holland, a teen in the Tishomingo County 4-H Youth Development Program, became a leader for the 2017 4-H Photo Safari in March in Northeast Mississippi.

brightly colored wooden fence and gate

Before she became the Hancock County Youth Court judge, Elise Deano was a school teacher. She jokes that she became a lawyer because she taught school, but Deano wants to make sure young people get an opportunity to turn their lives around.

young males and females of various ages with black Angus heifers in livestock show

The 2017 Dixie National Sale of Junior Champions saw 43 champion market animals auctioned at the annual sale. During the weeklong 2017 Dixie National Livestock Show in Jackson, judges selected 14 hogs, 10 goats, 10 lambs, and 9 steers for the sale. 

Joe Davis with two 4-H'ers with a champion heifer

When third-generation cattleman Joe Davis was a teen, he had no idea his competition in the show ring would one day be his Extension agent in Union County.

A 4-H volunteer leader with two 4-H members at a 4-H Shooting Sports event.

Until recently, the Clover Dawgs 4-H Robotics team in Oktibbeha County needed a bigger robot. Club volunteer leader Robert Rice secured the first donation toward purchasing the machine from his employer.

 

A child uses colorful LEGO bricks at a 4-H Robotics competition.

4-H Debuts New Curriculum · Extension Develops Workforce · La-Z-Boy Donates Fabric · Stars Focus On Sustainability · Extension Directs Herbicide Training · Youth Discover Dairy Science · Soil Lab Welcomes New Manager

Wild hogs caught in a trap.

Trevor Garrett stays busy. He divides his days between farming soybeans with his father, Johnnie Ferrell Garrett, and working as a research associate at Mississippi State University's Pontotoc Ridge–Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station.

Russell Carroll, a housing authority official, shares his story about Extension training.

He is already good at what he does as maintenance supervisor with the Canton Housing Authority, but Russell Carroll wants to be even better.

Anytime he gets a chance to participate in a training program, he takes it. Russell Carroll cares about sharing the best practices—and implementing them—to benefit the tenants on his watch.

A male retiree in a plaid shirt and khaki slacks sits in front of a piano. On its soundboard is a picture of his late wife in her wedding gown and gloves.

In 2016, Myrtle native Michael Hale was looking for a meaningful, lasting way to remember his late wife, Vicki M. Smith.

 

 

 

 

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Extension Matters Issues

Message from the Director

Dr. Gary
Jackson

Our Mississippi State University Extension team continues to take on-and solve-the challenges our clients face, whether related to agriculture, natural resources, youth development, family and consumer sciences, or government and community development. I am very pleased with the contributions Extension faculty and agents continue to make in developing and delivering programs based on Mississippians’ needs.

I also appreciate having the opportunity to serve as Extension director, and a major highlight of my day-to-day responsibilities continues to be hearing from clients who share how Extension works for them. These comments, several of which are highlighted in this issue, show Extension’s continued impact through educational programming and local service.

One Northeast Mississippi row-crop farmer shares how Extension gave him the tools he needed to destroy the wild hogs eating his soybeans, while a private well owner and a housing manager explain how Extension assistance has allowed them to enhance their home safety. Also, a longtime Master Gardener volunteer gave back to Extension, in honor of his late wife, by providing a generous donation that will benefit the program throughout the state.

Additionally, a 4-H family that participated in the 2017 Dixie National Sale of Champions talk about how livestock competitions are shaping them for future success. Another 4-H’er, who excels in 4-H expressive arts projects, developed a photo essay to share the 2017 4-H Photo Safari with you. Finally, two fathers explain hoe Extension inspired each of them to give back to the organization by becoming 4-H volunteers.

It’s what Extension is doing in the field that resonates with our clients. They know our local Extension agents, and they know many of our Extension specialists and faculty members. The work they do is making a difference. I believe Extension education is reinforcing our clients’ initiative, self-determination, and leadership, and Extension, as it has been for more than 100 years, is the link between the people and the latest science-based research. 

Sincerely, 

Gary Jackson
Director, MSU Extension Service