Celebrate Ag Day!

March 20th is coming! How appropriate that the first day of spring is also National Ag Day. Whether you know it or not, agriculture provides almost everything we eat, use and wear on a daily basis. National Agriculture Week and National Ag Day is the time members of the agricultural industry come together to promote American agriculture.

You may ask "why should we celebrate Ag Day?" A few key reasons...

- increased knowledge of agriculture and nutrition helps you make better and more informed decisions about diet and health

- informed citizens help establish policies supporting a competitive agricultural industry in this country and abroad

- there are many employment opportunities in agriculture (including farm production, food science, processing and retailing, education, landscape architecture, urban planning, energy, and many more)

- from kindergarter to 12th grade, all students should receive some ag instuction

- agriculture is too important to only be taught to the small percentage of students considering careers in agriculture

- agricultural literacy includes an understanding of agriculture's history and current economic, social and environmental significance to all Americans. This understanding includes some knowledge of food, fiber and renewable resource production, processing and domestic and international marketing.

For more information about Ag Day and the importance of agriculture in our society, please visit the Agriculture Council of America website, www.agday.org.

Be sure to thank your local farmer!

Chaplin Receives Award

Thomas Chaplin, a Darlington County farmer,

was presented the Environmental Award by Woodmen of the World, Lodge 52, at the State Awards Meeting on May 14th. ArborOne's own Peggy Merritt (pictured right) presented the award to Mr. Chaplin.

Don Boice, (pictured left) VP - Relationship Managers at ArborOne, praised Tommy Chaplin farming operation, calling him "a fine example of a farmer caring for his community by using environmentally sound practices."

Don also noted how much more our farmers, such as Mr. Chaplin, are aware of the need to conserve our land for future generations and they do this with practices such as no-till farming.

Woodmen of the World is one of the largest fraternal benefit societies with more than 810,000 members who belong to more than 2,000 lodges across the United States and conduct volunteer projects that benefit individuals, families and communities. For more information please visit http://www.woodmen.org/.

Dedicated Employee Retires at end of May

Life's about to be a beach for Judy Brown (shown at right with Jack Shuler, President & CEO of ArborOne) who will be retiring at the end of May. After 35 years with ArborOne, she is looking forward to spending more time with her family and relaxing on the beach. We're going to miss you, Judy - but wish you nothing but perfect weather!

ArborOne Charity Golf Tournament - June 19th

It's going to be a beautiful day for golf at The Traces on Friday, June 19th, for the first ArborOne Financial Charity Golf Tournament Benefiting The CARE House of the Pee Dee. Sponsorships are still available for holes ($100) and beverage carts ($500).

This 4-person, Captain's Choice tournament will begin with lunch at 11:30, followed by a shotgun start at The Traces Golf Club in Florence. Cash prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place, and also for "closest to the pin" and "longest drive" winners.

For more information visit the ArborOne website or call ArborOne at 843.662.1527. We will be happy to fax or e-mail you an application.

First-Ever Video Contest "Keepin' It Rural"

Farm Credit video contest celebrates life in the country and ArborOne is calling for entries to the first-ever Keepin’ It Rural video contest.

Entrants can submit funny, inspiring, unusual, or amazing farm- or rural-themed videos for cash prizes. Full details and rules will be disclosed when the contest Web site, www.iKeepItRural.com, goes live on May 1. Videos may be submitted through Oct. 31, 2009.

Video submissions may be posted on an ongoing basis on the contest site as well as featured on the Keepin’ It Rural channel on YouTube.

"This is about sharing and enjoying what’s fun about farm and country life," says Mike Mooney, contest manager with AgFirst Farm Credit Bank. "It’s not about making fun of rural life, although I’m sure we’ll get some of those, too!"

The contest is sponsored by Farm Credit and open to residents of the 15 states included in the AgFirst Farm Credit District. They are: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio.