Surry County Extension and Community Associations marked their year’s achievements with a dinner meeting and awards presentation at the Shelton-Badgett NC Center for Viticulture and Enology on the campus of Surry Community College in Dobson on May 24.
The evening’s theme, “Savor the Flavor,” referenced the ways that ECA improves the flavor of lives of its members as well as everyone else in the county. Bryan Cave, Surry Extension eirector, announced that ECA members had performed in excess of 12,000 hours of community service volunteer work in the past year.
Presidents of the eight Surry County ECA clubs were awarded assorted chocolates to honor the individual and distinct flavors of their clubs. Club presidents are: Beulah – Goldie Sparger, Busy Bees – Lucy Browne, Dobson Early Birds – Kathy Hemmings, Good Neighbor – Glenda Hunter, Pilot Mountain Achievers –Marilyn Geiger, Salem Fork – Jean Hardy, Siloam – Carole Simpson, Marion Venable, Pat Crissman and White Sulphur Springs – Ann Davis.
Clubs of the Year were named according to standards of excellence.
In the small division, the gold award winner was Busy Bees, silver award winner was Salem Fork and the bronze award went to Good Neighbor.
In the medium division, the gold award winner was White Sulphur Springs and the silver award winner was Dobson Early Birds.
In the large division, the gold award winner was Pilot Mountain Achievers, the silver award winner was Beulah and bronze went to Siloam.
Katherine Gordon won the Community Association Youth Scholarship. Katherine plans to attend Lenoir-Rhyne University and major in Nursing and then continue her education to earn a degree in Occupational Therapy.
Growing up with a family history of the Surry Extension Homemakers Clubs and the Red Cookbook, Katherine is a member of the National Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society, Science National Honor Society and Social Studies Honor Society. Katherine has been named to the Surry Community College Fall 2015 President’s List, and Surry’s Chapter of National Society of Leadership and Success. Active in her church food pantry, Katherine has also been involved with Special Olympics, Red Cross Blood Mobiles and mentors young dancers.
The 2016 Surry County Extension and Community Association adult scholarship winner was Sally Southard. Southard has just graduated with an Associates of Arts degree from Surry Community College and will continue her education on-line this fall at East Carolina University where she will pursue a Bachelor of Science in Business Education Degree. Southard has been with Cooperative Extension for seven years and takes great pride in her work. Southard says “working with Extension has become much more than a job for me. It has become my home away from home; an extension of my family and the members of Extension and Community Association have played an enormous role in the reason I feel this way. I cherish the relationships and the memories that I’ve been fortunate enough to be part of and hope for many more.”
Southard was named to the Surry Community College Presidents List in 2014, the Dean’s List in 2015, and received the NC Cooperative Extension Administrative Award of Excellence in 2011 and 2013. Southard has served as the Administrative Professional Association treasure from 2013 to present.
