Congratulations to Jody Jackson, the 2013 Joe B. Fulgham Agriculturist of the Year. The following is the text of the speech given when he was introduced:
Agriculturist of the Year Presentation
The 2013 Joe B. Fulgham Agriculturist of the Year is a graduate of Athens High School. His lifelong ambition has been to farm, raise cattle, and enjoy that way of life. He started with a few cattle and a poultry laying operation selling eggs. He now runs a commercial cow/calf operation raising quality Brangus replacement heifers for sale to other ranchers, a feed steer operation growing out approximately 150 steers a year, custom tractor work, baling hay and planting sprigs. That is what you call a full-time farmer.
Our award winner has been active in Henderson County by serving as a trustee for the Murchison School District, served on the ASCS county committee, was one of the first to serve on the Henderson County Beef Cattle Committee when it first started, served as a Grand Jury foreman for the Henderson County DA’s Office, was a former member of the FFA and an officer during high school, is a member of Ash Baptist Church and a strong supporter of the Murchison Volunteer Fire Department.
He also supports the youth of Henderson County by being a Livestock Show buyer at the stock show, supports local 4-H chapters, and is a breeder for Henderson County Livestock Show commercial heifer projects.
Our recipient works to improve his operation by improving the machinery he has to work with. He brought one of the first round balers to Henderson County, he field tested the first series of Gehl round balers and Clauss round balers, created the first rake frame with PTO drive shaft to pull a square baler, created a more efficient way to rake and bake round bales by using one tractor to do the work of two, and he has designed a self unloading hay trailer to feed hay to cattle during the winter more efficiently. His farming operation includes approximately 21 Massey Ferguson tractors.
The 2013 winner of the Joe B. Fulgham Agriculturist of the Year is Jody Jackson. Mike Davis summed up Jody Jackson’s award nomination like this: “Jody will be embarrassed by recognition of this type but he believes in the future of farming with knowledge instilled by his early FFA training. He can still quote the FFA Pledge if asked and what his office duties were. Jody Jackson is the person you can call with rain about to get your hay wet on Saturday evening and ask why your square bale won’t tie a knot and usually he can get you going over the phone by following his instructions. Problems with tractors, especially Massey Ferguson, are handled just the same. If a neighbor is in trouble, he is the first one to pitch in to help out. He doesn’t complain about things he just gets the job done. His years of experience in farming and ranching have given him the knowledge to handle almost anything that life can throw at you!” He is married to Deborah, his childhood sweetheart that he courted by horseback, and has two children: Melissa Davis and Matthew Jackson.
Please join me in congratulating Jody Jackson as the Henderson County Agriculturist of the Year for 2013.