The Pike County Farm-City Committee was named the Best Farm-City Committee in Division II during the Alabama Farm-City Awards Luncheon in Birmingham.

The committee also received the Division Media Coverage/Proclamation Award and the Target Award for adhering to the 2018 theme of “200 Years of Alabama Agriculture.”

“Our committee members are very honored to be named the Best Farm-City Committee in our division,” said Deborah Huggins-Davis, committee chair. “Recognitions are always appreciated and especially with so many outstanding and hardworking Farm-City committees throughout the state.

“This award really honors the hard work and devotion of Randy Hale who chaired our committee for the last several years. His untimely death left a huge void in our committee. Randy was our rock. He is greatly missed.”

Hale was the 2018 Farm-City Volunteer of the Year. During his tenure as Pike County Farm-City Committee chairman, the group earned numerous honors as Best State Committee in Division II.

Hale was memorialized during the awards luncheon and a donation was made to a local food pantry from the  Alabama Farmers Federation in his memory.

“Randy wasn’t just committed to the Pike County Farm City Committee, he was dedicated to the farm-city relationships throughout the state,” Huggins-Davis said.  “He will be missed by many in many ways.”

Huggins-Davis said the committee is extremely proud of Asa Thompson, who won the 2018 Alabama Farm-City Poster Contest for kindergarten-third grades.

“Asa is a third grader at Pike Liberal Arts and his poster is outstanding in telling the story of ‘200 Years of Alabama Agriculture,’” she said.

The Pike County Farm-City Committee is an arm of the Pike County Chamber of Commerce and is dedicated to linking the nation’s rural and urban communities.

“The Pike County Farm-City Committee works throughout the year to promote the relationships between our rural and urban communities,” Huggins-Davis said. “The Farm-City Banquet during National Farm-City Week in November is a huge event where we honor our farmers for outstanding contributions in different areas and also our city partners. We also recognize our Farm-City poster winners.”

Huggins-Davis said the Farm-City Committee is active throughout the year with activities and events for all ages.

Farm Day is held annually for all third graders in the county and provides an opportunity the youngsters to experience a day on the farm.

“We also have host a Day in the Forest for fifth graders throughout the county,” she said. “They learn about good forestry practices and pond management. The committee is also involved with Take a Kid Fishing Day at Clay Hill Farms.”

The committee has a farm-related booth at the Pike County Fair and participates in the annual Peanut Butter Festival.

“We have a Farm-City tour where our members tour an agriculture-related business or a farming operation,” Huggins-Davis said. “The Chamber’s Pike Leadership group tours local businesses that are farm-city related. We also have special projects and tours that relate to farm-city relationships.”