Lisa Brown, Stephanie Norris and Sharon Morris at the Bonny Oaks office
Trustee Bill Hullander made sure that his two offices had full participation in the annual Agriculture Day on Tuesday.
His staff at the downtown Courthouse and at the Bonny Oaks office were dressed in farm attire.
Homefolks Restaurant and its owner, Rick Hall, provided the offices a delicious country lunch including barbeque, vegetables, and cornbread.
Trustee Hullander said his staff dressed up in their ranch and farm attire "to show support for all the farmers who help feed, clothe, and supply fuel to us."
He added, “This great meal today from Homefolks has come at a good time for the staff who have worked hard during this tax season, especially under unusual conditions.”
The trustee noted that the Hamilton County Farm Bureau and the Hamilton County Soil Conservation District have made possible for each third, fourth and fifth grader in the Hamilton County Schools to learn about agriculture.
These resources were made available by the Tennessee Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom. Ag in the Classroom (AITC) holds a one day workshop for teachers. Those who attend will receive a resource kit and approximately $200 value of educational resource material. It is important to teach students how agriculture is needed for our survival by providing food, clothing, shelter, and fuel, said Trustee Hullander, who still lives on the Apison farm where he grew up.
He said Hamilton County has approximately 100,000 acres filed under greenbelt or Greenbelt Law. Greenbelt Law is the Agricultural, Forest and Open Space Land Act of 1976 that allows land to be taxes on its present use instead of market value.
Tennessee is comprised of 69,700 farms with 10.9 million acres or 40 percent of the state’s land area. Tennessee is ranked #2 in the nation for forestry with $10.7 billion worth of forest products used for the manufacturing of wood products, paper, and furniture. Tennessee is also ranked #12 in the nation for beef cattle and calves, and is one of the top beef-producing states in the U.S.
Shown at the Courthouse are Carey Estill, Carol Brogan, James Davey, Trustee Bill Hullander, Rick Hall of Homefolks Restaurant, Jeff Bethune, Melinda Walraven, Terri Ellis, Susan Bedwell, Natasha Lewis and Marlie Jones