Berks County Conservation District Annual Awards Banquet

transcript

Berks County Conservation District

Farmer of the Year

Tim Kurtz ~ Kurtland Farms

Tim and Deborah Kurtz and their family own &

operate a third generation dairy farm

Kurtland Farms is located in

Caernarvon Township

The operation presently consists of 425 Cows,

350 Replacements and 300 Crop Acres

Erosion Control Plan Designer of the Year

Earned a Bachelor of Science in Landscape from Penn State.

As a registered Landscape Architect Karen has won several awards from the National Paver Institute & local garden clubs.

Employed at John Hoffert Surveying, responsible for all Erosion and Sediment Control projects.

Serves as Chair of the Millcreek Township Planning Commission; President of the Community Center Board; member of the Newmanstown Fire Company Ladies Auxiliary

Karen Krater

Contractor of the Year

Barwis Construction LLC Founded in January 2004,

Barwis is a land development / site-work contractor located in Berks County Offer full service land

development packages for commercial, government, subdivisions, PENNDOT and residential projects

Barwis Construction believes in going the extra mile when it comes to natural resource conservation

Conservation Individual of the Year

Kimberly Fies Worked in the conservation

field close to 20 years; starting with water quality sampling then advancing to do Chesapeake Bay Program implementation & Tulpehocken Creek Watershed coordination.

Served as the County’s biosolids land application monitor, provided farm plans for the mushroom industry & managed several grant projects.

Worked with the Natural Resources Conservation Services to develop conservation plans and install best management practices.

Since 2009, has annually monitored over 650 farms in the Berks County Agricultural Land Preservation Program to ensure they maintain compliance with the

easement.

INSERT PHOTO HERE

Conservation Group of the Year

Kutztown Future Farmers of America (FFA)

Left to RightKristy Heffner, President Trinity Hamm, Vice PresidentBarron Kistler, ReporterMeghan Glover, Member

Celeste Ball, FFA AdvisorBottom Row - Left to Right:

Alya Blatt, Calliope Yoffe, Jacob Fairchild, Justin Fairchild , Kyle Lubak

Top Row - Left to Right:Frank Mohr, Meghan Glover, Jamie

Sieffert, Barron Kistler, Trinity Hamm

September 2013“Before”

November 2013

“After”

Project in Kutztown PA

Conservation Groupof the Year

Reading Environmental Advisory Council (EAC)

David BeaneAndrew Molteni

Callie WhiteBarbara Cole

Pier Ignozzi-Shaffer

~ Members Not Pictured ~Cathy Curran-Myers

City Employees: Shelly Katzenmoyer-Deputy City ClerkDeborah Hoag-Environmental Division Mgr.

Hold quarterly Rain Barrel workshops throughout the City of Reading

Participates in the Smart Growth Alliance to foster future land use and development in accordance with sustainable principles

Drafting an amendment to the City’s Zoning Ordinance to address Alternative Energy to promote and regulate the use of geothermal, solar, wind, hydro and biomass systems

Provided input on the City’s Municipal Separate Stormwater Sewer System (MS4) permit

Outstanding Achievement of the Year

Berks County Jail System

Composter

SawmillThe jail takes pride in various innovative conservation efforts and practices:

RAIN BARRELS are painted and constructed by jail maintenance staff & inmates used in the Conservation District’s rain barrel program. IN-VESSEL COMPOSTER SYSTEM has been constructed; the system mixes pre and post consumption food waste, leaves, tree trimmings and grass clippings from the jail campus. This was an effort to help reduce the amount of waste material going to landfills. HOMEMADE SAWMILL is used to cut wood from trees that have fallen or been removed from County property. Some cut wood was used to replace the old deteriorated floor boards in the Heister mansion barn.

Rain Barrel

Scholarship Recipients

$4,000Berks County

Conservation District Scholarship Recipient

MATTHEW BEEKMAN

Matthew Beekman

Freshman at Delaware Valley College, Environmental Science with a minor in Agribusiness

Member of Collegiate FFA,

Horticultural Club, Outdoor Club and Rock Climbing ClubGrew up on his family

farm, representing the 4th generation of the family business

$1,200Berks County

AUSTIN STOUDT

Austin Stoudt

Senior at Conrad Weiser high school, focusing on science

Will be attending Kutztown University as Biology major this fall

Interests include being a musician, martial arts – has achieved a 2nd degree black belt

$1,000Berks County

ZACHERY ZIMMERMAN

Zachery Zimmerman Senior at Muhlenberg

High School Plans to attend SUNY

(State University of New York) Cobleskill campus, NY to major in Animal Science

Interests include hunting, fishing, and hopes to one day own and operate a farm raising Texas Longhorn cattle

$500Berks County

Conservation District Memorial Endowment Scholarship Recipient

TYLER PARR

Tyler Parr

Senior at Oley Valley High School

Will attend Penn State Berks, major in Agriculture Business

Interests include marching band, concert band, stage crew, track and field, and church activities, hunting, hiking

Worked at Hawk Mountain Scout Reservation as a council to cub scouts and a cub nature assistant director

$500Solon Phillips Memorial Scholarship Recipient

CALLISTA MILLER

Callista M. Miller

A senior honor student at Oley Valley High School

Plans to attend Penn State University majoring in Food Science & Technology with a focus in Food Chemistry or Food Engineering

President of the Oley Valley FFA , member of the National Honor Society, Tri-M (music honor society), German Honor Society, a violist in the Reading Symphony Youth Orchestra

$1,000Pomona Grange in

Memory of Henry Bohn Scholarship Recipient

ASHLEY MOHN

Ashley Mohn

Sophomore at Delaware Valley College, majoring in Dairy Science, minors in Ag Business and Media, Communications

A member of Sigma Alpha, a sorority for agriculture women, Collegiate 4-H and FFA, and Dairy Society

Dream job is promoting the dairy industry by working in the public relations or marketing design unit of either a dairy processing plant or a business in the dairy industry

$1,000Pine Creek Watershed

Association Scholarship Recipient

BRITTA SCHUMACHER

Britta Schumacher

Junior studying Geography at Penn State and the Schreyer Honors College

Research interests lie at the interface of parks and people

Traveling to Tanzania this summer to study and to complete her thesis research on the impacts of climate change on agriculture in Mang'ula, TZ

$800Steven “Eldridge” Skelly

Memorial Scholarship Recipient

Catharine Scoboria

Senior at Berks Catholic High School

Plans on attending Penn State to study mechanical engineering

Involved with the Reading Berks Science and Engineering Fair for 6 years, this is the second year she won Reserve Champion

She is involved in the National Honor Society, Peer Listeners, and Student Ambassadors

Reading Berks Science Fair Special Award

Schuyler is a student at Governor Mifflin

Her project is titled: Don’t Muddy the Water:

The Effect of Ground Cover on Soil Erosion

Schuyler Osgood

Thank You!Agricultural Team

Urban Team

Operations Team

Directors

Berks County Conservation District Annual Awards Banquet

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