By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
Agriculture touches the lives of everyone, and a regional museum wants to educate more people about the importance of agriculture.
The National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame in Bonnor Springs, Kansas has been teaching people the importance of agriculture since 1960, when President Dwight Eisenhower signed a federal charter to make the building a reality
President of the Board of Directors Dave Hurrelbrink says the goal of the center is a three-pronged approach: To promote, to honor, and to educate people about agriculture
"Less than 1% of the US populations involved in the production of food, that means there's 99% of the population that probably doesn't have any idea at all of where their food comes from or how it gets there," Hurrelbrink tells host of the KFEQ Hotline Barry Birr.
Hurrelbrink says they see a lot of kids come to the ag center and teach them about how that happens, and even how it was done in the past.
More commonly known as The Ag Center, the museum has a goal of teaching everyone the importance of agriculture and where their food comes from.
Hurrelbrink says one way the center will educate children is with the Barnyard Babies Family Festival in late April.
"We'll have farm animals there that the kids can come out and pet and talk to and see and understand that that chicken doesn't just show up at Kentucky Fried, somebody has to raise that chicken, or that goat, or that sheep, or that pig," Hurrelbrink says.
The event will be held on April 27th from 1oam to 4pm.
The museum also features several educational programs, and also contains a Hall of Fame, honoring important figures in agriculture.
Hurrelbrink says the people honored in the Hall of Fame runs the gamut.
"It's everybody from George Washington Carver to John Deere, to Jerome Increase Case, to Cyrus McCormick, to Willie Nelson, Hurrelbrink explains.
Hurrelbrink says Nelson was honored back in the 1980's due to his part in the Farm Aid movement.
You can learn more about what the Ag Center offers and the Hall of Fame by clicking HERE and visiting their website.