St. Croix Central High School FFA Chapter gift caps successful Fall Commodity Drive
Friends of the St. Croix County Fairplex in collaboration with the St. Croix County 4-H Dairy Committee are finishing an outstanding year of fundraising thanks to the great support of county organizations, businesses and individuals.
The annual Fall Commodity Drive received a very nice $7500 boost from the St. Croix Central High School FFA Chapter which chose to dedicate their annual Corn Drive proceeds towards helping to fund construction of Dairy Barn #2. “According to Brady Henry, Chapter President and Bill Emery, Chapter Faculty Advisor, “the decision to keep the funds in St. Croix County resonated with both the donating crop producers and the Chapter members for both of whom the St. Croix County Fair is an important annual event.” At press, thanks to the generosity of many St. Croix County Producers, $30,000 has been raised by this fall’s commodity & scrap drive, a new record!
Over the course of the year several major donations have been received; led by $24,000 from St. Croix Electric Cooperative in recognition of their 75th anniversary. Strong support continues to be received from County 4-H Clubs driven by a $4,400 donation from the Roberts Ribbon Reaper’s 4-H Club and a $475 donation by the Baldwin Wide Awake 4-H Club. 4-H Club donations total over $13,000 to date. County 4-H Clubs are also the primary drivers in the Renovations for Generations Raffle which, since 2007, has raised over $44,000 above expenses. The decision by Megan Schulte, True Blue 4-H Club, to donate her steer to this year’s Raffle was a totally unexpected contribution to its success. Additionally many other organizations including both Hudson Rotary Clubs, businesses and individuals have contributed to this year’s success.
According to Chris Libbey, “not only have we collectively raised the funds to completely pay for Dairy Barn #1, but we are well on our way to starting Dairy Barn#2 with over $50,000 raised out of the $75,000 needed to begin construction! Plus, we have a nice start on funding the Horse Barn and, thanks to Prism Plastics, we have a new Equine Equipment Storage Shed ”. According to Terry Mitchell, local dairy farmer and a long time supporter of 4-H and the Fair, “The generous participation, from businesses and private citizens, has really helped to make the capital improvement campaign for the St. Croix County Fairgrounds get off to a fantastic start. With their continued support, our fairgrounds will serve the county for generations to come”.