GREENVILLE — The Darke County Chamber of Commerce’s annual “Ag Day,” held Friday at Romer’s Catering in Greenville, saw awards given to a radio station and a businessman in honor of their contributions to local agriculture.
Radio station WTGR “The Tiger” 97.5 FM received the Chamber’s Agricultural Advocacy Award, while Karl Keller was the recipient of the Chamber’s Agriculture Achievement Award.
Sam Custer, Ohio State University-Darke County Extension educator, presented the Agricultural Advocacy Award to WTGR. On hand to accept the award for the station was radio personality Alex Mikos.
“This is something I think we’ll be able to treasure and hold onto,” said Mikos. “This means a lot. We greatly appreciate the honor.”
Karl Keller, the other awardee, is owner and operator of Keller Grain & Feed, with locations in Greenville, Brookville, and Pitsburg. The business was founded in 1933 by Karl’s father, Ray.
Christoph Keller, the son of Karl, who was unable to attend while out of state on business, accepted the Agriculture Achievement Award from Chamber Ag Chairwoman Beverly Delk.
“It’s been a real honor to be part of the agricultural community,” he said. “Without all you farmers out here, we wouldn’t be where we are today.”
WTGR and Keller also received commendations from representatives on hand from the offices of the Ohio Governor and Lieutenant Governor, the Ohio Secretary of State, the Ohio Treasurer, and U.S. Representative Warren Davidson.
After the award presentations, Dr. Aaron Wilson, a senior research associate at the Ohio State University’s Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, spoke to the audience about “Climate Extremes and the Effects on Agriculture.”
Wilson explained the difference between climate and weather, showed a number of charts and graphics showing long-terms climate trends, and how a warming trend studied by scientists is anticipated to cause stress on livestock and crops in Ohio and the Midwest in the future.
“We’re looking at a change in temperature of about four to five degrees around 2071, and overall that means we’re going to have a much longer frost-free season,” he said. “If we look at the average precipitation, the trends are pretty clear that we’re going to see three to five inches more rain per year by 2070, 2071.”
Approximately 275 people attended this year’s event. The event sponsor for the gathering was Crop Production Services of Ansonia and Greenville.
For more information on Darke County Chamber of Commerce happenings, visit the Chamber’s website at www.darkecountyohio.com.
