WYOMING CO., N.Y. — Wyoming County 4-H Family and Consumer Science Educator Roxanne Dueppengiesser has been going the extra mile to offer exceptional youth educational activities every day as part of her work at Cornell Cooperative Extension since 1996. She incorporates activities that support local agriculture into educational events, special opportunities for youth and activities in the community. “She is an amazing example for kids on what being a leader and educator in the agriculture industry should be like,” according to the Wyoming County Friend of Agriculture nomination we received. On Saturday, Wyoming County Farm Bureau and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Wyoming County along with 320 guests at the Wyoming County Pride of Agriculture Dinner at the North Java Fire Hall recognized the Dueppengiesser.
Roxanne builds a schedule of engaging activities each year in the youth building at the Wyoming County Fair. Many of those activities, like the “Shake Off” competition, the smoothie contest, the ice cream bar and more tie directly back to milk or local agricultural products. Roxanne gets youth from all project areas involved in these activities by walking through the barns and personally inviting animal exhibitors to participate.
Another skill building program Roxanne leads it the ‘Produced in New York Foods Contest”. 4-H members are judged while silently demonstrating the preparation of a recipe made with a New York grown product as the main ingredient. This helps youth to learn about local agriculture and nutrition at the same time.
Whenever people are planning an activity to promote agriculture in the County or a local community, Roxanne is looked to for help with children’s activities. She is known for having a treasure trove of activities that will engage children and help tell the story of agriculture.
Just this week, Roxanne was observed putting that extra finishing touch on the 4-H Public Presentation Program. She is dedicated to making certain children are recognized for their accomplishments in the 4-H Program in their home town. As she prepared news releases announcing the results of the 4-H Public Presentation contest, she was carefully selecting pictures and customizing a press release for each newspaper that serves the county to ensure recognition for their accomplishments were passed along to as many deserving youth as possible.
Just a couple of years ago, Roxanne turned the focus of the local 4-H Career Exploration Trip to agriculture. With a grant from the NYS Agricultural Society, she spearheaded a tour to local Western New York Businesses showcasing agricultural careers from the farm supply chain and processing to retail sales. The day-long event gave youth first hand exposure to many of the career paths one can take that have a connection to farming and food.
Roxanne’s influence also reached into the Holstein community where she and her husband Pete served as advisors to the local Junior Holstein Club. They made certain dozens local youth had opportunities to attend the NY Junior Holstein Convention at various locations across New York over the years. She and Pete hosted practices for the many contests and competitions at their home for months prior to the conventions. For many years, Roxanne could be found organizing little britches showmanship, giving many a child their first opportunity to show a calf at the Wyoming County Fair even before they were eligible to participate in 4-H Programs.
More recently, Roxanne assisted Pete with organizing transportation for tours at the National Holstein Convention when it was hosted in Saratoga Springs.
Roxanne and Pete were active participants in local and NYS Farm Bureau Young Farmer Program. Today, Roxanne is a member of the Warsaw Friends of Agriculture Committee that supports the agriculture program at Warsaw Central School.
We recognize Roxanne for her kind and gentle enthusiasm for helping children learn about agriculture and participating in 4-H and Junior Holstein Activities and events throughout our community. Roxanne’s signature special attention to detail can be found on any project in which she gets involved. If you see Roxanne be sure to thank her for all she does to support agriculture in the local community and beyond.
–Cornell Cooperative Extension Wyoming County
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