April 9, 2009 — To help Oklahoma companies, small businesses, entrepreneurs, and communities explore the many business and economic development opportunities involved with Oklahoma’s emerging wind industry, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce will hold Wind Commerce 2009: the Future is Now, June 23-24, at the Embassy Suites Norman Ok.
Cross Honors Laverne Jenkins
This cross stands 25 ft tall on a hill west of Campo, Colo. in memory of Laverne Jenkins. An engraved stainless steel plate has been added that reads, In Memory of Laverne Jenkins, 1937-2008, Lifetime friend and business associate, Clyde and LaVada Rodgers. 
(Don’t forget you can view this photo in color online at www.campoco.org. under community news.)
By: LaVada Rodgers
This 25 ft. tall cross made from 8 inch steel well casing was recently erected west of Campo on land owned by Clyde and LaVada Rodgers.
Rodgers stated that he had a dream about erecting a memorial to Laverne Jenkins, a life long friend and business associate. Laverne lost his life in September 2008 in an accident involving an ATV 4-wheeler. Rodgers stated that it would be appropriate to erect the monument on land bought and paid for in part by cattle dealings with Laverne.
Laverne often recalled a time when he and his young granddaughter came to help work cattle at the Rodger’s ranch. Suddenly a large swarm of bumble bees came out of nowhere. Laverne told his granddaughter to run and get in the pickup. Well, we always relate bees with something sweet, honey, flowers, etc, so that let Clyde off. Those bees sure took after Laverne and LaVada. They were buzzing around LaVada’s head and in her hair. She had her head down shaking her hair. Laverne was grabbing bees out of her hair. They attacked Laverne and got behind his eyeglasses and stung him a few times. Most of the bees left just like they came, leaving behind a few to keep us on our toes. After that, Laverne always called Rodger’s ranch “The Honey Bee Farm.”The cross is best viewed from road 21 between roads J and M. We hope this is a blessing to family and friends as we remember Laverne. The cross will remind us also of the hope we have through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
We appreciate the friends who helped build this cross and get it moved and erected on a difficult place to work. It required some special equipment to get this job done. Thank you Brent Schroder, Brett Johnson, Joe Dixon, Eugene Nidey, Les, Zane and Katie Jenkins.
Laverne was a very special guy and will always be remembered.
STATE HAY DIRECTORY CONNECTS BUYERS WITH SELLERS
Oklahoma City- If the groundhog’s prediction is correct Oklahoma livestock producers have a lot more winter to deal with this year and some may be in danger of running low on hay. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry’s online hay directory is available and up to date for both buyers and sellers.
”We’ve been receiving an increased number of calls from both buyers and sellers recently so we need to remind everyone about the directory,” said Glen Schickedanz, ODAFF market news coordinator. “The directory is kept up to date as we delete all entries after 60 days unless sellers tell us they still have hay for sale and wish to remain listed.”
The Oklahoma hay directory is online at www.oda.state.ok.us and the hay hotline is still open at 1-800-580-6543. Schickedanz can be contacted through the hay hotline or by email at glen.shickedanz@oda.state.ok.us.
More Wind Turbines in Cimarron County to Help With America’s Energy Crisis
This is the first of what is promised to be a number of press releases from Oklahoma Wind Investors.-Ed.
by Doris Lee McCoy
Director of Communications
Boise City, Oklahoma, February 9, 2009 – Oklahoma Wind Investors, LLC. (OWI) is in the intermediary steps of building and operating eco-friendly wind parks called the Keyes Project. Oklahoma Wind Investors is a division of World Wide Energy Inc. It is a dynamic multidimensional, clean energy company.
This project will help to reduce dependence on foreign oil, and it will help reduce carbon emissions in the U.S. The Keyes Transmission and Wind Parks Project are the first of a series of other projects to bring solutions to America’s energy crisis.
Gideon Cowan, CEO and President of OWI, LLC from Oklahoma City envisioned how Oklahoma with its strong wind power can share its natural resources with other parts of the country. Renewable resources has been a passion for Gideon for over 22 years. He sees these skills as a way to help the United States at a crucial time in our history.
Keller Speaks For Generation Energy
by C.F. David
Karl Keller, of Generation Energy, speaks to a crowd about wind generation and the company’s vision for Cimarron County.
Generation Energy’s spokesperson, Karl Keller explained to a capacity crowd at the Cimarron County Show on Tuesday afternoon, how his company discovered Cimarron County. Keller explained that his company was a member of the Oklahoma Wind Power Initiative, and that Cimarron County Commissioner John Freeman had found them on the O.W.P.I. website and invited them to look at Cimarron County. They were excited by what they found and have applied to the Southwest Power Pool to sell electricity. “You only had one negative, no transmission lines,” Keller said. But he added that the problem of transmission lines wasn’t insurmountable.
Oklahoma Launches Plan to Battle Eastern Redcedar
Eastern Redcedar Mapping Project
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 2:00 p.m.Oklahoma Commissioners of the Land Office, 5801 North Broadway, Oklahoma City, Okla., Conference Room Suite 200.
Horse Disease Could Affect Oklahoma Breeders
Oklahoma City-Oklahoma agriculture officials are warning horse breeders of a rare, contagious disease that can result in infertility in mares. Contagious Equine Metritis was confirmed last month in Kentucky and one Oklahoma mare has been identified as having been in contact with an infected stallion. The mare is under quarantine and is not considered a health threat of any kind.”This is a disease that poses no threat to humans but it could potentially pose a serious economic threat to our state’s horse industry,” said State Veterinarian, Becky Brewer. ”It is transmitted between animals during breeding and at this time we have no documentation that it can be spread through artificial insemination.”Infected stallions can carry the CEM bacteria yet show no clinical signs of the disease. She said detecting the disease is difficult and requires multiple tests over a period of about a week to determine if a horse is infected. Infected horses can be successfully treated with antibiotics.”The most important thing for Oklahoma horse breeders to know at this point is that the disease is here and biosecurity measures are critical,” Brewer said. ”We have no knowledge of any infected stallions in Oklahoma and owners should be cautious before shipping a mare out of state for breeding. ”Breeders collecting semen for artificial insemination should also make sure they thoroughly clean and disinfect collecting equipment after each use,” she said. ”This is how it is being spread and keeping this equipment clean is important.”CEM was first diagnosed in the U.S. in Kentucky in 1978 and then a year later in Missouri. Both outbreaks were quickly eradicated. More information is available on the USDA website at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom/hot_issues/cem/index.shtml.
OKLAHOMA TRADE MISSION RETURNS FROM CUBA
Oklahoma City-An Oklahoma agricultural trade team led by State Secretary of Agriculture, Terry Peach, returned from Cuba this week saying negotiations have begun for future wheat sales as well as other commodities.
“In addition to wheat, the Cubans wanted to explore possible sales of forest products and dairy cattle,” Peach said. “There are some logistical areas that need to be worked out but we’re confident that we will make a delivery of wheat sometime in the coming months.”
Keyes 4-H
by Shawn Blackburn
In September, the Keyes 4-H Club had a swimming party at the Keyes Pool. We had a lot of fun, and then we cooked hotdogs. We met again on October 23rd. We discussed the Share-the-Fun, which will be held here at Keyes on Saturday, November 1st at 7:00. See ya there!! We have been practicing really hard! Also, Pat Conner said she has an area available to build pens for anyone interested in keeping small animals.
My brother Shain and I did an illustrated talk on “Picture Frames”, and Rachel Durham did a demonstration on “Halloween Cookies.” Then, everyone got to eat one of the cookies, which were really good. The meeting was hosted by the Durham family.
Our next meeting is scheduled for November 20th, with the Blackburn family hosting.
Cattlemen’s Concerns
Industry Meeting on COOL Successful:
Representatives from the livestock and meat industries met in Kansas City, MO on August 26, 2008 to discuss implementing Country of Origin Labeling (COOL). Burton Eller, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for NCBA, attended the meeting and helped negotiate a standardized affidavit that can be used throughout the cattle marketing chain to verify animals’ origin. “Coming to terms on this affidavit is a significant accomplishment,” Eller said. “Having a standard document that everyone in the supply chain can use to demonstrate origin will make the entire labeling process easier and less burdensome.”
Ag Enhancement and Diversification Grant and Loan Deadline is October 1
Oklahoma City-Grant and loan application deadline for the next Oklahoma Agricultural Enhancement and Diversification program is October 1. State agriculture officials are urging all producers with innovative ideas to apply.
Agricultural diversification grants of up to $5,000 are available as well as interest-free loans in three categories: Cooperative Marketing Loans, Marketing and Utilization Loans, and Basic and Applied Research Loans.
Rain!!!!!!, Beautiful RAIN!!!
The Cimarron County Courthouse can barely be seen from the porch of The Boise City News, a block away during Monday afternoon’s rainstorm. About an inch of rain fell in less than 30 minutes from the fast-moving storm bringing high winds that took branches out of trees. Though the rain follows others over the past few weeks, the drought is not yet broken. Ag experts with the Conservation Service and Farm Service Agency point out that after a year, the damage is done. It will take sustained, general rains to reestablish moisture in the soil. On line go to http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/OklahomaDrought/page1.html to see NASA pictures of the progress of the drought. Below is more pictures of the RAIN, we love it.
AG Producer Meetings Held
Agriculture Producer Meetings were held August 6 in Kenton, Keyes, and Boise City locations by the NRCS, FSA, Farm Loan, and Cimarron County Conservation District. Information on federal programs and the farm bill was shared to those present by
FSA CED Paul Toon, Farm Loan Programs Steven Vaughan, and NRCS Cherrie Brown. Brown explained cost share programs available through the NRCS for various practices. Kiley Whited, NRCS Rangeland Management Specialist, provided information on rangeland conditions, programs, and invader species that come with a drought. Management options were discussed. 
Cimarron County Conservation District Jim Belford asked irrigators present to consider utilizing the Panametric flowmeter to check well efficiency or to re-nozzle drops. The Conservation District Cost Share Program information was reported by Cimarron County Conservation District Iris Imler. More information will be available when funds become available.
CIMARRON COUNTY FARMERS and RANCHERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Since May, 2008, Cimarron County has been under state, national and international scrutiny by radio, television and printed media because of the severe drought conditions. You might ask “Why is that important? The Oklahoma Climatological Survey sent Climatologist Gary McManus to survey the area and from that visit Cimarron County was given the D4 drought rating equivalent to exceptional. Oklahoma Governor Henry and Agriculture Commissioner, Terry Peach, surveyed the area from the air and by ground to absorb the pressure on producers and resources.
2008 Crop Year Buy-in for Disaster Assistance Programs
Farm Service Agency (FSA) is announcing that on June 18, 2008, the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Bill) was enacted into Public Law 110-246. This Act amended the Trade Act of 1974 to create five new disaster programs, collectively referred to as Supplemental Agriculture Disaster Assistance programs. Those programs include:
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1. Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-Raised Fish (ELAP)
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2. Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP)
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3. Livestock Indemnity Program* (LIP)
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4. Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments (SURE) Program
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5. Tree Assistance Program (TAP)
