Pin Oak Club Lambs win Faulkner County Farm Family of the Year | New
For 75 years, Arkansas has selected a Farm Family of the Year to recognize the outstanding work done in the local community by family farmers in each county.
The Arkansas Farm Family of the Year program is a tradition local families respect and want to uphold, as the family that wins the title also receives bragging rights for the year.
County Extension Officer Zach Gardner said the winning district is “a type of recognition and appreciation” of achievement that families should be proud of.
The county winners were announced in May and will now face further rounds of judging as the Eighth District winners will be announced soon. As the judging continues, the series of questions becomes more invasive to prove each farm’s skill.
According to the Arkansas Farm Bureau, the goals of the Farm Family of the Year program are:
Recognize and encourage farm families who do outstanding work on their farms and in their communities.
Recognize the importance of agriculture in the community and the state.
Disseminate information on improved agricultural practices and management.
This program aims to uplift families who have worked hard for decades, some of whom are multi-generational, to keep their farms at the best possible level.
Families who wish to be recognized as Arkansas Farm Family of the Year will be required to have appropriate production efficiency, continued conservation of available energy and resources, farm and community leadership and management of farm improvements. their homes and farms.
Mike and Karen Reynolds of the Pin Oak Club Lambs said they are honored to become the Faulkner County Farm Family in 2022.
The Reynolds inherited a 60-acre farm from their family and have lived there for 12 years. Mike and Karen are from Wooster.
The family does one big project a year on their own, to make sure the farm is maintained and updated regularly.
The Pin Oak Club Lambs specialize in show lambs and sheep. They also run summer camps for kids who want to compete in shows, as they are known for their quality animals and remarkable ability to produce first-place ribbons.
Their farm is complete with multiple animal barns, a large garden, free range fields, and plenty of machinery to help keep hatchling survival rates high.
In addition to the lambs, the Reynolds have a thriving chicken environment that produces eggs daily as well as rows of fruit trees lining the driveway.
The Reynolds family is well known in the community, as Mike grew up on a dairy farm in the area. The community is tight-knit and quickly lends a helping hand when needed.
Karen said she brings fresh eggs to one of their neighbors, who is over 100 years old, because they have lots of white, yellow and even green eggs from their crossbred chickens.
The Reynolds family will wait for the June 14 judgment to see if they have gone from county winner to one of the district winners, and then hope to move up to the state level.
Eighth District farm family winners will be announced in the coming week on June 14, and the state winner will be announced in December at the annual Farm Family of the Year luncheon.
