Harrisburg, PA – Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, Pennsylvania’s adjutant general, announced that the departments of Agriculture and Military and Veterans Affairs will join forces to recognize Pennsylvania’s service members, veterans and their families on Thursday, January 13, at the 2022 Pennsylvania Farm Show.
“We are deeply indebted to Pennsylvania’s military veterans for protecting our land, our families and our way of life,” said Redding. “And to those veteran farmers who have returned home with valuable transferable skills and put them to work in agriculture, we are twice indebted. They protect us. They feed us. Honoring veterans and their families is a small token of our gratitude. We hope you can join us as we celebrate Pennsylvania agriculture together in January.”
“We are grateful to Secretary Redding and the Department of Agriculture for allowing us to showcase the important role veterans play in Pennsylvania’s agriculture, and for the opportunity to connect with veterans, who visit the Farm Show Complex,” said Schindler. “The DMVA outreach team will be present and ready to assist veterans and their families with any questions they may have regarding the benefits they earned in service to our nation.”
The day’s schedule is available online, and will feature the popular Army-Navy Cook-Off and cooking demonstrations by current and retired chefs from the Coast Guard, Air Force, and Air National Guard on the PA Preferred® Culinary Connection stage; recognition of veteran farmers in the Homegrown By Heroes program, and much more. Discounts and special promotions for veterans and active duty military will be available from select vendors.
Throughout the eight-day show, actively serving service members and veterans will be invited to place a magnet on their hometowns or that of a fallen veteran, leaving a message on a large-format Pennsylvania map in the GIANT® Expo Hall, thanking them for their service to our commonwealth and country.
The Friends of Farm Show Foundation will feature a Salute to Veterans during their Celebrity Feed Scurry at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, January 11 in the Equine Arena. Pennsylvania agriculture industry leaders, legislators and media personalities compete to deliver payloads of feed with a team of draft horses.
The Pennsylvania Farm Show, the nation’s largest indoor agricultural event, will be held Jan. 8-15, 2022. It will feature approximately 6,000 animals, 12,000 competitive exhibits, and 300 commercial exhibitors, all highlighting the quality and breadth of Pennsylvania’s agriculture industry and the people who make it thrive.
For more information about the 2022 show, visit farmshow.pa.gov.
