Equipping the next generation for options in agriculture 

 Our town and village here in Groton are certainly blessed with myriad businesses, churches, community groups, a wonderful community-focused library and a school district that is committed to putting the needs of its students at the top of its priority list. Yet by and large, Groton is still the thriving agricultural community that it has been for decades.

To that end, the Groton Agriculture Advisory Board (GAAB) was formed when Groton farm owner, Dan Carey, of Carey Farm on Lick Street, acted on his passion to see agriculture education and a Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter in Groton again — things that had been missing since the FFA disbanded in 1972.

Carey, Derek Hill, who was the New York State FFA director, and Sallee Teneyck of Summerhill Brewery went about organizing the GAAB, adding other local farmers and ag industry folks to their ranks. By May 2018, the organization was chartered, with Carey as its first president.

Forming a close partnership with Groton Central School Superintendent Margo Martin, who had already spearheaded the district’s STEAM Learning Center, the GAAB members were thrilled to see Groton High School’s first agriculture class taught in the fall of 2018 and its FFA chapter chartered in 2019.

The GAAB’s current president since June 2020, Marty Slade, began attending meetings in 2017 at the encouragement of Teneyck, who happens to be the aunt of Marty’s wife, Danielle. Many in Groton may know Danielle, who has been a teacher’s assistant at Groton Elementary School for many years.

“I decided to join the Groton Ag Advisory Board to help support agriculture in the community and help expand the Groton students’ understanding of agriculture and opportunities available to them,” Marty said. “There are so many local businesses in and around our community that are involved with agriculture in some way.”

Marty himself was raised on his dad’s dairy farm in Homer. After high school, Marty earned his bachelor’s degree in biology from Elmira College in 2001.

“I always wanted to be involved in agriculture, but I wasn’t sure how,” Marty said, “so I studied biology.”

After concluding his nine-year career at Bristol-Myers Squibb in East Syracuse in 2010, Marty began his current career in the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Animal Health Diagnostic Center, where he is currently a diagnostic operations manager.

One of the first things Marty began doing when he joined the GAAB was hosting field trips for the Groton ag students at his lab.

“I started inviting the ag students to visit to share the different agriculture career opportunities available to them, which they probably would not think of,” Marty said. “After all, not many people associate working in a laboratory as supporting agriculture, but we do this every day.”

Marty’s lab has about 250 employees, and he is proud of how their work supports agriculture and farmers. He really wants kids to understand how many opportunities there are in the field.

When he is not working his day job, Marty has what he calls a “hobby farm” with his brother, KC. They raise cattle and pigs, and Marty’s sons, Jackson, Mason, and Colson, as well as KC’s children, show the animals at the Cortland County fair every year.

“It keeps them involved in ag,” Marty said. “Jackson went through the ag program at Groton. He graduated in 2021 and is now in the environmental resource engineering program at SUNY Environmental Science & Forestry School.”

Marty spoke about the GAAB members’ desire to see local agricultural businesses and farmers connected with students at Groton schools.

“Everyone on the Ag Board wants to teach kids about the opportunities we have that are local,” Marty said. “Quite honestly, COVID put a damper on things. Enrollment and interest in ag was tough with the students working at home and slowed down the positive movement. Now things are picking up and [we’re] regaining interest and participation.”

Marty also spoke about the GAAB’s first successful Groton Farmer Challenge Agriculture Trivia Night and Silent Auction, which it sponsored at Stonehedges Golf Course to benefit the FFA in February 2020, and which raised over $7,000.

The group had intended that event to be an annual one, but then the pandemic hit and they were not able to hold another until October 2022. Nonetheless, that event was also a huge success, raising over $7,500 for Groton ag and FFA programs from monetary donations, silent auction donations and ticket sales.

Similar to the inaugural event in 2020, the evening was a wonderful event with over 100 people attending. GHS’s agriculture teacher and FFA advisor, Chelsey Mahany, was on hand to emcee the trivia contest and silent auction winners with help from her students Adelyn Clore, Rachel Houston, De’Anna Mackey, Erica Miranda and Jillian Zigenfus. Tompkins County Dairy Princess Abby Thomas also attended.

In addition to Marty, the GAAB officers are Monica Carey, vice president; Callan Space, secretary; and Teneyck, treasurer. The other active supporting members are Jackie Baxendell, Fay Benson, Dan Carey, Omyia Damaj, Sophia Darling, Justin DeGraw, Kathy Howard, Tyler Olson and Ed Scheffler.

The GAAB meets every other month. Members are currently very involved in helping Mahany with plans for a heated greenhouse on school property as part of the ag program.

“We also get updates from Chelsey on how things are going so we can gauge our impact and decide how we can help her with things she needs,” Marty said. “We’ve purchased jackets for FFA students, T-shirts for ag students, sent students from both programs to conferences, conventions and leadership programs and more. So many community members want to see students get involved in agriculture, and it’s very important to us to keep building that collaboration between the community and the school.”

The GAAB wants to grow and get as many supporters as possible, and Marty added that members do not need to be Groton residents; they “just need to be interested in supporting future generations of agriculture. The more we can get students involved in ag, the more well-rounded they will be.”

Anyone interested in supporting the Groton Agriculture and Groton FFA programs can reach out to grotonagcommittee@gmail.com.

For the story on Chelsey Mahany and agriculture at Groton High School, be sure to read “Groton on the Inside” in the January 4, 2023 edition!

Groton on the Inside appears every week in Tompkins Weekly. Submit story ideas to editorial@vizellamedia.com or text or call Linda at (607) 227-4922.  

 In brief:  

An expression of gratitude 

The Groton Agricultural Advisory Board and the Groton Future Farmers of America would like to thank everyone who attended and/or supported the Groton Farmer Challenge Agriculture Trivia Night and Silent Auction. The event was very successful, and it was great to see the community so involved!

In no particular order, gratitude and a special “thank you” go out to the following donors of either money or auction items: Millbrook Farms; Farm Credit East; The First National Bank of Groton; James Pratt; Phil and Noreen Atkins; Joseph Piskoronwski, DDS; Carey Farm, LLC; Life Strength Fitness Groton Fitness Center; Shurtleff Funeral Home; Midstate Veterinary Services, PLLC; Old Chatham Sheepherding Creamery, LLC; Robert Dempsey Agency, Inc.; Willet Dairy; VanPelt Farms, LLC; Bay Horse Innovations of NY; Empire Tractor; Pete’s Tire Service; Tractor Supply Company; Megan McDonald Yoga; Summerhill Brewery; Lilly’s Tack and Feed; Sam Rose with Owasco Meats; B.M. Woodworking; Cayuga Lake National Bank; 10/10 BBD; Subsist; Durcy DeGraw; Chris Butler; Bruce Graham; Cedar Lane Ag; DeGraw Farms; Happy Jack Maple Products; Agway True Value Ithaca; Matco Electric; Dedrick’s Farm Market; Howard Farms; Cortland Flower Shop; Purina Feeds Locke; Fenner’s Firewood; Hillcrest Dairy; and the Cornell Animal Health Diagnostic Center.

Pickleball fun for Groton residents 

Are you looking for something fun to do? Pickleball Mania at the Shops at Ithaca Mall will be the venue for Groton Fun Days, which are free for all Groton residents, on Tuesday, Dec. 27 and Thursday, Dec. 29 from noon to 3 p.m. Get out of the house and try something new! Please be aware there will be a waiver to sign, and children must be supervised by an adult. No street shoes are permitted, and all sneakers must be dry and free of dirt.

Cabin fever? Groton has the cure! 

 Save the date for a fabulous, not-to-be-missed opportunity to shake off those winter doldrums and have a little fun at Groton’s annual Cabin Fever Festival, hosted by Groton Recreation and held in the high school gym, 400 Peru Rd., from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 4.

The festival, originally known as Winterfest, changed its name to Cabin Fever Festival in 2015. The event has gained significant popularity over the past decade as more attractions and activities have been added.