Mid-Atlantic

The Mid-Atlantic AgrAbility Project hosted the 2012 Northeast AgrAbility Networking Workshop on October 15-16, 2012. There were 21 participants from 8 states, and participants rated the value of the program 4.95 out of 5.
There were 4 speakers covering the following topics:

• The State of Health on US Farms
• Working Effectively with OTs to Enhance the Impact on AgrAbility Program Outcomes
• Retrofitting Older Tractors for Farmers with Disabilities--Safety Issues and Liabilities
• Reaching out to Vets

There were also 5 Round Table Sessions which covered the following topics:

• Increasing referrals and marketing strategies
• Looking at successes and challenges--what are we learning
• Viable partnerships and the AgrAbility team
• Peer counseling and enterprises for farmers with disabilities
• Managing the data base

The value of the Regional Networking Workshop to participants was rated highly. One comment sums up the overall evaluation: "The size of the group is conducive to valuable networking opportunities. The topics were helpful and relevant."

Submitted by Ron Jester