Texas A&M AgriLife vice chancellor gets hands-on look into agriculture’s local impact

Daniel Walker
Vernon Record
Texas A&M AgriLife’s vice chancellor, Dr. Patrick Stover, visited Vernon and Chillicothe on Monday and Tuesday to meet with AgriLife staff, local agriculture producers and community leaders to discuss the future of agriculture.
On Monday night Stover met with about 80 local agriculture producers to discuss bridging the gap between producers and consumers. Stover also met with District 3 Extension Program agents and toured the Texas Foundation Seed Service.
On Tuesday, Stover visited the Smith Walker Research Unit in Lockett and the Chillicothe Research Station. Tuesday afternoon he participated in a Research Roundtable to discuss faculty projects.
He met with city and county leaders on Tuesday for a lunch at the Red River Valley Museum and toured the facility.
BDC managing consultant Rick Hardcastle thanked Stover for visiting Vernon.
“We want you to know how important to us you are to Vernon. It’s important to us knowledge wise, it is important to us economically,” Hardcastle said.
Stover thanked the community and the Agrilife staff for their hospitality.
“We are really proud of this Center . This is what we are all about as a land grant university. We are strongly committed to the future of the facility,” Stover said.
Vernon/Lockett is one of 13 Texas A&M AgriLife research and extension agencies across Texas.

Texas A&M AgriLife Vice Chancellor Dr. Patrick Stover and Wilbarger County Judge Greg Tyra discuss agriculture opportunities in the county.
Daniel Walker/
Vernon Record