Award Winner:

Prince William County farm couple wins award

A farm couple from Nokesville are the 2007 recipients of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmer Excellence in Agriculture Award.

James “Jay” Yankey & Sonja Yankey were recognized Nov. 27 at the 2007 VFBF Annual Convention in Chantilly. They will compete for the national title in January at the 2008 American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention in New Orleans.

The Excellence in Agriculture Award recognizes agricultural professionals who maintain an active involvement in both agriculture and Farm Bureau. Applicants are evaluated on farm operation growth and financial progress, Farm Bureau leadership and leadership in other organizations.

Jay owns and operates Yankey Farm Service, which provides custom agricultural services such as no-till seeding and spraying for smaller farm operations. Sonja is a full-time dairy inspector for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The couple also owns Yankey Farms, a 15-acre fresh market produce operation. They grow sweet corn, tomatoes, cantaloupes, watermelons, pumpkins and bedding plants for sale at their two farm markets.

“We just grew up around agriculture and have a love for it,” Jay said. “It’s a lot of fun doing all these things, but we also do them to make ends meet.”

Sonja said working in the dairy industry “is what I’ve always wanted to do. This has been my childhood dream. But the fun stuff is in October, with the pumpkins and agritainment programs.”

Jay serves on the Prince William-Fairfax Farm Bureau board of directors, and Sonja is a member of the county Farm Bureau women’s committee. They are both members of the Prince William-Fairfax Farm Bureau Young Farmer Committee and represent Farm Bureau’s Northern District on the VFBF Young Farmer Committee.

The Yankeys were awarded $500 from Dodge, a Stihl chain saw and 200 hours or a year’s use of a Kubota utility vehicle. They also won up to $5,000 toward a lease or purchase of that vehicle, courtesy of Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co.

In addition, they received a travel package to the 2008 AFBF Annual Convention and to the 2008 VFBF Young Farmer Leadership Expo and the 2008 AFBF Young Farmer & Rancher Leadership Conferences, which will be held in February in Baltimore.

The 2007 Excellence in Agriculture Award runner-up was Megan Seibel of Roanoke County.

With 148,000 members in 88 county Farm Bureaus, VFBF is Virginia’s largest farm organization.

Farm Bureau is a non-governmental, nonpartisan, voluntary organization that supports its members through legislative lobbying, leadership programs, commodity marketing and risk management services, insurance products and other benefits.