Seminars and demonstrations are an important part of the 2nd Annual Ozarks Sports & Outdoor Expo on March 30, 2019, at the Fulton County Fairgrounds in Salem Arkansas.
Four seminars will be held in the Hickinbotham-Miller Exhibit Building and there will be two Dutch Oven Cooking Demonstrations on the fairgrounds. Seminars are for both youth and adults.
The Dutch Oven Cooking Demonstrations will be held throughout the day. Harry and Cherie Brickey will have the Lazy H Chuckwagon on site and will be demonstrating cooking biscuits and gravy and beans and cornbread and other foods. James (Bo) Davidson, Fishing Education Specialist for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, will be demonstrating cleaning and cooking trout. Both Dutch Oven Cooking sites will have free samples through out the day.
The first two seminars will be for landowners and will feature Ben Field, Arkansas Game & Fish Commission Private Lands Biologist, The first seminar will be on Bob White Quail Management at 11:00 a.m. followed by Turkey Management for the Landowners at 11:45 a.m. Ben Field will be discussing programs that offer financial assistance to landowners to improve their lands for quail and turkey habitat and ways to improve the land at the seminars. Private lands biologists are well versed in private lands programs and can direct landowners to appropriate programs for assistance.
The third seminar will be on Beekeeping for Beginners. James Rhein, Former President of the Arkansas Beekeepers Association and President of the Baxter County Beekeepers Club, will be conducting this seminar. Keeping honey bees is an increasingly popular activity for both leisure and profit. Many people have become interested in recent years after hearing alarming reports about large-scale declines of honey bees and other pollinators. Others are seeking to increase pollinator success in their gardens and orchards. Rhein will be discussing establishing the hives and managing them safely and how to be productive. Whether you are interested in Beekeeping as a hobby or as a sideline business, don’t miss this seminar.
The final seminar is for youth and will be held at 2:00 p.m. and will be on “ Youth Turkey Calling.” Rusty Wallace, a local turkey caller, will teach gun safety and the type of gun to use for turkey hunting, types of calls, the importance of practice, and how to make it fun. Wallace will also be giving away several turkey calls at the seminar. For additional information contact him at 870-656-0896.
Seminar participants are encouraged to spend the day at the Ozarks & Outdoor Expo visiting with vendors and attending the competitions held throughout the day. For more information on the seminars contact Cory Tyler, Fulton County Extension Agent, at 870-895-3301 or the Fulton County Fair Office at 870-895-5565.
Cathy Drew is a lifelong resident of the region that she loves to promote. She was born in downtown Batesville in the late ’60s, located in one of the eight counties she now enjoys encouraging people to visit.
Drew became associated with the Ozark Gateway Region in 1990 while working at the ad agency (The Media Market Inc.). The agency handled marketing for the regional association, where she and her co-workers produced an annual tabloid publication. She began working as the Ozark Gateway Region director in June 2000.
After Drew became director, she took the region to the next level by helping the tourism organization create a new website and moved it from the old newspaper paper tabloid publication to a color magazine format. She helped open a visitor center for the Ozark Gateway, allowing visitors to pick up information from the entire state 24/7. Over the years, Drew has helped the organization meet new marketing goals, such as in- and out-of-state marketing, assuring that all 100,000 copies of their magazines are distributed each year.
In 2016, she assisted in creating the first Ozark Gateway Region Golf Classic. The tournament continues to grow each year, allowing the organization to expand its co-op program and helping each county have dedicated promotion. Drew stays busy at Ozark Gateway as the ad sales manager, magazine editor, day-to-day office operations, trade show representative, and magazine distribution representative, all while ensuring that the region is represented all over Arkansas and southern Missouri.
Drew was featured in several local and statewide publications over the years, as well as the 1997 cover of the Ozark Gateway Region tabloid, along with her then 4-year-old son, Jon. She has received several awards, such as the Batesville Rotarian of the Year in 2010 and a three-time Paul Harris Fellow.
She also has served as an Independence County election commissioner for several years. She now serves as their co-election coordinator, helping with behind-the-scenes management of voting equipment, day-to-day election deadlines, and poll worker training.
Drew is Batesville Rotary Club Past President, and is the Rotary Clubs’ current membership chair.
In March of 2018, Drew was honored with induction into the Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame for her many years of dedicated service to the tourism industry.