G-A teacher heads up art show to highlight agricultural heritage
By PAT FRIDGEN Echo Pilot

Stephanie Ozimok, 16, Shae Ward, 15, and Josh Martin, 16, put the final touches on their entries to the Franklin County Farmland Preservation Art Show. They are Art I students of Mrs. Carolyn Baker, creator of the show. It opens March 31 at Norlo Park in Chambersburg.

The first ever Franklin County Farmland Preservation Art Show, running March 31 to April 10, has its roots in Greencastle.

Carolyn Baker, Greencastle- Antrim High School art teacher, came up with the idea as a way to educate students and citizens about the need to conserve the natural, scenic, agricultural and historic features of the county.

She paired with the Franklin County Planning Commission to establish the art contest and show, which will be held at the Norlo Park Community Building, 3050 Lincoln Way East, Fayetteville. It will be open to the public 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and noon to 3 p.m. Saturday.

Entries came from area school districts as well as from amateur and professional artists in the area. Students in Baker's Art I and II classes submitted pieces, as did students of Kevin Rice in the Middle School and Alexander Miller in the Elementary School.

The Franklin County Agricultural Land Preservation Board and the Planning Department will provide the grand prize of $250, with additional prizes awarded to various school levels. The winning pieces will be used by the Ag Board in future educational initiatives. The winners will be announced Friday, April 4 at a 10 a.m. ceremony.

Doug Wolfgang, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Farmland Preservation and a representative from the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture will attend, as well as Franklin County Commissioners Bob Thomas, David Keller and Bob Ziobrowski.

Baker is a farm girl, which influenced her decision to suggest the show.

"My dad, John Koons, was the first farmer to put land into Farmland Preservation," she said. "This is about preserving land and understanding why it should be preserved."

The show supports the Comprehensive Plan for Franklin County, which promotes growth and development in a way that maintains a high quality of life for residents. The decisions made today could affect the county for the next 100 years.