GORDONVILLE FARMER IS HONORED

COLUMBIA -- Larry Bock, a farmer, agribusiness leader, and county commissioner of Gordonville, was named Agricultural Leader of the Year by the Missouri Association of County Agricultural Agents, Monday night, at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Bock was recognized for, "active and vocal support of local and state agriculture and the sustaining of the family farm."

The award was presented during a field day for regional specialists of Outreach and Extension at the Bradford Farm, a part of the MU Agricultural Experiment Station.

Gerald Bryan, regional agronomist at Jackson, Mo., introduced Bock and his wife, Shirley, to the group.

Bock has been a leader in planning and fundraising for a new University Extension Center being built at Jackson for Cape Girardeau County. The Center is to be completed and occupied by August.

Bock has been on the county Extension Council and now serves on the Cape Girardeau County Commission. He has also served on county and state committees of the USDA ASCS and was on the UM President's Advisory Council for Extension in the 1980s.

The nomination also noted his leadership on the agronomy committee of the New Trends in Crop Production, the largest farmer educational event in the area. He has also been active in both local and state associations of corn and soybean producers.