After an overwhelming response to an article titled “Just Say No, Please Say No” in the September 1990 issue of the Progressive Farmer magazine about farm fatalities and the numbers of children who have been injured or killed during farm and ranch accidents, the publishers of Progressive Farmer magazine took action. In 1995, the Progressive Farmer founded the Progressive Farmer Farm Safety Day Camp program and began sponsoring youth day-camp sessions that focused on issues of farm safety. The camp program began in the South and Midwest. Now called the Progressive Agriculture Safety Day program, the program has grown to include camps in 43 states, two U.S. territories, and Canada.
As interest in the day camps grew, so too did the need to form a nonprofit charitable organization that could accept donations and recognize donors for their sponsorship. In 2002, the Progressive Agriculture Foundation was formed. Oversight for the foundation is provided by a board of directors.
Mission
The mission of the Progressive Agriculture Foundation is to provide education and training to make farm, ranch, and rural life safer and healthier for all children and their communities.
Resources
Click here to learn more about the foundation and find out how you can get involved in coordinating a Safety Day or become a sponsor to support the Safety Day program.
The articles below provide more information about Safety Days and youth safety:
- Click here to view the article “Age-Appropriate Tasks for Children on Farms and Ranches.”
- Click here to view the article “Progressive Agriculture Safety Day.”
- Click here to view the article “Youth ATV Safety.”
Use the following format to cite this article:
Progressive Agricultural Foundation. (2012) Farm and Ranch eXtension in Safety and Health (FReSH) Community of Practice. Retrieved from http://www.extension.org/pages/63426/progressive-agriculture-foundation.
Dennis J. Murphy, Pennsylvania State University – djm13@psu.edu