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Texas
Agriculture Archive
March 19, 2004
New facility benefits
Gillespie County FB
The new 10,000 square foot Gillespie County Farm Bureau office—celebrated with an open house in Fredericksburg on March 3—not only serves as a home for this 2,100-member county organization, but is a potential revenue generator that will help both pay for the new facility and generate scholarship dollars for area youth.
At least that's the dream of Gillespie County FB President Jerry Durst and the Gillespie County FB Board of Directors.
"We've been working on this project off and on for five years," Durst said. "We've always wanted to have our own facility where we could have our own annual membership meeting. As we talked more and more and finally got some plans down, we decided we could also help our membership by having a facility available we could rent to them at a reduced price."
The result is 4,000 square feet of office space and 6,000 square feet of recreation area under one roof on four acres outside of town, right off Highway 87 South. That compares to a 2,200 square foot facility that was located in the hustle and bustle of this thriving German community.
Durst said they already have five to six commitments for the recreation area. Gillespie County FB members are offered a $100 discount off the rental fee. The Gillespie County FB board recognized a need, as most weddings, graduation parties and even family gatherings had existing facilities booked up a year or two in advance.
"Our goal is, and our hopes and plans are—if everything goes according to plans—this will be a good way to generate scholarships for the youth in our community," he said. "Once we kind of get things rolling, we can put more money in our scholarship programs or offer larger scholarships.
"Not only does the new facility bring in extra money, but it gets Farm Bureau's name out in the community. We try to get our name out there as often as we can, as much as we can, and this is another avenue to let people know what Farm Bureau is all about...what we do and what services we have to offer our membership."
Durst said the dream never would have happened without total board commitment.
"Everyone pitched in and helped tremendously," he said. Otherwise it wouldn't have come through. Plus, the staff helped us in certain areas of it. Without everybody's input and help it would have never happened."
Gillespie County FB President Jerry Durst (holding ribbon, left) Lin Winfrey with the Gillespie FB and TFB President Kenneth Dierschke (immediate right, respectively to Durst) at the recent ribbon cutting for the new facility in Fredericksburg.
