By: Beth Ann Luedeker
Contact: Matt Brown, [email protected]

Maureen Frank in front of a audience
Maureen Frank, Texas AgriLife Extension, spoke to attendees at the 2017 conference about birds and birding.

The fourth annual women’s stewardship conference sponsored by the Bennett Trust and Texas A&M AgriLife will be held October 1 -2 at The Inn on Barron’s Creek in Fredericksburg, Texas.

Tiffany Lashmet in front of room addressing a group of women
Tiffany Dowell Lashmet spoke to 2017 attendees about agriculture laws. She will be returning this year to provide another entertaining and informative presentation.

This year’s conference, “Empowering Women – New Stewardship Traditions”, will include presentations and discussions of land stewardship followed by an outdoor session and tours of agribusinesses owned and/or run by women.

Day one of the conference will include presentations on topics from both traditional and non-traditional agriculture. This year’s agenda includes small ruminants, horses, bee keeping, birding, prescribed burning, agriculture finance, agriculture law and more.

Following breakfast on day two, we will travel to a nearby ranch where attendees will rotate between different activities – plant identification, animal track and scat identification, skeet shooting and archery. Professionals will provide instruction in safety and operation of shotguns and bows before allowing the participants an opportunity to test their marksmanship.

women with animal track molds on a truck tailgate
Analiese Scoggin showed participants a variety of animal tracks and scat before leading the group through the woods to see natural evidence of wildlife.

“The afternoon tours will include businesses we have not been to before,” said Matt Brown, conference organizer. “We will stop at Bridget’s Basket in Hunt, Texas, where we will eat lunch, and then travel to a couple other operations which we are still finalizing."

instructor showing proper way to hold a bow and arrow
Larry Petty of Kerr County 4-H Shooting Sports provided archery instruction at the 2017 Bennett women's conference.

The conference began in 2015 to meet the need of the increasing number of women who are becoming landowners. It offers women an opportunity to learn in a comfortable atmosphere, among other women of similar interests.

The two-day conference costs just $75, including all meals, break refreshments and tour transportation.
More information can be found on the website - https://agrilife.org/bennetttrust/
Register at: https://agriliferegister.tamu.edu/productListingDetails/2618

women with shotguns
Several of the state's top female shooters were on hand to provide shotgun instruction and give the women an opportunity to try their hands at skeet shooting.