The INDEPENDENT, March 1, 2007
Page 5
Business Notes
Oregon Century Farm and Ranch program applications now open
Applications are now being
accepted for the 2007 award
year of the Century Farm and
Ranch Program, a statewide
program honoring farmers and
ranchers who have worked the
same land for at least 100
years. The program, now in its
49th year, is administered
through the Oregon Agricultural
Education Foundation (OAEF)
in Salem and is partially funded
by the Oregon Farm Bureau,
the Oregon Historical Society,
Oregon State Parks, the Ore-
gon Department of Agriculture,
individual contributions.
Family farmers and ranchers
throughout Oregon are encour-
aged to apply by the June 1,
2007 deadline.
Successful applicants re-
ceive a personalized certificate,
with acknowledgement by the
Governor of Oregon and the Di-
rector of the Oregon Depart-
ment of Agriculture. A durable
metal road sign identifying the
farm or ranch as having historic
Century status is also avail-
able. Each family will be hon-
ored during a special ceremony
and reception at the Oregon
State Fair in September.
Since the start of the pro-
gram in 1958, more than 1070
farms and ranches across the
State have been registered.
Oregon has one of the oldest
agricultural heritage programs
of this type in the entire nation.
A formal application process
is required for properties to be
considered for the program. To
qualify as a Century Farm or
Century Ranch, the family must
meet a total of nine criteria, in-
cluding the following:
• The farm or ranch must
have been operated continu-
ously in the same family for 100
years or more. If the farm or
ranch has ever been rented or
leased, it may not qualify. Doc-
umentation is required.
• The farm or ranch must
have a gross income from
farming or ranching activities of
not less than $1,000 per year
for three out of five years imme-
diately preceding application.
• Family members must live
on the property or actively man-
age and direct the farming or
ranching operations.
Application materials are
preserved in the manuscript
collections of the Oregon His-
torical Society library and pro-
vide useful information for re-
search on the history of agricul-
ture and farm families in Ore-
gon.
For application guidelines
and the official form, contact
Glenn Mason, Oregon Century
Farm and Ranch Program Co-
ordinator at 503-297-5892 or
orcentury@ juno.com or you
may download the application
Job, Career Fair to be March 21st
The eleventh annual Job
and Career Fair sponsored by
MTC Works and Worksource
Oregon Employment Depart-
ment will be held March 21,
from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at The
Olde School, 251 St. Helens
Street, St. Helens. The pur-
pose is to help job seekers in
Columbia County and sur-
rounding areas. It is free to all
job seekers.
Job seekers should come
dressed appropriately and
have a good supply of resumés
to hand out. A variety of em-
ployers have been invited to
participate and employers from
both Oregon and Washington
are already registered. They
will be collecting information
from job seekers (resumés)
and possibly giving out applica-
tions, or even interviewing on
the spot. Job seekers should
be prepared!
Two workshops are being
arranged: 1:30 to 2:15 p.m. and
2:30 to 3:15 p.m. The titles of
the workshops are not con-
firmed yet.
The Workforce Investment
Act program in Columbia
County, operated by MTC
Works, helps job seekers with
job search skills and other
training such as computer
classes and GED classes.
The Worksource Oregon
Employment Dept. is a State
agency that helps match em-
ployers and potential employ-
ees via the iMatch Skills sys-
tem. MTC Works and Work-
source Oregon have worked
together for many years now to
help everyone in Columbia
County when they are looking
for work – or looking for a bet-
ter job.
guidelines on the Oregon Farm
Bureau website: http://www.ore
gonfb.org/programs/century_fa
rm_ranch.shtml or from the De-
partment of Agriculture website
at: http://oda.state.or.us/infor
mation/oregon_ag/cfr.html.
Oregon family-owned farms
and ranches that have stayed
in the family for 150 years now
will be eligible for the Oregon
Sesquicentennial Farm and
Ranch Award. Call 503-297-
5892 for additional information
on this new award.