December 2021: AgrAbility PA Project Highlights
December brought record-setting warm temperatures across the state. It was over 60 degrees on the last day of the year! The silver-lining is that farm assessments continued forward without weather disruptions.
Dairy Farmer and AgrAbility PA Customer Chelsi Shultz shared her story with Farm and Dairy. Shultz was diagnosed with shoulder impingement in both shoulders.
“It was all of that range of motion using your shoulder, and you use your shoulders in most things,” Chelsi said. “It was a lot of pain.”
Shultz heard about the AgrAbility program and reached out for help. The program worked with her to find a solution — a carrier system — and find funding for it so she could milk without pain. It helped her avoid surgery and get back to work, and it’s helped other people working on the farm avoid the health issues she’s had. Read More: https://www.farmanddairy.com/news/agrability-helps-farmers-overcome-health-conditions-to-continue-farming/695332.html
AgrAbility PA’s staff held a team retreat in December to discuss opportunities and initiatives related to increasing customer capacity, setting benchmarks for service, and achieving new goals associated with supporting farmers and ag workers with a disability or long-term health condition.
Finally....great news to share! An announcement from Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Penn State Extension was released December 13, 2021 sharing that the USDA-NIFA awarded funds to Penn State to continue its AgrAbility PA program -- assisting farmers with disabilities and long-term health conditions. The announcement appeared in dozens of media outlets including agriculture-specific publications, newsletters, and social media:
Penn State secures funding to continue assisting farmers with disabilities
