By By Lydia Grimes
When Olin F. “Buck” Farrior taught students at Huxford Elementary School about measurements and how to build a planter recently, he went the extra mile for their project: Building a classroom’s worth of child-size sawhorse sets for each student.
That dedication and attention to detail, said his Extension Service colleague Vicki Fussell, is one of many things the service will miss when Farrior steps down from his role as Escambia County Extension Service coordinator this week after 23 years with the office.
The Extension Service will host a reception for Farrior from 2 until 4 p.m. Friday at the Agriculture Center Auditorium, located behind Southern Pine.
Farrior has worked for Auburn University, which runs the Extension Service offices in each county, for 31 years, 23 of them in Brewton.
Farrior, whose background is in agriculture, started his career with the extension service at the experimental station in Headland, then worked in Clarke County. He came to Brewton 23 years ago and has been coordinator of the extension office for Escambia County, educating residents in a variety of agriculture areas and also overseeing other extension professionals for the county.
Farrior has also worked closely with Randy Akridge, who is at the Alabama Agricultural Experimental Farm on Kirkland Road.
While Farrior’s knowledge is based in agriculture, Fussell said he has had a hand in all of the Extension Service’s programs, from forestry to nutrition to youth development.
As for Farrior, he said he plans to open his own business.
A new extension coordinator has not yet been named, but Fussell said other agents will continue to serve the community and fulfill the area’s needs.
Kerry Whipple Bean contributed to this story.