FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  January 5, 2007

BAXTER BLACK BRINGS COWBOY COMEDY TO SUMMIT
New York Times calls former veterinarian “nation’s most successful living poet.”

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Nationally-syndicated Cowboy Comedian Baxter Black brings learning and laughter to the evening program at the 2007 Pennsylvania Dairy Summit, scheduled for Feb. 7 – 8 at the Lancaster Host Resort in Lancaster, Pa. The event is hosted annually by the Pennsylvania Dairy Stakeholders and the Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania, with support from the Center for Dairy Excellence, Penn State Dairy Alliance and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. The evening banquet featuring Baxter Black will begin at 6:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 7.

Black is a Cowboy Poet and Entertainer who is “mostly agricultural, sometimes humorous, and occasionally accidentally informative.” He has been described by the New York Times as “probably the nation’s most successful living poet” and is a former large animal veterinarian who has been heard nationwide through his columns, on National Public Radio, during public appearances, on television, and through his books, CDs and videos. He lives in Benson, AZ, between, as he says, “the Gila River and the Gila Monster, the Mexican Border and the Border Patrol and between the horse and the cow.”

Everything about Black is cowboy – from his cartoonish mustache to his personality and his poetry. He makes a living shining the spotlight on the flaws and foibles of everyday cowboy life, and he demonstrates that it is the truth in his humor that makes it funny. Black will close the first day of the Summit program with a humorous but true look at those involved in agriculture and how their sense of spirit and camaraderie resonates throughout the country.

A limited number of tickets to attend the evening banquet and see Baxter Black are available for the public to purchase at $60 per person. Tickets must be purchased in advance by calling 814-355-1912 or using the special Baxter Black dinner ticket order form at www.padairysummit.org. Banquet tickets will be held at the registration area of the Summit and will be available to pick up one hour prior to the start of the banquet. The cost to attend the full Summit is $175 per person, with discounts for multiple participants from the same farm. Reduced rates to attend only one day of program are also available.

This year’s Summit also features Animal Agriculture Alliance’s Charlie Arnot, Cornell University’s Mark Stephenson, Colorado dairy producer Gary Henrickson, University of Nebraska Lincoln’s Ron Hanson and Dairy Foods Communication’s Donna Berry, along with 24 breakout sessions that are focused on the day-to-day issues that every dairy producer faces. More program information can be found at www.padairysummit.org.

Scholarship opportunities to help youth and first-time producer participants offset the full Summit registration costs are also available through the Pennsylvania Dairy Stakeholders and the Center for Dairy Excellence. More details about the discounts and scholarship opportunities and a copy of the Summit registration brochure are also available online at www.padairysummit.org. You can receive more information by calling the PDMP office at 814-238-2893.