SLS 15RS-2899 ORIGINAL 2015 Regular Session SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 127 BY SENATOR PEACOCK AND REPRESENTATI VE HENRY BURNS COMMENDATIONS. Commends Ricky Kilpatrick on being named the 2015 Extension Forester of the Year by the Forest Landowners Association. 1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION 2 To commend and congratulate Ricky Kilpatrick on being named the 2015 Extension 3 Forester of the Year by the Forest Landowners Association. 4 WHEREAS, Ricky Kilpatrick, a long-time Louisiana State University Agricultural 5 Center forestry agent, has been named the 2015 Extension Forester of the Year by the Forest 6 Landowners Association, a national forestry advocacy group; and 7 WHEREAS, founded in 1941, the Forest Landowners Association's members own 8 and operate more than forty million acres of forest land in forty-eight states and are leading 9 advocates for the rights of America's forest owners; and 10 WHEREAS, the Forest Landowners Association provides advice, support and 11 information to policymakers on private forest management, stewardship, and owners' rights; 12 and 13 WHEREAS, the award recognizes an extension forester who has been in practice at 14 least five years and is dedicated to the advancement of forest landowner education and 15 outreach, with a focus on private landowners; and 16 WHEREAS, Ricky educates landowners, loggers and others about forestry, which 17 is Louisiana's number one agricultural commodity in land use and economic value; and 18 WHEREAS, Ricky began working for the Louisiana State University Agricultural Page 1 of 3 SCR NO. 127 SLS 15RS-2899 ORIGINAL 1 Center in 1985 and has been dedicated to forestry education and outreach since that time; 2 and 3 WHEREAS, he has taken a strong leadership role in the Louisiana branch of Project 4 Learning Tree as the coordinator and steering committee chairman; and 5 WHEREAS, Project Learning Tree is an award-winning environmental education 6 program for teachers and other educators, parents, and community leaders working with 7 youth from preschool through grade twelve; and 8 WHEREAS, during the past three years, more than one thousand educators have been 9 trained across the state; and 10 WHEREAS, Ricky has been the recipient of more than a half-dozen awards, 11 nationally recognized in many forestry publications, and acknowledged in Newsweek 12 magazine for his work with Project Learning Tree; and 13 WHEREAS, his selfless commitment and wealth of knowledge have played a vital 14 role in the success of Project Learning Tree; and 15 WHEREAS, Ricky has an impeccable reputation among Louisiana landowners and 16 is always looking for ways to better serve the community and improve forestry in the state; 17 and 18 WHEREAS, Ricky is also actively involved in the Louisiana Forestry Teachers' 19 Tour, which provides training in sound forest management principles for teachers; and 20 WHEREAS, Ricky will be presented with the Extension Forester of the Year award 21 on June 4, 2015, as part of the National Conference of Private Forest Landowners in Virginia 22 Beach, Virginia. 23 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby 24 commend and congratulate Ricky Kilpatrick on being named Extension Forester of the Year 25 by the Forest Landowners Association. 26 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to Ricky 27 Kilpatrick. Page 2 of 3 SCR NO. 127 SLS 15RS-2899 ORIGINAL The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Curry Lann. DIGEST SCR 127 Original 2015 Regular Session Peacock Commends Ricky Kilpatrick on being named the 2015 Extension Forester of the Year by the Forest Landowners Association. Page 3 of 3