Ag Center Department: Spaces That Serve

What does it really take to run a space designed for an entire community?

In this episode of Under The Green, we go behind the scenes of the Randolph County Agricultural Center with Taylor Wright to explore how this one-of-a-kind facility operates, who it serves, and the many ways it’s already bringing people together. From large-scale events and unexpected uses of the space to the collaboration and teamwork it takes to keep everything running, this conversation highlights why the Ag Center is more than just a building—it’s a place where community happens. 

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RandolphNCCE or Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/randolph_county_extension/

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:05

Welcome back to Under the Green, the podcast where we highlight the programs, people, and purpose inside the Randolph County Agricultural Center. Today we're stepping back to look at the bigger picture, the space itself. From classrooms and meeting rooms to the event center and arena, this building was designed with one goal in mind to serve the people of Randolph County. I'm joined by Taylor Wright, who oversees operations here at the Ag Center, to talk about what it takes to keep this place running, how these spaces are used, and why this building is more than just a facility. It's a resource for the entire community. Welcome, Taylor. Thank you. It's so good to be here. Yeah, we met her in our very first episode. That's right. So that seems like it was so long ago. It wasn't that long ago. We didn't well, but it seems like it was that long for me because I've done a number of these.

SPEAKER_00 0:56

Time flies when you're having fun.

SPEAKER_02 0:58

Right. So funny. So let's start simple. What is your role here at the Ag Center? And what does that actually look like from day to day?

SPEAKER_00 1:06

I love how you say let's start simple. And this is going to be the least simple answer of the entire episode. So my official title is the Randolph County Agricultural Center Coordinator. And what that means in resume terms is managing and overseeing the operations of the facility, the management of the facility, some of the marketing of the facility, the staffing of the facility. It just is a little bit of everything. The day-to-day is different every single day. You know, some days I am talking to clients about the spaces that we have here. Other days I'm up in the arena and I'm like, oh, we need a whole new piece of equipment that we didn't think we would need to run this facility. And then I'm going to a store or putting in an order for a big piece of equipment. Some days I'm out in the community doing outreach, speaking at different events to spread the word of what we have going over here. And sometimes I'm scanning in receipts and doing clerical work behind the desk. It's is literally no hour is the same as the previous hour. No day is the same as the previous day. It's a little bit of everything, just what it takes to keep a place like this going.

SPEAKER_02 2:30

It really is. I'm sure some days you feel like your head is going to spin clear off your shoulders.

SPEAKER_00 2:35

Some days I don't know where I'm at. I'm like, how did I get here? Did I sleepwalk here? I don't really know. But everybody here does a good job of keeping me straight, I think. When I when I when I lose my head, y'all attach it back on my neck for me.

SPEAKER_02 2:54

It is definitely a joy effort because she also has to work closely with county government and our tourism department. She works very closely with them. There's a lot, a lot, a lot of moving pieces in your everyday.

SPEAKER_00 3:07

There is, and there is a ton of collaboration. Like I joke about y'all keeping my head on straight, but that is so factual, I think, between the extension team that's here, the soil and water team that's also housed here, TDA, all the other county departments. It is a massive collaborative effort to do what we do here. And I one girly pop cannot do it by herself. And I think we all have seen that.

SPEAKER_02 3:33

Yeah, and you have a few part-time folks that help. Um, so and they're they're a fantastic team.

SPEAKER_00 3:39

Oh my gosh, I could not have gotten luckier. I'm like every day thankful for them because yeah, they they all hit the ground running. I will never forget like one of the very first events, and I'm getting off topic of this question, but it's important. One of the very first events that we had, we were all there, and I was going up to them and I was like, hey, I think it's time that we like do a walkthrough of the parking lot, or hey, I think it's time we go check the bathrooms, or hey, have we checked in with A V on such and such? And every single question, they were like, Oh, we already did that. That's already done. We did that 10 minutes ago. We did that an hour ago.

SPEAKER_02 4:17

And I'm like, Yes, that is amazing. Oh, they are the best. That is amazing. Yeah, you had a you have a great group for sure. And they they're very friendly, they get along with the the folks that have rented spaces, they get along with everyone that works in the building. They're very helpful. We love them. We do. When people walk into this building for the first time, what do you hope they notice or feel?

SPEAKER_00 4:39

I hope they notice our big beautiful windows in the lobby, first of all, because that is my favorite space. It's so welcoming. It's all that natural light. You can see the beautiful property. You can see almost the entire campus from the lobby as far as the outdoor spaces go. Um, I just hope they feel welcome because that's what we want people to feel when they come here. It was built by the community for the community. And I just hope when people visit, whether they're from right here in Randolph County or from out of state, they're like, oh yeah, I can see myself visiting here. I can see myself coming back here, I can see myself spending time here or hosting an event here. That's what we want.

SPEAKER_02 5:23

Can you walk us through the different spaces and what they're used for?

SPEAKER_00 5:27

Absolutely. This is a laundry list of amazing things. Are you ready? Yep. Okay. Hit me. So, first and foremost, I'm going to talk about our event center. We have a little over 9,000 square feet of usable event space. And for those of you that aren't necessarily into square footage visuals, looking at me intently. Two plus two equals four. Chassity pulls out her calculator.

SPEAKER_02 5:54

Sometimes it might equal five. I don't know. They might change the rules on me.

SPEAKER_00 5:58

They might. You never know. But in the event center, you're looking at if you have a chairs-only, like auditorium-style seating event, 540 to 575 guests sitting in those chairs. Uh, we of course have banquet round tables, rectangle classroom style tables that might scale it down to 320, 375, you know, in that mid-range of the 300s, but that's the space you're looking at. There's a stage situated in the event center. There's ceiling-mounted speakers, AV, microphones, a projector that goes, you know, you can do a presentation onto our projector screen. There's a concession stand, which we have seen used in multiple ways. Some events use that concession area to set up as their office. That's where they they close the windows, they go back there and do what they need to do. Some people have used it as catering staging areas. Their caterers come in and have a nice little private area where they can set up and do what they need to do that's a little bit more private than the main event floor. And then, of course, people do use it during concessions because it is a concession stand. And then attached to that event center is our 24,000 square foot covered open air arena, officially the James River Equipment Arena. Shout out to our wonderful community sponsors for sponsoring that space. And that is exactly what it sounds like. It's covered, it has that roof to keep you dry in the rain, fans situated on the top to help keep it cool in the summertime, bleachers situated off to the side for spectator seating, up to 300 spectators. There is a heater above that bleacher. I have to say above because I used to tell people that our bleachers were heated. They were like, like your car. They were looking down, you know, where you you sit and they were like, What, what? How is this? How is this metal heated? This is so high tech.

SPEAKER_01 7:57

First time I've heard this store.

unknown 8:00

Really?

SPEAKER_01 8:01

That makes sense, you know.

SPEAKER_00 8:02

Yeah, I was like, Oh, our heated bleachers. And they're like, We've never heard of heated bleachers before. What is this Randolph County show out? And which that would be cool.

SPEAKER_02 8:11

But it really would. It probably exists, but if not, let's put a trademark on it right now. Don't take that, don't take our idea.

SPEAKER_00 8:19

But no, overhead heating, which is lovely for the winter months. And that space, you know, a lot of people see Randolph County Agricultural Center arena and they think livestock shows, cattle sales, sheep and goat producer type meetings, handling workshops. And absolutely, yes. Absolutely yes, because Randolph County has needed that space for so long, so many decades. Randolph County has needed a space for for those ag events. But I think the community is going to be surprised because you also have requests for volleyball tournaments or equipment expos or trade shows or cornhole tournaments. You know, it's it's a really versatile space. So open air arena can do lots of things up there. Yep. So we're excited about that. So those two spaces are kind of situated at the back of the property to paint folks a picture if you've not visited our campus. And then in the main building, the Alan Ray McNeil Education and Resource Center, we also have some rentable spaces. We have a meeting room that can host up to 96 participants, TVs on two of the walls. So you can do presentations. You can also divide that space into a third and two-thirds. Chassity, get out of your calculator. That means that you can sit 36 on one side and 60 on the other side. So you can separate those rooms out. That is officially the Randolph Community College meeting rooms A and B. Shout out RCC. Shout out RCC, our other lovely community sponsors. And then we have a general classroom that is right next door to that meeting space. It can see between 16 and 20 folks, kind of depending on what you're using the space for, how you want to situate those tables and chairs. Again, TV at the front, so you can do a presentation. And we also have a boardroom that can sit 12 to 18, depending on if you want all of your guests at the conference table, if you have some guests you want sitting along the wall, kind of spectating the meeting. And that's a rentable space. So a lot of uh spaces that the community can come in and use, whether you are an association or a board or just a community group that needs somewhere to meet, you know, you don't have to be an ag to come and use these spaces. You can just be part of a dentist association and want to talk about cleaning teeth. And you can come use one of our spaces.

SPEAKER_02 10:52

Absolutely. And there's two other spaces, but we've had whole separate episodes about them because they're a big deal and a huge undertaking, which is the food hub and commercial kitchen. So if you need to get caught up on those, go listen to some previous episodes about those two topics. But that is a great description of all of those rentable spaces. And then of course we have some classrooms that are more dedicated to extension programs and things like that that we use to do education that are not rentable for the public. Right. But they're open to the public as far as us doing programming.

SPEAKER_00 11:27

Yeah, absolutely. The public can see if the public can use them. But as far as if you're planning a conference or an association meeting or, you know, we do have those dedicated spaces that are, you know, primarily for that purpose. Yes, we want people to come in here and use them.

SPEAKER_02 11:42

So who is this space really designed to serve?

SPEAKER_00 11:45

Oh, I kind of hit on that already, but everybody, literally anyone, you know, you don't have to be in ag. You don't have to be, it doesn't have to necessarily be an educational workshop. You can just be looking for a nice space that you want to get a group of people together, whether that's a group of five, a group of 50, or a group of 500, and you're looking for a versatile meeting space. You know, I'm excited to have our first conference where a group uses the big event center for hundreds and hundreds of people, and then they come and use the smaller spaces for those breakout workshops. That's gonna be so fun to see. And we actually have had one of those already. FFA did their regional rally here and they did that exact thing. They used the event center for their big meeting with everybody together, and then they broke out and used almost every square inch of this campus. So anybody and everybody's welcome.

SPEAKER_02 12:46

What are some of the most common ways the community has already been using this space?

SPEAKER_00 12:52

Oh gosh. I'm gonna break this into part A and part B. Part A is those association type dinners where it's a formal invite, a conference of some kind is bringing their folks in to do meeting, a gala, a fundraiser. And then we've had part B, which is those open to the public meetings where anybody can come. So whether that's a trade show, an art show, um, they they promote it where anybody can walk in. You're just curious about what's going on out there. You can roll up, find a parking spot, walk around, make yourself at home. Um I know that's really broad, but that is what we're seeing here. And that's awesome because it speaks to the versatility of the campus that we have here. We have tons of parking, everything is super accessible. You know, we are situated in the middle of the state, literally the heart of North Carolina. We're right off of, you know, 421, 7473, highway 64, the bypass. So we're seeing folks that used to have their events in Raleigh come to Ashboro. They're coming to Randolph County because we're so central to the state. We're easy to get to. People don't have to fight, you know, the big, big city traffic, but we have the hospitality here. We have the restaurants, we have a walkable downtown, we have the zoo, we have these different amenities. So we're seeing a really, really exciting combination of the locals who are born and bred right here in Randolph County use this space, but we're also seeing folks come in and visit Randolph County for the first time and say, Oh my gosh, this place is awesome. We're coming back.

SPEAKER_02 14:44

What's something about this building that people might not realize yet?

SPEAKER_00 14:48

I think people are still surprised that anybody can use it.

SPEAKER_01 14:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:55

They don't realize we have the events center and that anybody can rent it. You can want to host a pageant and do a pageant. You can want to have a a car show and do a car show. You don't have to be a professional association that's here to do a conference. You can just need that large space with the amenities that we offer. And if we can provide it for you, we want to provide it for you. Prom. Prom here. We had a prom here, and the pictures were awesome, the videos were awesome, and they already want to come back. And we're so thankful for that. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 15:35

That one blew me away. In the planning phases, I expected and I too wanted to see that space being used in that way. Because I mean, let's be real, it's expensive. It's expensive to put on a prom and have it in a good, decent place that makes sense for the students as far as in relation to where they go to school and where they live, where they do life, right? And so I'm just so happy that that first school took that step and was just like, you know what, let's book it. I know it.

SPEAKER_00 16:06

I know. And if I was a student and I saw that my problem was gonna be at the Randolph County Agricultural Center, I think I would have been like, What? Who's in charge of this committee? What's over there? Where why are we going to the ag center? We're just gonna be line dancing. Like, what is this rodeo situation? But they all came and I've heard nothing but great things. And they were surprised with just the space itself. And it's like, oh wow, this this ag center, you might be a kid who has never stepped foot on a farm and seen a cow in person. And they came over here and they were like, Oh, this is for me. This place is for me that I've maybe driven past a hundred times and never knew I would step foot on that property. And now I know it's for me.

SPEAKER_02 16:52

Yes, and it's worth noting, they did not do like a country western theme. It was not farm related, not ag related whatsoever. And it turned out great. It was a hit. I really hope that once we publish this, maybe we'll hear from some students or their parents about it. It was a great event. Like she said, they're wanting to come back, so that's very exciting. And if you weren't that first school, what are you waiting for?

SPEAKER_00 17:17

I know. Get on the book. What are you waiting for? What are we waiting for? And I think we need to do a second chance prom. That would be fun. Because I was a little jealous of their pictures and videos. I know. I was like, I want to be out there.

SPEAKER_02 17:28

Taylor and I both really enjoy cutting up a rug. We really do.

SPEAKER_00 17:32

We do. We uh if music's playing, I wanna I wanna be moving, I wanna be having some fun. So second chance prom needs to come to the act center. Yeah, hurry here first.

SPEAKER_02 17:43

That's right, make it happen. We might not make it happen, but somebody can. Anyone else can and just invite us. That's right. So, what goes into keeping a facility like this running behind the scenes beyond your sanity?

SPEAKER_00 17:56

Oh boy, lots and lots of teamwork, collaboration, and phone calls. I cannot tell you the time out of my day that is calling someone who is necessary to make this place happen. You know, calling our maintenance department and asking them a question because we need them to come over here and do something. Or somebody else is putting on an event and they need a last minute change or they need last-minute access to a part of the build. It's to run any place like this, I think it is all about willingness to work together, willingness to collaborate in that communication piece. I talk more on the phone, and it's not long conversations all the time either. It's those quick, oh my goodness, I just realized we need this. I know who to call, I know who can show up for this, I know who can handle this. And it might be a 30-second phone call, but that's what it is behind the scenes. It's it's knowing that you cannot do it alone. No one can ever do it alone. And it's knowing who you can lean on, who you can rely on, and who's gonna show up for you. And the people that I work with show up every single day. Like I rest easy because we've just built that here and it's it's beautiful, it's awesome.

SPEAKER_02 19:18

That is definitely invaluable. What challenges come with managing a space that serves so many different groups?

SPEAKER_00 19:25

Oh, is it a loaded question? It is a loaded question because you never know what you're gonna get, and every event is so different. You know, if it was all agricultural events or educational type workshops, you get used to that. You know, that's kind of a specific category of similar needs. But when you go from having a prom one day to a consignment sale in five more days to the next week, all of those events have very different needs. And when you have different sizes of spaces, you have the event center, and that event might be prepping for 500 to 600 people. Then you have a smaller meeting space down here and you're prepping for 30 people, you learn to be flexible, you learn to adjust yourselves accordingly. And like I said earlier, you learn to rely on your team, you work together.

SPEAKER_02 20:29

So we've talked about the numerous things that could happen here. We've even thrown out some ideas of our own for anyone that might be listening who wants to do that exact same thing. Second chance prom How can someone reserve a space or get involved?

SPEAKER_00 20:46

Okay. Step one, we have an event inquiry forum online. Now you can always call. You can always stop by, but I will say if you have learned anything from this episode so far, it is that we are busy bees over here. So we welcome people to stop by because you are always welcome. We may not always be available to help you. So I really recommend calling ahead and scheduling that appointment or just calling to chit-chat over the phone. We can talk you through the process, let you know the availability if you've got specific dates in mind. But I do encourage you first visit our website or visit our Facebook. Our Facebook page is Randolph County NC Agricultural Center. Our website is really long, but if you Google, if you Google Randolph County Agricultural Center, it'll come up, it'll pop up. The official website is Randolph County NC dot gov slash ag dash center. And we have a whole event booking page. And there's a facility use guide available on there with just base like. It's it's not a contract. Like this is not a bunch of heavy reading. It is an at-a-glance pamphlet for folks to see like some basic policies, the basic fee structure, what's allowed or not allowed, you know, different, just quick thumb through type situation. And there's also that form to request an event. And that's that's always step one is filling out that form, even if it's your name, your contact info, and some dates you're looking at. That's all you need to know. There's some other questions on there. And if you already know all those answers, Bestie, go off, fill it out. That's awesome. Um, but just getting in touch with us so that we can then contact you and help you and walk you through it, find out more about what your needs are, see if we're going to be able to host you here based on the amenities that we do have because we we want your event to be successful. We don't want to set someone up for failure. We want to set everyone up for success. And so just learn a little bit about what your event is to make sure that it's a good fit. And then we rock and roll from there. We try to do a really good job of walking folks through every step of the process and what that looks like. And we get you to come over here and visit and do a walkthrough and make sure that we are for you. Um because again, we don't want there to be any surprises. We want everybody to have a good time. We want it to be stress-free, as stress-free as it can be, planning some of these big, huge events. But yeah, that's where you start. I will say there is not currently an events calendar where you can automatically just anyone can go find our calendar and see what dates are available. That may be something we push out in the future, just to give people some perspective. We started opening up for events in January of this year. So we're five months into this thing. But again, you can always call over here and speak to me or Jen. She's another event support staff member here and talk it through. Give us your ideal dates, bounce some ideas back and forth. We're happy to work with you because we we want it to be an easy process for you. The last thing we want is for people to get stuck on the website and say, oh, well, never mind. This is too complicated. Just give us a call.

SPEAKER_02 24:13

Yeah.

unknown 24:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:14

A quick conversation can change everything. It can. What role does this building play in strengthening the local community? Wow.

SPEAKER_00 24:24

There's a lot of that. Because we could talk about from the events perspective, giving the community a meeting space where they can gather that has amenities that other places in our county don't necessarily have. But then we could also, I know you have other episodes about the commercial kitchen and the food hub, but I do think if you're looking at our campus and our facility as a whole, there's this really beautiful combination of education resources, addressing food insecurity and food access, addressing entrepreneurship with the commercial kitchens. And then again, all of those event spaces where folks just need to be able to gather. They need to be able to have a place to fellowship that is not going to break the bank, a place that's easily accessible, a place that's bringing folks into our community from outside of our community. And all of that put together is what makes us so unique. Because where else are you going to find an arena, an event center, a commercial kitchen, a food hub, and workshops from your local government departments?

SPEAKER_02 25:41

I know the answer to this one. It's nowhere.

SPEAKER_00 25:45

Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 25:46

It's nowhere, but here. That's why we're so special. That's right. Pat on the back. We need people to know. Okay, so I I know my answer to this question. And so I'm curious to know if your answer would match my answer. What's been a moment where you thought this is exactly what this place was built for?

SPEAKER_00 26:07

Okay, let's make this fun. Okay. We're gonna say it at the same time on the count of three. And like if we're thinking of an exact time or event like the name of that. Okay. Okay. One, two, three. Common ground festival. Yup, absolutely. If you missed it, man, what a day.

SPEAKER_01 26:29

Oh my. Oh my.

SPEAKER_00 26:31

Yeah, well, that seriously, it worked as an open house to bring the community on our campus. It was called the Common Ground Festival because hopefully another thing you've learned from this episode or any of the previous episodes is there is something for everybody here. It's a common ground for everybody in the community. But we opened our doors and had a beautiful day of the community walking around campus, doing hands-on demonstrations, meeting the public servants that work here and serve here, activities, animal demonstrations. I mean, the the list could go on and on and on for what we had here. And I just, as busy as that day was, because I feel like I never slowed down from the minute I got here to the minute I left, like never slept so good in my life was that night. But it was just seeing all of those community members here walking around having a good time with their families. And I was like, this is why we built this. This is why we're here. This is why we work hard every day to serve the community that we're in.

SPEAKER_02 27:40

Absolutely. And it was just smiles upon smiles, upon smiles. It was I mean, it was no one was grumpy weather. I mean, we could have dialed up better weather. Beautiful. It was an amazing day. We had some commissioners on hand and they weren't just like coming to check it out and be like, hey, oh, great event. No, they were in there, they were in the trenches with us. They're like they were working barbecue. Yep. It was fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 28:07

They were working and serving their community. And the other thing that I've heard so many people say that work here were the strangers that they met for the first time.

SPEAKER_02 28:17

Oh gosh. I hardly I listen, I know a lot of people. I know a lot of people. And I maybe, outside of the people that work here and that volunteer here that we had lined up, I maybe saw five people that I knew. Oh that I knew. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:35

I'm like saying, who are these people? And that's the best thing ever. It was fantastic. It was amazing. And the best phrase to hear out of people's mouths that day was, I didn't know that you guys had insert whatever. Like they they came here and they learned what we have here. Yes. And at the end of the day, oh my gosh, that's more than I could ask for.

SPEAKER_02 28:59

100%.

SPEAKER_00 29:00

Yep. Hey girl, are we doing it again? Are we? Should we?

SPEAKER_02 29:06

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 29:06

I think we are. How about it's like May 1st.

SPEAKER_02 29:10

Are you busy May 1st? Like May 1st.

SPEAKER_00 29:11

Does that sound like a good day? I think that sounds like a good day.

SPEAKER_02 29:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:15

I think we should do it.

SPEAKER_02 29:15

I'll be here.

SPEAKER_00 29:16

I'll be here.

SPEAKER_02 29:17

All right.

SPEAKER_00 29:17

Y'all should come too. Let's do it. Common ground festival, year two, May 1st, 2027.

SPEAKER_02 29:24

Yes. I don't know if it'll be bigger. I'm sure it will be even better, but it's going to be different. Every year we're going to try and change things up. You're going to learn something new, something different. And we're just going to make sure of it. We're going to make sure of it. So it's going to be a fantastic day. I can't promise we'll have the same great weather that we had this year. Oh man. Because that's out of my control. But we will be here. We will be here.

SPEAKER_00 29:52

Rain or shine.

unknown 29:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:54

We'll be here.

SPEAKER_02 29:55

We were actually just kind of reliving it a little bit over lunch. And I was like, I don't think I exhaled until I got in my car to leave that day. I have never. I was like, if I stop, if I stop even for a second, I'm not going to get back up.

SPEAKER_00 30:10

You can't. But it was one of those days where you go home so tired, but so happy and so satisfied. And so just like, this is what hard work was meant for. Not all the other terrible days of hard work like this.

SPEAKER_02 30:25

This is what hard work is meant to be. And we had, of course, our departments. We had some fabulous community partners that were volunteering or that had come. The library had brought their free mobile libraries. Kids were going home with books. Gosh, what else was out here? Randolph Community College had what was their bus again?

SPEAKER_00 30:44

Business Center. The business center. Yes. And we saw thousands of people that day. Yeah. I think the car count, and this is guest cars. Yes. So not volunteers, not workers, guest cars who came in and part was 1,602.

SPEAKER_02 31:05

I think so. It was a big number.

SPEAKER_00 31:07

It was a big number.

SPEAKER_02 31:08

We've already learned chassity doesn't do numbers.

SPEAKER_00 31:11

No. And if you multiply, you know, two or three people per car, I don't know what that equals, but it's a lot.

SPEAKER_02 31:20

That's what my calculator told me.

SPEAKER_00 31:22

We ran now one piece of feedback. If you got here, we opened at 10 a.m. Yep. If you got here after like 11:30, there was stuff we had you didn't even know we had because we ran out.

SPEAKER_02 31:34

We did. Our lovely partner, Millstone, they were giving out some samples of their apple cider slushies. And if you miss that, I am so sorry. You know, my got one. I got one that day, but the man, those are good.

SPEAKER_00 31:50

My mother-in-law and father-in-law got the last two.

SPEAKER_02 31:52

Did they?

SPEAKER_00 31:53

I found that out yesterday. Oh we were we were talking about Common Ground Festival. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:57

And you better not put that word on the street.

SPEAKER_00 31:59

They got the last two slushies of the day, man.

unknown 32:01

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 32:02

Man, they were and it was it was refreshing. It was just a refreshing thing. Oh, it was so nice of them to do that.

SPEAKER_00 32:09

And ECA did their yard sale.

SPEAKER_02 32:11

They did. They said they made more money than they've ever made.

SPEAKER_00 32:14

There was a line out the door, like down the sidewalk the first day. Yeah. And well, and the second day.

SPEAKER_02 32:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 32:20

But I there was a line of like 50 people.

SPEAKER_02 32:23

They do such a good job. That is such an organized and put together event for them. And we are so glad that that was Al Taylor's idea. Hey, let's put this, let's put this in with this festival. And it worked out perfectly.

SPEAKER_00 32:37

It did. Let me tell you, those ECAs, they could run the world. They really could. Let me tell you.

SPEAKER_02 32:42

There's amazing ladies.

SPEAKER_00 32:43

Put it in their hands. They got it.

SPEAKER_02 32:44

And if you don't know, ECA stands for Extension Community Association. And they are always taking new members. They have clubs at various parts of the county. They've got some that meet here. Ran Sewer has they have their own building. They bought their own little building. They meet down in there. Um I believe there's a like a Trinity chapter. Anybody can join. Anyone, man, woman, anyone. All you gotta have is a a good spirit and some free time. That's right. They're a wonderful partner, and I'm so glad they're part of us.

SPEAKER_00 33:12

And they solve the world's problems. They do. Every day. They do.

SPEAKER_02 33:15

Man, are we missing anybody?

SPEAKER_00 33:17

I mean, oh gosh, like there were so many. There were so we had we had Randolph County departments show up, you know, emergency services was here, tourism and development authority was here, beekeepers, forestry. Yes, gosh. So if we start listing them, yeah, we're gonna forget somebody. Yeah. But if you come next year, you'll be able to see exactly who they are. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 33:40

Can't spill all of our secrets. That's right. You have to keep the suspense in there.

SPEAKER_01 33:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 33:45

So if someone has not visited yet, what would you say to encourage them to come see us?

SPEAKER_00 33:50

Come on by. We're off Highway 64 outside of Ashborough, like you're headed towards Ramsur. We're easy to get to. Stop by. Our hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8 to 5. You are always welcome to come in the main lobby, uh, familiarize yourself with the building, um, how to get here, where campus is. If you want a full-fledged tour, however, if you want to see the different spaces that we have talked about, call us and schedule a tour. Call us and schedule a time where we can show you around. It is a big campus, and so we don't want you to get lost. We want to make sure we can answer all your questions. We have had some people stop by and and want to look around, and we're so excited when that happens. But we would love for you to call ahead and schedule a time for a tour so that we can give it to you proper. But you can always stop by, come in that main lobby, get some informational materials, get some resources, get some business cards, learn a little bit more about the government services that uh serve here. And yeah, all are welcome.

SPEAKER_02 35:00

Definitely stop in. Uh, we'll do as much as we can with the time that we have allotted for when you stop, but you're definitely always welcome. Our doors are open every day, Monday through Friday, eight to five. So, Taylor, you did drop some names. The James River Equipment Arena. And we also have the Randolph Communications Digital Skills Lab. Correct. Okay, and then the Randolph Community College Meeting Room A and Randolph Community College Meeting Room B. Um, and then of course we have bricks that you can purchase to honor or remember a loved one or just someone that was important to your life. So, what are some other sponsorship opportunities that you want to let people know about?

SPEAKER_00 35:47

So we do have one bench available. I'm out in the courtyard. We have three total to start with. So if you want to honor someone, an organization, that is a lifetime memorial plaque, if you will, on that bench. And then we also have our sponsor, a panel program in the James River Equipment Arena. So it's very similar to going to a baseball game. You go to a baseball game, you look out across the outfield, what do you see along that fence? All the sponsors. Same thing is the standard in an arena. So that arena is lined with panels along the perimeter because we don't want any escaping cows or sheep or goats. So you can sponsor a panel and have a banner displayed on that panel. And it is $500 for one year of advertising for your business, your organization, your association, what have you, or $2,250 for a five-year term to display your banner. And you can swap it out at any time. That's one of my favorite parts of that advertising sponsorship program is the banner is yours to keep, which means it's yours to swap out. So if you upgrade your logo or you just want to promote different messaging, or you change offices and get a new phone number, that's that's cool. Produce a new banner, bring it out, swap it out within that term. Um, because as I mentioned earlier, we're gonna see all kinds of events out in that arena from ag events to car shows to equipment expos to sporting tournaments. So that's a great way to get out your your brand name, your organization, promote that visibility.

SPEAKER_02 37:25

And do we still have some rooms?

SPEAKER_00 37:28

We do have rooms available. We have the general classroom is available. We've got a couple of learning labs. They're still available. Chastity mentioned those learning labs with cooperative extension. So they host all kinds of programs and workshops and educational opportunities, trainings, those spaces still available for naming rights. And you can learn more about all of those spaces on our website. So again, Randolph County NC.gov slash ag dash center or just Google Randolph County Ag Center. We'll pop up. But we have a whole page dedicated to sponsorships and what that looks like and the different opportunities. But I'll also say we're open to other and new ideas. Like we were conscious of the fact that we may not think of all the ways that folks can engage here and sponsor here or advertise here. So if you have an idea and you don't see it on our website, still call, still reach out because we want to be creative here. We love to work with people.

SPEAKER_02 38:32

Yep. And as one of the things I like to say, the worst we can say is no. That's right. That's the worst we can say the worst we can say is no. But if you never ask the question, the answer is always no. That's right. You never know. That's what I ask. You never know. Just take a minute and I ask. One last loaded question. Oh boy. What is something that you have learned since we opened?

SPEAKER_00 38:55

One thing I've learned is how amazing this community is. And that might sound cheesy, but I really like this community's special. This whole county is special. The way that people show up and volunteer their time or make a phone call for you or say, hey, if you ever need XYZ, here's my phone number. The way that they're passionate about what they do and the events that they host. It's just, it's a really special place. Randolph County is a special place. And I think because of what the Ag Center does in bringing the community in, we get that window to see into the community in that way and all the different demographics and the way that people show up. It's really special.

SPEAKER_02 39:44

And she didn't even grow up here.

SPEAKER_00 39:47

I didn't, although not far. I grew up in Uppermore County and we came to Ashboro for everything. Well, we not the same. We had a Moore County address.

unknown 39:57

Not the same.

SPEAKER_00 39:57

But we it's not the same. But we wanted to be annexed into Randolph County.

SPEAKER_02 40:02

Who doesn't, right? Who doesn't?

SPEAKER_00 40:04

But part B to that question, I just have to say it because I think anybody out there who is interested in working for an event center or a campus like this, you learn to be flexible. You learn that every day is going to be different. And you learn how to rely and trust in others to have your back and to help you. And you learn how to show up for people in ways you didn't think you ever would. You know, the the things that you thought you were planning for in that job interview six months down the road, that girl had no idea what she was talking about. Yeah. You you learn to be flexible and you learn a lot. You learn how to collaborate and work as a team.

SPEAKER_02 40:48

And I know we didn't go into your background of jobs and education experience, but I will just say very quickly that she was a former teacher and then she came to work for extension as well. And she was a 4-H program specialist. But I can't help but really know that things like classroom management skills and planning, all of all of those skills that you would not necessarily think would be so transferable into what she's currently doing are very transferable. And thank goodness she was like top-notch at what she did because she's doing really great here, which is good because I really was like, Taylor, you should apply for this job. So she so if she didn't like it, she might would have come for me and been like, I'm gonna hurt you.

SPEAKER_00 41:35

All your fault.

SPEAKER_02 41:35

Yeah, it's all your fault. Blame me every day and dislike me.

SPEAKER_00 41:39

But let's So what you're saying is what you're saying is on the stressful days, yeah. I can blame you on the stressful days. Or I'm like, how can I make this about me? Thank you, Chastity, for everything you've done to further my career.

SPEAKER_02 41:52

It's all thanks to you. Next headache she gets, she's gonna be like, it's all thanks to you. And I'll be like, you know, that's valid.

SPEAKER_00 41:59

I'm sure I'm not the only one you've given headaches to. No.

SPEAKER_02 42:03

Listen, let me tell you what someone told me yesterday at church. He said, I really appreciate you. He's like, You're quiet until you feel like you really need to say something. I said, sir, because he know you I have been called a lot of things in my whole life. Quiet ain't one of them is not on that list.

SPEAKER_00 42:22

You always hear chastity before you see her, which is why she's so great at running a podcast. All of our listeners definitely hear you before you see.

SPEAKER_01 42:31

Yeah, definitely. Yeah, you like to chat it up a little bit. Have a little fun.

SPEAKER_00 42:37

But yeah, that was that one threw me for a loop. I'm sure he was probably like, What I really thought you were gonna say he said that you're quiet until you open your mouth.

SPEAKER_02 42:47

Oh now that would have made sense. Right on that. But he's a very nice gentleman and I appreciate his uh his thoughts about me. That's right. His transparency and honesty. I'll just bask in it for the short time until he really gets to know me. He's gonna be like, this girl never shuts up.

SPEAKER_00 43:06

You'll learn one day.

SPEAKER_02 43:08

Taylor, thank you for giving us a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to make this space work for our community. It's clear that the Randolph County Agricultural Center is more than just a building. It's where ideas turn into action and where this community shows up in a big way. And next time, we're pulling the curtain back even further. We're flipping the script, and Taylor will be stepping into the host seat to interview me. We're gonna talk media, marketing, communications, the stuff you see every day and the stuff you don't see at all. Because let's be honest, it's a lot more than just posting on social media. So if you've ever wondered who's behind it all and what actually goes into it, you're going to want to tune in. Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next time right here under the green.