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Beard named conservationist of the year
03.13 beard
Daniel Beard, center, was named the conservationist of the year by the Ogeechee River Soil and Water Conservation District. On his left is Wendell Arnsdorff and on his right is H.B. Waller III. - photo by Photo submitted

Daniel Beard was named the resource conservationist at the Ogeechee River Soil and Water Conservation District’s annual awards for the best farmers on Feb. 21.

He is a native of Georgia and graduated in 1983 from Effingham County High School. He is the son of May E. Beard of Egypt and Dan B. Beard of Screven County. Beard has lived in the Egypt area his entire life. He is married to Tracy Beard, daughter of Lloyd and Linda Edwards. They have two sons, Austin, 8, and Colby, 6. They have been married for 13 years.

While in high school, Beard was actively involved in FFA. He served as sentinel, reporter and president of the FFA chapter. He worked on three different farms in the Guyton-Egypt area while attending school. Brandon Metzger, Freddie Tuten and the late James Thompson owned the farms. He occasionally assists Vernon Hathcock with his cattle operation in the Shawnee area.

Beard started farming in the mid 1980s. He began by growing corn and soybeans on his 25-acre farm and grew to 250 acres of corn, soybeans and peanuts. He continued farming even while working full time at Georgia-Pacific in Rincon. Currently he is the maintenance planner for contractor services.

He also finds time for civic organizations. He was the 3rd District representative for Effingham County Board of Education for 12 years. He is a member of Effingham Farm Bureau, Effingham County Young Farmer Association and a lifetime member of the FFA Alumni. He has been a member of the Effingham County Young Farmers since 1984. He has held several offices. He was secretary/treasurer for two years and president for 15 years. He has won several awards, including Young Farmers outstanding leadership award for the region several times, Young Farmers outstanding leadership award for the state and farmer of the year for Effingham Co. in 1999.

Beard also served four years on the Georgia Pacific community advisory panel.

Most recently, he and his wife attended the 2008 AgSouth Farm Credit Agribusiness Leadership Institute. He is a member of Elam-Egypt Baptist Church but now attends First Baptist Church of Springfield.

The Ogeechee River Soil and Water Conservation District helps farmers with erosion control, crop lands and grazing practices to help prevent problems in our local area rivers, streams and the degradation of soil.