Strengthening Our Hometown Communities

At CHS, we are committed to making a long-lasting, measurable impact on rural America and the agricultural industry. Through our stewardship efforts, we use the collective power of the cooperative system to develop ag leaders for life and to strengthen the hometown communities where our employees, owners and customers live and work. CHS employees give their time, talent and resources back to their local communities through a variety of stewardship efforts including annual Days of Service hours. We also focus on improving ag safety and cultivating ag leaders through the CHS Seeds for Stewardship program. Over the past three years your local CHS has donated just over $21,000 to local programs in southern Illinois. Learn more at chsinc.com/stewardship.

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We enthusiastically participate in the annual CHS Harvest for Hunger program, which has provided more than $7.37 million and 3.94 million pounds of food to local and regional food shelves, pantries and nonprofits. Donations will help feed people in need right here in the communities we serve. Your local CHS has raised just over $104,000 since 2013, with 100% of the funds going to local food pantries.

The CHS Foundation helps to create a strong future for rural America. The foundation partners with nearly 30 universities to award scholarships to college students pursuing degrees in agricultural-related fields as well as mini-grants for agriculture-focused college clubs. Students and clubs apply for these scholarships directly through the college or university where they plan to attend. Learn more and see a list of partner universities.

Local County Fairs

The American county fair developed in the early nineteenth century when agricultural reformers in the northeastern United States organized local exhibitions to promote modern farming. Typical events included livestock judging, exhibits of new agricultural implements and techniques, and plowing contests. The Union Agricultural Society (1839), which published the Prairie Farmer from Chicago, drew members from counties throughout Northeastern Illinois and held its first annual fair in Naperville in 1841” (Encyclopedia of Chicago, “The Evolution of the Agricultural Fair in the Northwest”).

Many things have evolved since the early nineteenth century, but Illinois county fairs continue to stand the test of time. At CHS, we are actively involved in local county fairs and participate in local parades.