From left to right, Wil McCollum from Fairview Elementary won third place, Abigail Roy from West Point Intermediate placed second and Carson Smith from Good Hope Elementary was first in the 2015 Cullman Farm-City poster contest for the fourth through sixth grade category.

As he stood on the Cullman Civic Center stage in front of hundreds of fellow farmers Thursday night, Steve Lake was humbled.

Ever since he was old enough to play with toy tractors, the Vinemont resident and current Cullman Farmers Federation President said he always wanted to grow up to be a farmer. On Thursday, Lake and his wife, Lisa, were honored for their 32 years of farming and community involvement by being named the 2016 Farm Family by the Cullman Farm-City Committee.

“Standing here and thinking about all the other families that have stood in this place and given this award, it makes me feel very small,” Steve Lake said. “We’ve been blessed to live in Cullman County, but I think it’s the people of Cullman County that makes all the difference.”

Hundreds packed the Cullman Civic Center for the annual banquet which for many in the agriculture community, is the “social event of the year,” said Doris Patterson, co-chair of the Cullman Farm-City Committee.

The Lakes are members of Bethlehem West Baptist Church where they both teach Sunday school class and sing in the choir among other duties. Steve Lake is the director of the Cullman County Cattlemen and previously served as president.

Lisa Lake is the current Director of the Cullman County Cattlewomen as well as past president and serves as Director of the Women’s Leadership Committee for the Cullman Farmers Federation. The Lakes were previously chosen as the Alabama Poultry and Egg Association Family of the Year in 2002.

The couple has three children, Heath (Mandi), Emily (Todd Oldacre) and Ethan and four grandchildren; Kiah, Bryn, Evie and Audrey Kate, with a fifth grandchild on the way in May 2016. The Lakes’ children all graduated from Auburn University, and Heath Lake and son-in-law, Todd Oldacre, work for two major poultry integrators. Their youngest, Ethan Lake, is an agriscience teacher at Danville High School while Emily Oldacre is a science teacher for the Cullman County school system.

Alabama Farm Credit nominated the Lakes, citing the couples’s community involvement and selflessness in putting their farm ahead of their own wants and needs.

“Strong work ethic has been taught to their children as they continue work on the family farm,” the company stated in its nomination.

Also honored at the banquet were outgoing 2015 Farm Family, Dr. Bill and Carolyn Peinhardt. The couple run the Peinhardt Living History Farm, an educational family farm focusing on rural life in the 1930s and 1940s.

Farm-City Committee Member Travis Kress said Cullman County was fortunate to be different from other farming communities where “a wall” separated the country from the city.

“In other places where cities are growing into rural areas, it’s ‘what’s that smell coming from that field over there?’” Kress said, eliciting laughter from the audience. “In Cullman County, that wall doesn’t exist.”

The winners of the annual poster contested were also announced. In the kindergarten through third-grade division, Mattie Wix from Good Hope Elementary won first, followed by Ashley Tello of Hanceville Elementary in second and Johanna Wisener from Fairview Elementary in third. In the fourth through sixth-grade division, Carson Smith of Good Hope Elementary took first, followed by Abigail Roy from West Point Intermediate with second and Will McCollum from Fairview Elementary in third.

“Carson is a testament to never giving up,” said Denise Schuman, Farm-City Committee co-chair. “Carson was a finalist in 2010, placed third in 2011, second in 2012, second in 2013 and second in 2014. In 2015, he is first.”

The committee received 475 poster submissions and had to narrow the field to 50 finalists for final judging. The winners will go on to compete in the state competition.

Also honored were three local high school students: Macy Hinds from Cold Springs for Outstanding Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) Member, Lacy Barrett, a home school student, for Outstanding 4-H Member and Shelby Martinez from Holly Pond for Outstanding Future Farmers of America (FFA) Member.

The three were presented their awards by Jill Bradberry with Merchants Bank, Dr. Brooke Gorham, a podiatrist at Gadsden Foot Clinic, and Chad Floyd, a Cullman attorney and newly appointed Cullman County Attorney. All three graduated from local schools in 1995.

The annual Farm-City Banquet recognizes and celebrates the role agriculture plays in the lives of all Cullman County residents. Cullman County is ranked No. 1 in the state for broilers, cattle and milk production and second for vegetables, melons and sweet potatoes. The county’s agriculture, forestry and related industries account for $2.4 billion and 15,555 jobs, according to the Alabama Cooperative Extension Service.

Friday will kick off the first day of Farm-City Week, which ends on Thanksgiving Day. The goal of the national week of recognition is to encourage better understanding between rural and urban people by increasing their knowledge and appreciation of each other as partners in progress.

Cullman County has won Overall Best Farm-City Committee for three straight years and is hoping to capture a fourth consecutive award. For more information, visit the Cullman Farm-City website at cullmanfarmcity.org.