McAvoy inducted into Ag Agents Hall of Fame

Posted 8/9/22

Gene McAvoy was inducted into the National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA)...

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McAvoy inducted into Ag Agents Hall of Fame

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WEST PALM BEACH — Gene McAvoy was inducted into the National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA) Hall of Fame at the NACAA Annual Meeting and Professional Improvement Conference,  held in West Palm Beach, July 17 -22. 

Gene and Donna McAvoy
Gene and Donna McAvoy

McAvoiy is only one of three Florida county agents ever to receive this recognition. He said  felt exceptionally blessed to have received this award in Florida surrounded by his peers who nominated him for this honor.

McAvoy was an exemplary role model during his 25-year career with the UF IFAS Extension service beginning in 1997 when he joined the Hendry County Extension Office as the Vegetable/Horticulture Agent providing direction and leadership to the Vegetable Horticulture Program.

In 2004, McAvoy became one of University of Florida IFAS’s first Regional Specialized Extension Agents (one of two) in which role he continued to provide direction and leadership for the development, implementation and evaluation of Extension educational programs for vegetable producers in the five-county area of Southwest Florida in the following areas: crop production efficiency and sustainability, farm safety and regulatory compliance, integrated pest management, post-harvest quality and food safety, and vegetable nutrition and irrigation management as well as planning and implementing the Environmental Horticulture Program in Hendry County where he delivered Extension programming to area homeowners, civic groups, and 4-H youth.

McAvoy became the County Extension Director for Hendry County in 2005 and continued to serve in that role and as well as Regional Specialized Vegetable/Horticulture Extension Agent IV until he retired in 2019. On his retirement, he was granted the title Extension Agent Emeritus by the University of Florida.

McAvoy did not stay retired long and after 19 days he was invited back to join UF IFAS as the Associate Director for Stakeholder Relations at the UF IFAS Southwest Florida Research and Education Center ,a position in which he continued to serve the agricultural community of Southwest Florida and beyond from 2019 - 2022.

McAvoy retired from UF IFAS again in July 2022 and is now president of Have Gun Will Travel Agricultural Consulting.

During his Extension career, McAvoy served as president of Florida Association of County Agricultural Agents and was president when Florida hosted the NACAA annual meeting in 2004. His dedication to agriculture and penchant for professionalism and service did not stop there. He went on to become president of NACAA in 2019 and was influential in helping steer the association through the COVID-19 pandemic, helping transition the 2020 Annual Meeting and Professional Improvement Conference to the first ever virtual AMPIC attended by over 1,400 county agents from across the country. AS NACAA President, McAvoy welcomed Guam into the association.

After his term as NACAA President, McAvoy went on to serve as the president of the Joint Council of Extension Professionals in 2021-22.

McAvoy was a late comer to Extension and in some ways an unlikely candidate to achieve all that he has during his career. Born in Orange, New Jersey, McAvoy spent his formative years in East Orange, New Jersey, just a few blocks from Newark, NJ. From his first part-time summer high school job on a farm, where he picked strawberries, peppers and tomatoes, McAvoy developed a love for his lifelong passion - agriculture.

McAvoy received his Bachelor of Science  (Plant Science) and Master of Science (Horticulture) degrees from Rutgers University.

After graduating from Rutgers, McAvoy joined the Peace Corps, serving in Niger. This led to 12 years with the US Agency for International Development, working with vegetable growers in Niger, South Africa, and Jamaica before moving his family north to Florida to join UF.

McAvoy has received multiple awards during his years of service and has spent over 50 years supporting and advocating for the agriculture industry in Florida and beyond.

McAvoy and his wife Donna live on their ranch outside LaBelle.

gene mcavoy, Hall of Fame

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