Brown Visits Students at Defiance County Summer Manufacturing Camp

SHERWOOD, OH - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) visited and presented certificates to sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students at the final day of a Defiance County summer manufacturing camp his office helped organize, focused on food manufacturing and agribusiness. The camp offered students a chance to learn about careers in their communities, tour local manufacturing facilities, and learn from experts.

"We came up with the idea for camps because too often, our students didn't realize all the opportunities available to them in Ohio," said Brown. "When kids hear the word 'manufacturing,' they think about the outdated, offensive term "rust belt," that demeans our workers and devalues their work. We are burying the term "rust belt"- here in Defiance with the modern food and agriculture industry, in Toledo with solar, in Cleveland with NASA."

Brown joined students on a tour of a professional kitchen, spoke with the students who learned about Ohio manufacturing, and joined the camp's closing ceremony.

"We had a great week with the campers exploring different career opportunities and using hands on activities to learn all about food manufacturing," said Kortney Williams, Defiance County Economic Development. "We love to see the engagement the campers have with our guests and during the tours. We can't wait for next year!"

Brown's office started organizing camps in 2013 and this summer, 24 in-person camps are scheduled to take place in 17 counties.

Community partners include: First Insurance, Hicksville Bank, Wells Fargo - Jay Hanson, APT Manufacturing, Citizens Bank, Midwest Community FCU, Sherwood State Bank, Community Memorial Hospital, Spyker Contracting tours, Defiance Schools, NEMCO, BALCHEM, Maumee Valley Vending, Arps Dairy - Lambert Dairy Farm, CIFT, EnviroKure, Tri-State Dairy, Defiance County Ohio Means Jobs and the OSU - Extension.

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