The Agriculture Alumni Society and Agriculture Club held a chicken dinner fund-raiser Nov. 10 to raise money for scholarships in the Agriculture Department.

   The event sold 500 diners at $5 a piece to go toward the recently endowed Robert C. Kirst Scholarship.

   “This is the best turnout ever,” Agriculture Club advisor Whitney Whitworth said. “The best amount of presale, the most diners that has ever been sold for this event.

   “Point of fact I was worried we would run out.”

   The Alumni Society announced the endowment of the Kirst Scholarship during the Agriculture Reunion Oct. 13. The society co-chairmen Mark Owen said over the years the cookout raised more money for the scholarship than any other fund-raiser.

   Although the scholarship has already been endowed, Owen said the money raised will be added to the initial money so more scholarships would be available for the future.

   “We started this the fall after our organization’s first year,” Owen said. “That was about ’99 and it’s been so great. The Agriculture Club has taken over the ticket sales and managing the food and our group basically just gets with Tyson and gets it organized.”

   Owen said while Kirst taught at the University of Arkansas at Monticello, he established the bond between Tyson and the Agriculture department. Tyson donated the food and the company’s cooking team, along with alumni, prepared the diners.

   Agriculture professor Robert Stark said around 35 student volunteers worked the event pre-selling and delivering the diners.

   “I had 16 in my class nice enough to volunteer,” Starks said.

   The Agriculture Club holds the event every year the Friday before the opening day of modern gun deer hunting season.