By Jamie Strickland
Bryant Spivey has spent his life helping others grow — sometimes quite literally. As the longtime County Extension Director of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension’s Johnston County Center, Spivey has played a vital role in supporting local agriculture, empowering youth and delivering educational programs that strengthen families and communities across the region. This year, his dedication and impact are being recognized with the Johnston Now Honors Legend Award.
Founded through a unique partnership between land-grant universities, federal and state governments and county administrations, the Cooperative Extension system was created to share research-based knowledge with the public. In North Carolina, that work is carried out through NC State University and North Carolina A&T State University.
“Extension is that part which takes the knowledge that’s generated at the university through research and teaching to try to bring it out to the communities,” Spivey said.
Each of North Carolina’s 100 counties, plus the Cherokee Indian Reservation, has an Extension office that provides a wide array of services, from agricultural support to youth leadership and nutrition education. And since 2006, Spivey has led the Johnston County Center with passion and purpose, serving a fast-growing, agriculturally rich region where farming and suburban development exist side-by-side.
“It’s a small amount of our population now that’s on the farm, but we’re helping our farmers be successful and we’re helping them grow food that not only that sustains their farm and their family, but also helps sustain the communities around them and steward the land and the natural resources around them,” he said.
Spivey speaks with deep admiration for the people he serves. “I consider our farmers to be the salt of the earth,” he said. “They work harder than most anybody. They work from sun up to sundown and from March to whenever the crop is harvested, if the sun’s shining they’re working and they’re dedicated to it and I don’t really think there is any higher calling than that. And meanwhile they’re stewarding God’s creation in what they do.”
His own connection to the land runs deep. Spivey’s roots are in Chowan County in northeastern North Carolina, where his grandfather, father and uncle were farmers. Summers spent with his grandparents sparked an early interest in agriculture.
Though his family didn’t grow it, he has a particular interest and affinity for tobacco, for both its historical significance to North Carolina and his deep appreciation for the science behind studying and cultivating the crop.
He planned on becoming a farmer himself, but his mother insisted he further his education first. “She said, ‘well you can farm if you want to, but it will be right after you go to college,’” he said.
He attended NC State University and majored in crop science. After graduation, he spent a year working on the family farm before deciding to use his knowledge to help others. He went to work for the Cooperative Extension in 1994. Over the next 12 years, he served in Pender, Duplin and Onslow counties before becoming the Extension Director in Johnston County, where he and his family now live near Four Oaks.
“As an extension person, you really need to be part of the community, understanding the needs of the community,” he said.
With Johnston County experiencing rapid growth, Spivey and his team of 13 staff members have helped launch innovative programs to keep local agriculture visible and viable. The JoCo Grows Agriculture initiative, for example, is a branding and outreach effort designed to connect residents to local farms and the people who run them.
But agriculture is only one part of the Extension’s impact. From health and nutrition education to environmental stewardship, the programs touch lives across every age group and income level. One popular initiative, the Master Gardener program, teaches residents how to grow plants and vegetables at home. Other classes offer tips on food preservation and how to incorporate local, healthy ingredients into daily meals.
“People want to know what’s in their food and where it comes from. We teach a lot of classes on that,” he said.
4-H is another essential part of the Cooperative Extension, providing a platform for youth to gain life skills and leadership experience.
“There’s a myriad of opportunities that youth can become engaged in through 4-H,” he said. “Showing livestock is one of the ones that immediately pops into people’s minds but they can also become engaged in learning better civic skills and connecting with government.”
A commitment to serving others is what motivates Spivey.
“There’s something in extension programs for everybody no matter what their age or situation,” he said. “It really starts when children are born through programs like EFNEP (Expanded Foods and Nutrition Education Program). That program exists to help people who are economically challenged and have children in the home take their limited resource dollars and feed their family a healthy, nutritious meal at a limited cost. And that’s something that all of us could benefit from. That affects young children, and then those children can be a part of 4-H and learn life skills and carry that right on into a career.”
After more than three decades in the field and close to 20 years in Johnston County, Spivey says the work is much more than just a job. “It’s a part of me at this point,” he said.
For those interested in learning more about the programs and resources available, he encourages people to stop by the Johnston County Agricultural Center, follow the Cooperative Extension Johnston County Center on Facebook, or visit their website. The door is always open — for farmers, families, gardeners and anyone curious about learning something new.
