Earlier this year, Coach Riley was accepted into the Moore County Leadership Institute (MCLI) and we promised a monthly recap of each of his new experiences. If you aren’t caught up, click here to learn about this adventure!
After participating in a two-day retreat in January, February would be the MCLI teams first day trip. This month, visiting North Moore. Riley was eager to share his findings when returning back to First Tee – Sandhills. Take a moment to hear what they learned and discovered in Robbins.
“We started the day at Robbins Fire Department with a presentation about the history of Robbins by the Town Manager, Clint Mack. The presentation really focused on the ups and downs of Robbins throughout the years as they continuously fluctuated between a bustling hub of industry, and on the verge of economic collapse. It really showed the resiliency of the people of the town worked through the hard times to live life in the good. After presenting the history, he went into a little more on the modern day issues that Robbins is currently facing and the steps they are taking to solve them. There are three major things they will be tackling. First is updating their water infrastructure; Second is renovating old shop-faces to start driving up business within the community; and Third is working on what will drive people to come to Robbins. After this, we took a small tour of the town and were shown the storefronts that are being renovated throughout Robbins.”
“Later we visited Misty Morning Ranch where we learned about what it takes to run an Ostrich Farm. The owners Ryan and Rich (who is also in MCLI), discussed the challenges they had to overcome, especially with ostrich farming being a “newer” concept where best practices are ever changing. Ryan is on the forefront of innovation when it comes to raising ostriches, especially in decreasing the overall Ostrich chick fatality rate, which on a national level sits at about 65%, he has managed to drop his down to 18% with a few changes in the way he houses them as they grow through those vital couple months. He went on to discuss future plans they have, from increasing their farm and processable ostriches to opening their own processing plant in NC where all forms of red meat may be processed.”
“Overall, learning the hardships that both the community and the Ostrich farm have overcome as they both continue to grow while navigating challenges, was impressive. For a small community, they are highly resilient and it’s a side of Moore County you don’t get to see enough. I am excited to see Robbins flourish.”
Next stop in the MCLI program will be March 13 to County Services.