By David Kligman
State education cuts have been tough on Woodland Community College’s agriculture department, which must find a way to get by on a meager budget to cover supplies and miscellaneous expenses.
PG&E's Barbara Butterfield, right, hands the keys of a Ford pickup to Brandi Asmus of Woodland Community College. (Photo courtesy of Woodland Community College.)
In March, Brandi Asmus, who heads the department, told the Yolo County Farm Bureau she didn’t even have a vehicle to transport students to educational seminars or a way to haul plants and flowers to their greenhouse.
Farm Bureau board member Barbara Butterfield, who also works for PG&E as a customer and community relations manager, heard Asmus’ budget woes. She said PG&E might be able to help.
A call leads to a truck
Butterfield checked to see if the utility had a surplus fleet vehicle—either a van or a pickup.
“As luck would have it, we did,” said Butterfield, who arranged for the paperwork and worked with PG&E to donate a 2003 Ford F-350 pickup.
Asmus was thrilled and grateful for any vehicle.
“We didn’t know what type it was and quite frankly it didn’t matter to us,” Asmus said. “We just needed four wheels and seatbelts to get us where we’re going.”
Asmus choked up and her eyes were teary during a presentation last month at the college. Last Friday, Butterfield handed Asmus the keys to the pickup.
“I was fairly speechless,” she said. “It’s a relief we aren’t going to have to struggle to figure out how to get my students from point A to point B. They can now travel and we can transport without hurdles. It has been a blessing.”
Much-needed transportation
The truck will provide transportation to get students to agriculture conferences, saving the school hundreds of dollars a trip. Asmus said the pickup will especially come in handy this fall as the department transports about 250 pumpkins from its garden and sells them on campus to raise money for the 85-student department.
Butterfield said this was just one example of the many ways PG&E contributes to the growth and vitality of its communities.
“This was such a rewarding experience,” Butterfield said. “PG&E recognizes that agriculture is the backbone of the economy in Yolo County. When I became aware of the lack of a vehicle at the Woodland Community College agriculture department, I knew that somehow, some way I would find a surplus vehicle for them.”