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Some new artwork has popped up around the Ohio countryside. Ohio Farm Bureau members in Columbiana, Delaware and Seneca counties have taken proactive measures to remind the public that farmers are good environmentalists.

In Columbiana and Delaware counties, Scott Hagan painted an "Every Day is Earth Day to a Farmer" mural on two barns. Hagan is known for his work in painting the Ohio Bicentennial barns.

The Delaware county barn is owned by Brian and Connie Skinner and family and sits prominently on State Route 521 just outside of Delaware.. The Columbiana County barn is owned by Anthony and Gloria Matthews and sits on State Route 172 near Lisbon. It is known locally as the former Sam Tritten Potato Farm.

According to OFBF Promotion and Education Director Pat Petzel, the paintings are a way to raise the public’s awareness of farmers’ contribution to our society and the environment. This activity is part of Farm Bureau’s efforts to create public awareness about agriculture’s contribution to our state.

"The ‘Every Day is Earth Day to a Farmer’ mural represents the pride we have in agriculture," said Delaware County President Kevin Scott. "Farmers continue to use this natural resource to feed the world, and the barn painting is a way to promote agriculture in a positive way."

The barn painting project was a partnership between Delaware County Farm Bureau, Ohio Farm Bureau, Sherwin-Williams paints and Anthony’s Painting of Upper Sandusky.

"The painting states that everyday is earth day for farmers and that is important to me and my family," Brian Skinner said. "Agricultural land is a natural resource that has been around for thousands of years and we are doing our part to preserve it and to pass it on to the next generation. Farmers and consumers need to work together to preserve this natural resource because this is the source of our food supply."

In Seneca County, Evelyn Snavely took it upon herself to hand paint the logo on a fuel tank on her family’s farm. Snavely had used the fuel tank before to promote agriculture by painting it with pictures of the various commodities they raise When the tank needed repainted, this time she chose to paint the "Every Day is Earth Day to a Farmer" logo. She obtained permission from Ohio Farm Bureau to move ahead with her project, which only took her one week to complete.

"We live on a township road…we get a fair amount of traffic," she said. "I’ve had a lot of comments on it. Most in our area know what the logo means."

She said she did the painting for her own fun, but she intentionally wanted to paint something that would tell the story for Farm Bureau, she said. She and her husband, Paul, and their family have been active in Farm Bureau for many years, she said.

Captions: Scott Hagan painted two new "Every Day is Earth Day to a Farmer" logos on barns in Delaware County and Columbiana County; pictured here. Anthony and Gloria Matthews own the barn that sits on State Route 172 near Lisbon. Photo by Wayne Maris, The Review, East Liverpool

Evelyn Snavely, Seneca County, painted the logo on a fuel tank on her family farm. Pictured with her are her grandchildren Jeremy,15; Nathan,6; Renee,10; and Mikayla,4. Photo Courtesy Evelyn Snavely