JAY — Since 2005, the Vermont Land Trust has recognized outstanding high school juniors and seniors who are dedicated to agriculture and forestry.
This year, Dustin Beloin, of Jay, received one of nine Land Stewards Awards presented by the land trust, along with a check for $300.
Beloin was nominated for the award by Sam Nijensohn, his Forestry and Natural Resources instructor at the North Country Career Center in Newport.
“Dustin is very involved with the working landscape in a wide variety of ways,” Nijensohn said. “He is an outdoorsman and a conservationist, a hunter and a trapper. He helps his family with their sugaring operations as well as logging and trail work, including grooming winter trails.”
Beloin loves being outdoors and has set his sights on becoming a game warden.
In 2021, he was chosen as one of Vermont’s 2021 maple ambassadors.
“I’ve been a Vermont resident my whole life and have always grown up working with or on the land in some way, shape, or form,” Beloin said. “Being a steward of the land and continuing the wise and sustainable use of it is important for everyone to do because without the land there is no us.”
Since junior high school, Beloin has been an active member of the school’s Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter.
In addition to his role as FFA Treasurer this year, he has participated in several leadership trainings and led a workshop teaching other members about value-added processing and how to make maple walnuts.
“VLT congratulates Dustin for his hard work and dedication,” said Nick Richardson, President & CEO of the Vermont Land Trust. “These students are our future farmers, foresters, and land stewards who will keep our local businesses and working lands strong and healthy for years to come.”
