The Lyon County Extension Office is back up to full staff following the hiring of a new Family and Consumer Sciences agent, Rhonda Gordon.
Gordon, who was born and reared in Emporia, is new to the position, but not new to the extension office. She previously had worked as the office’s program assistant for the Nutrition Program, which takes nutrition education into elementary and pre-schools.
Gordon’s position now takes her other position several steps further. Gordon fields questions about consumer issues, family issues and food issues. She recently fielded a call about how long food is safe in a freezer following a power outage. Gordon was able to give the caller an answer based on research and all the tools she has at her disposal at the extension office.
“Since we are K-State Research and Extension, it’s all research-based,” she said. “If we don’t have the answer we have the resources to find it.”
The extension office has a wealth of information available to consumers, Gordon said as she sat in the resource room. The room is filled with booklets, pamphlets, videos and books. There’s information on food, recipes, parenting, teenage bullying, sewing and home preservation and a lot more, Gordon said. There’s even information about ingredient substitutes for recipes.
“I think there’s just a ton of resources that people don’t realize is available at the extension office,” she said.
Gordon, whose maiden name is Fowler, said she’s always been involved with the extension and 4-H here. She was a 4-Her growing up.
“My mom used to be an extension agent in town,” she said.
Gordon’s favorite projects in 4-H were foods and clothing. She also enjoyed the leadership programs. She had the opportunity to work with younger kids in 4-H. Later she went to school and received a degree in elementary education. She also has a degree from Kansas State University in apparel and textile marketing.
As for her other hobbies, Gordon loves cooking, scrapbooking, pilates and spending time with her family, including lots of softball and baseball. She has three children, Austin, 12, Kelsey, 9, and Megan, 6. She is married to Scott Gordon, a veterinarian at Emporia Veterinary Hospital.