Roberta (Bobbi) Stevenson McDermott
At Marine Ball with Husband.
Yuma - Yuma County
Inducted in 2017
There have been numerous firsts in Roberta Stevenson McDermott’s life. In 1969 she was the first woman in a decade to graduate from the University of Arizona with a degree in Agronomy. She went on to become the first woman professional worker with the Arizona Soil Conservation Service. In 1975 she was promoted to district conservationist in the Wellton Field Office, a supervisory position. She was the first woman to serve in that capacity in the agency’s history. When the Wellton Field Office was closed it was combined with the Yuma Field Office and she became the district conservationist. In that position she worked with three counties, two states and four conservation districts.
Bobbi, as she is known, is a product of Tucson. During the summer of 1969 she worked at the Plant Materials Center in Tucson, getting hands-on experience driving tractor, hoeing, spraying weeds and running a machine that cleans grass seed. She wanted, and was given, every task that her male counterparts were assigned.
The following year she was hired as a soil conservationist with the USDA Soil Conservation Service, now the National Resource Conservation Service. She took her training in Yuma then was sent to Phoenix in 1970. In 1972 she was transferred back to Yuma as a soil conservationist and spent the rest of her career in that area. As district conservationist she was a major force in the reconstruction and improvement of the efficiency of water usage in the Wellton Mohawk Valley.
Cognizant of the need for instructors with an intimate knowledge of agriculture, Bobbi spent five years sharing her passion with students at Arizona Western College. Often she could be found guiding agricultural tours in the area. Bobbi took to print and electronic media to share her knowledge. She has written columns for the Yuma Sun for many years and has appeared in a monthly newsletter as well as doing a radio show on KAWC and appearing frequently on local TV. In 2005 Bobbi was one of two field representatives nationally to speak during the NRCS National Leadership Team meeting in Washington D.C. She shared her perspective as a district conservationist for the agency. After serving with the National Resources Conservation Service for 38 years Bobbi McDermott retired in 2008. She continues to write her column, “Yuma Ag and You”, for the Yuma Sun and contributes to quarterly agricultural inserts. She is a sought after public speaker.
