Do you know how much it pains a journalist to type the words "I missed it"? But I missed Kristin Davis.

Since July 2010, Davis has been the family and consumer specialist for the Mecklenburg Cooperative Extension. That wouldn't be a big deal unless you remember 2004.

That year, the county was struggling with deep budget cuts. So it cut the extension's family and consumer educator. One reason was redundancy - county commissioners mistakenly thought the extension agent does what the Health Department does, in teaching people how to keep their food safe.

But there also was a feeling that extension agents were a rural throwback to the days when they taught farm wives to can green beans. Mecklenburg is urban. Who has time to can?

Actually, a lot of people do, even in bustling Mecklenburg. And an extension agent does a lot more than teach canning. At the time, I wrote a column fussing about the loss.

Then we adjusted. When people had food questions I couldn't answer, I'd reach out to Sally McNeill, the Union County extension agent, or Ben Chapman, the state expert.

I didn't call Mecklenburg. For six years, no one was there to answer. Then, a few weeks ago, I got the word: In July 2010, the county restored the position.

It did it with a small twist, though. When the extension service moved another position and made an opening, it decided the county needed a local-food specialist.

"So many people had an interest in a growing local-food economy and basic skills," says Davis. "Basic cooking, basic home preservation."

The extension service can be confusing. In most states, including the Carolinas, cooperative extension agencies are part of universities - Clemson in South Carolina, N.C. State and N.C. A&T in North Carolina. But they also partner with county agencies. In Mecklenburg, Extension is a part of Parks & Recreation.

You can get details, on Mecklenburg and every other county, at www.ces.ncsu.edu. Click on "county centers."

What extension agents do is educate. That's the extension part: They take research from the universities and extend it into counties, where you and I can use it.

Davis spends a lot of time working with community groups. Right now, she's taking a survey to find out what food classes you want. You can find a link to her survey on my blog, at obsbite.blogspot.com.

And I promise to stay in touch with Kristin Davis.