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Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation recently awarded nearly $50,000 in scholarships to students across the state. The foundation annually recognizes Ohio students for their academic effort, community engagement and career interests that link agriculture to community service, education or scientific research.

Bill and Helen Swank Scholarship

Kameron Rinehart of Jeffersonville is the recipient of this scholarship. Over the course of his 40-year career with Farm Bureau, Dr. C. William (Bill) Swank enriched countless lives in the farm and food community. This fund honors the legacies of Bill and his wife, Helen, with a scholarship for the next generation of agricultural leaders.

Yvonne Lesicko Memorial Scholarship

Receiving the scholarship is Haven Hileman of Stout. This fund was established in honor of Yvonne Lesicko, Ohio Farm Bureau’s vice president of public policy, who passed away in 2020, to provide support for the next generation of student leaders. The income from this endowment will provide scholarship assistance in perpetuity to students majoring in agricultural and environmental policy or agriculture-related fields, such as food production, scientific research, education/outreach, policymaking, advocacy, or leadership development for women.

Jack Fisher Scholarship

Recipients are Mary Baker of Wooster; Olivia Blay of Mogadore; Maryellen Bliss of Ashland; Cora Dorman of Croton; Caleb Durheim of Sunbury; Haven Hileman of Stout; Stephanie Hirsch of Chillicothe; Mekenzie Jolliff of Kenton; Chyann Kendal of Eaton and Kameron Rinehart of Jeffersonville. This fund is named after John C. “Jack” Fisher, who served as Ohio Farm Bureau’s executive vice president for 20 years. His vision for this scholarship is to enable people to acquire the necessary tools for a more fulfilling life.

Richard and Carole Cocks Scholarship

Recipients are Wyatt Kissell of Mount Vernon; Clay Schoen of Jeromesville; Hayden Shook of Coshocton and Brandon Zuercher of Jenera. This scholarship is intended to help students pursuing a career in agriculture who reside in rural Ohio. Four scholarships are awarded annually to deserving students from select rural Ohio counties. Each scholarship award is renewable for up to four years.

Cindy Hollingshead Scholarship

Recipients are Caleb Durheim of Sunbury; Haven Hileman of Stout and Halle Miller of Creston. This fund honors Cynthia Anne (Cindy) Hollingshead for her 39 years of service as Ohio Farm Bureau’s executive secretary, as well as a lifetime of volunteer commitment to local government and community service activities. Financial assistance goes to students who are pursuing careers focused on agriculture, community service and association leadership.

Darwin Bryan Scholarship

Recipients are Cora Dorman of Croton; Haven Hileman of Stout; Mekenzie Jolliff of Kenton; Chyann Kendal of Eaton; Sarah Lehner of Delaware and Meredith Oglesby of Hillsboro. This fund was established in 1985 in honor of Darwin R. Bryan whose enthusiastic leadership during his 37 years of service to Ohio Farm Bureau has been an inspiration to rural youth throughout Ohio. The fund assists students who have been active in Farm Bureau’s youth program and/or whose parents are Farm Bureau members.

Kenny Walter Scholarship Fund

Maryellen Bliss of Ashland and Sean Ward of Euclid received this award. The fund provides scholarships to students pursuing post-secondary education in agriculture who come from the 29 northeastern counties Walter served as an Ohio Farm Bureau regional supervisor and organization director.

Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation Scholar Award

Receiving this award are Cora Dorman of Croton; Caleb Durheim of Sunbury; Melanie Fuhrmann of Wheelersburg; Haven Hileman of Stout; Chyann Kendel of Eaton; Meredith Oglesby of Hillsboro; Kameron Rinehart from Jeffersonville and Clare Sollars from Washington Court House. This award recognizes students for academic effort, community service and career interests that use agriculture to enhance the partnership between producers and consumers in rural, suburban and/or urban settings.

The Ohio Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association Scholarship

Lenore Kohl of Forest and Emma Leggett of Uhrichsville received this award from the Ohio Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association, a nonprofit trade association representing 2,500 thoroughbred owners and trainers who race at Ohio’s three commercial thoroughbred race tracks. The objective of the scholarship fund is to assist students who plan to pursue careers focusing on food or agriculture.

Women’s Leadership in Agriculture Scholarship

Receiving the scholarship is Haven Hileman of Stout. This scholarship is for students who have chosen a career path that benefits agricultural or community development such as food production, scientific research, education/outreach or leadership development. The program was established by an endowment from the Charlotte R. Schmidlapp Fund, Fifth Third Bank, Trustee.

Joseph Kelly Memorial Scholarship

Receiving this scholarship are Jazmine Auble of Wellington and Taylor Kenska of Elyria. This scholarship was established in 2018 to honor the life of Joseph Kelly and to continue his legacy of generosity and service. The Joseph Kelly Memorial Scholarship is an annual, merit-based competition that focuses on rewarding students pursuing degrees related to agriculture.

The Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation, a 501(c) (3) charitable, nonprofit organization, understands the need to inspire innovation and cultivate investment in Ohio’s farm and food community. Learn more by visiting ofbf.org/foundation.

This is a news release for use by journalists. Questions should be directed to Ty Higgins, 614-246-8231 or [email protected].