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2023 Distinguished Service Award
Jerry Lahmers, a lifetime resident of Tuscarawas County, has had nearly 50 years of
involvement with Farm Bureau and numerous other county and statewide boards and
organizations.

He served at the county level as Tuscarawas County Farm Bureau president and public
policy chairman and as a member of the membership committee. During Lahmers’
county Farm Bureau involvement, the county launched several successful programs. He
also served three terms as a trustee on the Ohio Farm Bureau board of trustees,
representing the interests of members in Carroll, Harrison, Jefferson and Tuscarawas
counties.

The Lahmers family raises cow-calf pairs, operates a feedlot and raises grain, hay and
pasture. Lahmers also was a food animal veterinarian for 29 years.

2023 “Y-Prize”
The Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation recognized Dr. Jerry and Rita Lahmers of
Newcomerstown with the 2023 Yvonne Lesicko Perseverance Prize, known as the Y
Prize, for their innovative work on farmer mental health initiatives.

The Lahmers, who have been leaders in their community for decades, spearheaded the
creation of the Check Your Engine – Mental Health Project, which serves to better
connect rural communities when addressing mental health concerns. The program was
developed by Carroll, Harrison, Jefferson and Tuscarawas County Farm Bureaus, in
collaboration with local organizations that focus specifically on mental wellness.
“If a check engine light comes on the dash of a tractor or farm vehicle, it’s time to get it
to the shop to diagnose the issue, whether it be a common solution that will take
minutes to fix, or the machine could be on the brink of a total engine failure,” Jerry said.
“Either way, the check engine light lets us know something is wrong and it needs to be
addressed.”

The Check Your Engine – Mental Health Project highlights some of the signs that a
farmer needs the same kind of tune-up, how severe the issues might be and how to
properly address an individual who needs additional support.

The Y Prize is an award created by the Yvonne Lesicko Memorial Fund. The fund was
created in 2020 to honor Yvonne Lesicko, former vice president of public policy for Ohio
Farm Bureau. The fund, within the Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation, was established to
support the causes and initiatives that were important to Lesicko.

“This wouldn’t be possible without the help of the professionals that work in the mental
health space everyday,” Jerry said. “They stepped forward and were more than willing
to work with us. We need to realize they are in every community in Ohio, and we need
to get involved with them. There is a lot we in agriculture don’t know and we need to
lean on them to learn the best ways to talk about mental health with our neighbors.”
Lahmers spent his career serving farmers as a large animal veterinarian in Tuscarawas
and surrounding counties and has been involved in Ohio Farm Bureau at all levels,
including as a state trustee for the organization until 2022. Rita Lahmers is a retired
teacher, who saw the impacts of stress through her students and was instrumental in
getting various businesses and members of the community involved in the Check
Engine – Mental Health Project.

“The overall goal is to get farmers comfortable in reaching out for help,” Rita said. “One
way that will happen is to get more counselors to have a better understanding of the
community. Our problems are more complex and with fewer people involved in
agriculture, it can be difficult to find someone who can relate to what you are dealing
with as a farmer.”

As the 2023 Y Prize award winners, the Lahmers will be given a platform to share their
work and the efforts of their county Farm Bureaus and the entire community to raise
awareness and create resources for farm stress and mental health.

To contribute to the Yvonne Lesicko Memorial Fund, visit the Ohio Farm Bureau
Foundation at ohiofarmbureau.org/donate.

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 ohiofarmbureau.org/foundation.