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Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation recently awarded nearly $60,000 in scholarships to students across the state.

According to Jenny Cox, Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation board president, the foundation has put intentional focus on its purpose and its work, and scholarship awards directly impact that purpose: to inspire and educate the next generation of agriculture.

A few of the students honored include Sarah Hoak of Richland County, who received both a Bill and Helen Swank Scholarship and a Jack Fisher Scholarship; Isaiah Allen of Lorain County who received a Joseph Kelly Memorial Scholarship, and Dominic Wyne of Summit County, who was awarded the county’s inaugural Mularcik Welding Scholarship.

Each student is not only thankful for the scholarship, but excited about their possibilities in the future of the industry.

“Receiving this scholarship from the Ohio Farm Bureau means that all my hard work, and the hard work of those who supported me, was time well invested. Through the support of my community I have developed into a leader who gives back through service, mentorship, kindness and gratitude,” Hoak said. “My future career plans will affect every aspect of the agriculture industry and community. I aspire to be a lobbyist, policymaker, and advocate for the industry. I will be fighting for and acting as a voice for the agricultural community.”

Allen plans to bring his passion for public health together with his passion for agriculture in the future by becoming an agricultural and occupational health educator.

“In this role I would be working usually for a health department or agriculture company making sure that when people are working around chemicals and machinery they are doing it safely as possible while developing new and better ways to make operations safer while being cost efficient,” he said. “Winning this scholarship from the Ohio Farm Bureau…serves as recognition for my achievements within my community and provides me with the opportunity to further advance my academic career in the ever-changing field of agriculture.”

The Mularcik Welding Scholarship for Summit County was established in 2023 by Brad Mularcik after he became aware of the skills gap in America and the need for more young people to enter the skilled trades, particularly welding. It could not have fit more perfectly into recipient Dominic Wyne’s future plans.

“I love everything to do with welding, from being able to see what I craft with my own hands out in the world to simply playing with fire for a living,” Wyne said. “Of all the awards I received at my senior recognition ceremony this is one that I was truly excited to receive. I am very thankful to the Ohio Farm Bureau, but even more so to Mr. Mularcik. He not only helps teach young people about welding through the Boy Scouts welding merit badge, he also created this scholarship to help aspiring welders lessen the financial burden of learning the trade.”

See the full list of foundation scholarship recipients.