The Ohio Forestry Association Foundation awarded grants for conservation education projects throughout Ohio. These grants are generally small-scale and are designed to assist an organization with funding for activities that align with OFAF’s mission in the following year.

The 2024 grant recipients are:

As part of year-end giving practices, tax-deductible contributions can be made to the Ohio Forestry Association Foundation.

Learn more at ohioforest.org/page/Foundation.

Record amount headed to food banks

Farm Credit Mid-America and the Rural 1st program has empowered Ohio county fairs to fight hunger through the Fight Hunger, Stock the Trailer program. This summer marked the fourth year of the program, with 66 county fairs across the state collecting a record-breaking 286,339 pounds of food for local food banks.

Every participating county fair received a donation to support activities that build future agriculture leaders. Additional prize dollars were given to the top 15 participating fairs. In total, Farm Credit Mid-America donated more than $50,000 to junior fair boards. 

Winners were determined by calculating the total weight of all donations at participating fairs throughout five regions in Ohio. First-place regional winners were awarded $5,000, in addition to the $500 donation they received for participating in the event. This year’s first-place winners were:

Second-place winners were awarded $3,500, in addition to the $500 donation they received for participating in the event. This year’s second-place winners were:

Third-place winners were awarded $1,500, in addition to the $500 donation they received for participating in the event. This year’s third-place winners were:

To learn more about Farm Credit Mid-America and its commitment to supporting local communities, visit fcma.com. 

OFB names Young Ag Professionals state committee members

The Ohio Farm Bureau Federation has named the newest members of its Young Agricultural Professionals state committee: Katherine and Bill Brown of Stark County, Abby and Blake Campbell of Washington County, Josh Ison of Clermont County, and Hannah Thompson of Meigs County. Committee members are selected based on Farm Bureau involvement, leadership potential and community service.

The committee is composed of eight members or couples who suggest, develop and conduct activities that provide opportunities for young farmers and ag professionals to be more involved in Ohio Farm Bureau programs. Duties include planning the yearly YAP winter leadership conference and hosting Young Agricultural Professionals in a variety of in- and out-of-state events.

The young leaders will help host the Young Ag Professionals Winter Leadership Experience, set for Feb. 7-8 at Kalahari in Sandusky, Ohio. To learn more about the conference, visit ofb.ag/2025WLE.