The Successful Farming/Loren Kruse Outstanding Iowa 4-H Leader award is presented each year to an adult volunteer who has encouraged, challenged, and inspired Iowa 4-H members to achieve at their fullest potential. This year’s recipient is Nancy Welsh of Williamsburg in Iowa County.
August 29, 2019
CONTACT:
Emily Saveraid
Executive Director, Iowa 4-H Foundation
esaver@iastate.edu, 515-294-1552
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Iowa County’s Nancy Welsh Named 2019 Outstanding 4-H Leader
Iowa 4-H Foundation awards the sixth annual Successful Farming/Loren Kruse Outstanding
Iowa 4-H Leader Award at the 2019 Iowa State Fair
AMES, Iowa – The Successful Farming/Loren Kruse Outstanding Iowa 4-H Leader award is presented each year to an adult volunteer who has encouraged, challenged, and inspired Iowa 4-H members to achieve at their fullest potential. This year’s recipient is Nancy Welsh of Williamsburg in Iowa County. Welsh is the past leader of the Hilton Willing Workers 4-H Club.
Current or past 4-H members make award nominations. Welsh was nominated by daughter and former 4-H club member, Bethany Gorsch.
Gorsch says, “Although she is my mom, she has also been a great role model and leader for many kids in Iowa County. I would always witness the kindness and generosity that my mom had for all of the other 4-H’ers. She influenced me to want to be a better person and to always help others. As a 4-H member, she challenged me and my siblings to do our best and never give up. She would challenge her club members and help them just like she did for us.”
As a 15-year leader in Iowa County, Nancy began her career as a 4-H leader through her children after having been a 4-H member herself. While she coordinated and provided many different programs and workshops, teaching 4-H’ers the importance of giving back to their community was most important to her. From coordinating landscaping projects at the county fair grounds to building new rabbit cages and even spearheading a new fundraising effort for the county, Nancy is committed to giving 4-H’ers opportunities to give back.
Even though Nancy has retired last year from her club leadership role, she continues to stay involved in Iowa County 4-H and be a valued volunteer through the local 4-H Foundation as well as serving as the rabbit & poultry superintendent. Nancy was also honored for her work in Iowa County as a 2019 inductee into the Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame.
Nancy’s caring heart extends beyond her 4-H volunteer work. Through her work at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry, Nancy has the opportunity to interact with many students helping them to feel welcome and comfortable. She has even hosted international students at the family farm to give them a taste of Iowa agriculture.
The Successful Farming/Loren Kruse Outstanding Iowa 4-H Leader Award comes with a $1,000 grant, which the honoree can designate back to Iowa 4-H through their club, county or state foundations. The award was established by Meredith Corporation and the Edwin T. Meredith Foundation through the Iowa 4-H Foundation in honor of Loren Kruse’s retirement as editor-in-chief of Successful Farming magazine. Kruse credits the outstanding guidance provided by his 4-H club leader for the successes he achieved as an adult.
The Iowa 4-H Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and provides the private financial resources to develop and deliver quality 4-H youth programs throughout the state of Iowa. These opportunities help young people enhance their ability to use critical thinking, leadership, communication, and social skills – tools that will give them a competitive edge in their future endeavors.
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Cutline: Nancy Welsh_winner.jpg: Nancy Welsh accepts the Successful Farming/Loren Kruse Outstanding Iowa 4-H Leader Award from Emily Saveraid (left), Executive Director of the Iowa 4-H Foundation, at the Iowa State Fair on August 18, 2019.
