Posted on July 30, 2012 at 11:01 AM by Global Reach
This year’s inductees to the 4-H Hall of fame from Louisa County are in what they describe as their “giving back” phase.
Robert Schlutz and Marillyn Furnas were born and raised on farms in Louisa and Muscatine Counties, respectively. They had both been in 4-H since 4th grade and found they had a lot in common when they met and started dating while still in high school. Before long they married, started operating a farm together, raised Angus Beef, started other businesses, got involved in their community and started a family.
As you might expect, as lifetime 4-Her’s, they got their children involved in 4-H and become 4-H leaders themselves. That legacy of 4-H involvement continues today as their grandchildren are leaders and their great-grandchildren are 4-H members.
But they got even more involved than at the club level – helping to build the Beef Barn on the Fairgrounds, working together to promote the county as a tourist destination; becoming supporters of the Louisa County Fair, and becoming volunteers at the Iowa State Fair. Thru the years their record as volunteers in 4-H and the fair, their church, school and community has grown – and it’s a record that would be hard for any couple to beat. But for Bob and Marillyn, that was not enough.
In recent years Bob and Marillyn have started “giving back” to the community that nurtured them as they grew up, married and built a life. This year they started a capital campaign for a new Youth Building on the grounds of the Louisa County Fair – a building that will stand as a testament to their belief that your own community is the place to make your mark and their belief that 4-H is the place they learned the life lessons that helped them succeed. They have also been outstanding contributors to the Louisa County and Iowa 4-H Foundations as well as other worthy projects.
Bob and Marillyn Schlutz truly believe that you should “pledge your hands to larger service” and they work to show that in the way they now “give back” to the 4-H program, to Louisa County and to the State of Iowa. The Louisa County Council for ISU Extension & Outreach is proud to nominate Robert and Marillyn Schlutz as our 2012 nominees for the Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame.
Categories: Louisa
