Posted on August 31, 2026 at 1:11 PM by Anna Egan
The Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame nominee, from Des Moines County, has been involved in 4-H in one respect or another for 57 years.
Paula Mehaffy was a member of the Pleasant Grove Rockettes 4-H Club from age 9 to 18. She was a very active 4-H'er participating in various static projects, along with large animals such as sheep, horses, and dairy cattle.
After her years of being a 4-H exhibitor, she helped to start the first co-ed 4-H club, the Prairie Pals, which then later became the Buck-A-Roos 4-H Club. She was a 4-H leader for that club for about 20 years while her four children, Erik, Mindy, Jason, and Billy, were active 4-H youth. While being a leader, she helped put together the first dairy judging team to come out of Des Moines County. She also helped with putting together a 4-H Horse Drill Team and was a very active committee member for many years. Paula later took over the family dairy farm and continues operating it with her two sons.
Her true love is helping 4-H youth with dairy cattle. After her youngest son finished his years in 4-H, the dairy cattle program at the Des Moines County Fair started to fade away. With the help of her daughter, they came up with the Share-a-Heifer Program, which has been going strong for 6 years. It has helped dozens of children by allowing them to show a large animal project. This program shows youth how to care for, handle, and show their heifers.
Paula remains very active with the 4-H dairy program in Des Moines County, as she also has 3 grandchildren who are in 4-H and 2 who are soon to be!
Categories: 2026, Des Moines
