ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Long-time Farmers Union supporters Charlie Nash of Ottawa, Ohio, and Lee Reese of Benson, Utah, received the National Farmers Union Meritorious Service Award for outstanding commitment to the family farmer and rancher organization.
The awards were presented during a special ceremony at NFU’s 99th anniversary convention in Rochester, N.Y.
A member of Farmers Union since 1954, Charlie Nash has become a well-known figure within the organization. He began his service in Ohio Farmers Union in 1969 as an organizational director. Nash also served as executive director, secretary/treasurer and chairman of OFU’s advisory board before his election as president in 1988 and as NFU vice president in 1998.
“Charlie Nash has spent a lifetime working his heart out on behalf of the family farmers of Ohio and the United States,” said NFU President Leland Swenson. “His work as a farmer, an agriculture department official, a Farmers Union Organizer and a Farmers Union leader has been marked with an untiring dedication to rural America.”
Reese runs a 600-acre family dairy operation in Utah on land originally settled by his great-grandfather in the 1870s. The son of one of Utah Farmers Union’s original organizers, Reese has carried on his father’s commitment to the organization. For more than 25 years, Reese has been involved with UFU, serving as a board member, president and in his current position as vice president.
