COLUMBUS — Four Ohioans who have committed their lives to working in, promoting and advocating for Ohio’s farm community will be honored Aug. 3 by the Ohio Agricultural Council (OAC), when they are inducted into the Ohio Agricultural Hall of Fame.
The Ohio Agricultural Council (OAC) will induct Dr. Charles Lifer, of Columbus; Dr. Bobby Moser, of Dublin; Dr. Donald Myers, of Dover; and Micheal (“Micki”) Zartman, of Worthington, into the Ohio Agricultural Hall of Fame during a breakfast ceremony held in the Rhodes Youth Center at the Ohio Expo Center.
The 47th annual event will attract 500 guests to honor these four professionals for their lifetime of service and dedication to Ohio’s agriculture community.
The following four inductees will join the more than 200 prior recipients named since 1966 when the program was incepted.
Lifer
The Ohio 4-H program would not be the program it is without Lifer’s contributions, leadership, wisdom, hard work and personal commitment. He began his service to The Ohio State University Extension nearly 50 years ago as a county Extension agent, and has earned a national reputation for his efforts to improve and expand the 4-H program.
Under his leadership, Lifer has doubled 4-H membership, restructured the Ohio 4-H Foundation to involve more key executives, quadrupled the Ohio 4-H Endowment Fund and initiated the first 4-H Center on a land-grant university campus.
Moser
Moser has served as the vice president for Agricultural Administration and dean of the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University for 20 years.
Under his leadership, he has achieved many things, including: a more than 200-percent increase in grant awards, the issuance of more than 86 patents, the establishment of the Food Innovation Center and the building of the Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center.
In 2005, Moser’s leadership in global agricultural development was recognized in his appointment by then Pres. George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the US-India Knowledge Initiative on Agricultural Education, Teaching, Research, Service and Commercial Linkages.
Myers
For more than 30 years, Myers has served The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences as an Extension agent, state Extension specialist and member of the teaching and research faculty.
Myers, known by many as the “father of no-till forages in Ohio” or “alfalfa specialist,” was instrumental in the development of the innovative no-tillage forage seeding system, which has received worldwide recognition.
In addition, Myers has authored more than 50 publications distributed through the nation to assist farmers in improving forage productivity.
Zartman
Zartman spearheaded the formation of dairy farm tours for local urban and rural school children. As a result, she took her enthusiasm to a new level and founded Scarlet and Gray Ag Day at The Ohio State University (OSU) in 1999, which is an outreach program designed to bring elementary students from surrounding schools to campus to learn about the industry and opportunities within agriculture.
Most recently, Zartman has been working to expand the involvement of Ohio high school students in the World Food Prize Youth Institute, further changing the way young people engage and act with issues of food security.
For further information about sponsorship in honor of the inductees, or to obtain tickets to the Agricultural Hall of Fame induction ceremony, contact the Ohio Ag Council at 614-794-8970 or via email at info@ohioagcouncil.org.
