“Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.”
This quote by Sherry Anderson was one of many shared at the 65th Annual Benton County 4-H Adult Volunteer Leader’s Banquet, held this past Sunday at Jack & Jim’s in Duelm. It served to remind our volunteers of their immense value.
The event marked the end of the 4-H year and included an appreciation dinner and awards program for our 4-H adult volunteers and leaders. Over 100 adult volunteers, leaders, and special guests attended and enjoyed a delicious dinner.
Some of the special guests included Benton County Commissioner Ed Popp, Commissioner Jared Gapinski, Commissioner Beth Schlangen, Associate Dean & MN 4-H State Director Jennifer Skuza, Benton County Extension Committee members Cheryl Scapanski, Angie Arnold, and Paco Manea.
Recognition pins signifying the numbers of years in volunteering/leadership roles, were presented by 4-H Extension Educator, Ann Olson and Benton County Extension Support Staff, Megan Gerads.
First year recipients included (not all were in attendance): Theresa Ferkinhoff, Maggie Thiessen, Alyssa Wirtzfeld, Jeremy Rudnitski, Emily Schlangen, Kaitlyn Watkins, Mickaila Lenz, Kayla Kasella, Dan Bemboom, Dustin Heck, Paco Manea, Kayla Manea, Jade Mielke, Kalina Spiczka, Mathew Steiner, Sabrina Nordstrom, Stephanie Rammel, Jessica Singer, Sam Morris, Mitchell Mehrwerth and Caitlin Pace.
Fifth year recipients included: Becky Bastien, Jessica Brenny, Michael Schlough, Nicholas Dahler, Jessica Hoheisel, Bethany Maus, Corinne Lyon, Shianne Morris, Marie Malikowski, and Nathan Goldade.
Tenth Year Adult Leaders: Joel Anderson.
Fifteenth Year Adult Leaders: Dan Pederson, Sue Janorschke, Joyce Belanger, Jeannie Boyle, Denny Studenski, and Laura Pollard.
Twenty-Fifth Year Adult Leaders: Malissa and Dennis Lenz.
Fortieth Year Adult Leaders: Marlene Hunt and Harold (Harold recently passed away and will be missed).
Additional awards were presented to individuals who were nominated. The 4-H “Outstanding Service Award” was given to Connie Fox and Juanita and Russ Beauchamp.
The “Friend of 4-H” Award was awarded to Wilkie Sanderson for their dedication to supporting the youth involved in 4-H. The “4-H Leader Achievement Award” was presented to Shannon Nelson and Corey Molitor.
The first “4-H Pioneer Award” was presented to Ken Bemboom.
The second “4-H Pioneer Award” was presented to Donita Beehler.
This year, a new award was introduced. The M & M Award was presented to Nick Achen.
The final award plaque was the “Honorary 4-H Member Award,” which was presented to Doni Martin.
Chaperones from the State Fair and Camp Benton were also recognized and presented with a 4-H stocking hat. The chaperones for Camp Benton included Russ Beauchamp, Amanda Strang, Teresa Heck, Scott Morris, and Connie Fox. The chaperones for the MN State Fair were Justin Hackett, Lindsy Hackett, Randy Hackett, James Kirchenbauer, JoLee Messerli, Nick Achen, Heidi Bemboom, Ryan Gruba, Vicky Molitor, Corey Molitor, Katie Zintek, and Hans Mersinger.
“Once again, I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all of you,” said Ann Olson to the Benton County 4-H volunteers on Sunday evening. “We recognize the various roles (all the different hats) you manage every day, and your commitment to our youth is truly impressive.”
“We cannot thank you enough,” she continued. “It’s crucial for you to know that your dedication is essential to our mission. We cannot do this without you, and we wouldn’t want to. You bring innovative ideas, positive energy, and a wonderful passion to everything you do to enrich the lives of youth in 4-H.”