Monroe County Farm Bureau has awarded three $750 scholarships to local students pursuing careers in agriculture. Recipients of the awards can use the funds to attend college, trade school, or apprenticeship programs that support the agricultural industry.
The Betty Bliss Scholarship has been awarded to Zoe Stanger of Dundee. This scholarship has been presented annually since 1988 and is named after long-time County Office Administrator Betty Bliss. Zoe is currently a freshman at the University of Findlay studying Animal Science and is the daughter of Joe and Abby Stanger. She has been active in the Collegiate FFA and member of the University of Findlay’s Show Cattle Team. She hopes to bring her knowledge of Animal Science and cattle genetics back to the family farm and the surrounding area. This is Zoe’s second year to be selected as a Farm Bureau scholarship recipient.
The Dale Lynn Mason Scholarship, which honors long-time secretary Dale Lynn Mason who served the bureau for over 28 years, was awarded to Lindsey Roof of Dundee. Lindsey is currently attending Monroe County Community College studying agribusiness. She is the secretary of the Junior Livestock Association and active in 4-H. Her passion lies in agriculture and will pursue a job with grain merchandising, agronomy, or seed sales.
The oldest scholarship awarded by the bureau, the Young Farmer Memorial Scholarship, was renamed twelve years ago as a tribute to the Young Farmers of our group whose lives were cut short before reaching their full potential. This year’s recipient of the scholarship is Katelyn Lindemann of Milan. Katelyn is the daughter of Blaine and Denise Lindemann and is attending Michigan State University studying Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources Education. She plans to be a high school agriscience teacher and educate the next generation about how vital agriculture is to our lives. This is also Katelyn’s second year as one of our scholarship recipients.
Winners are eligible to compete in all years of school against new applicants, provided they continue their studies in an agriculture-related field. Since 1988, Monroe County Farm Bureau has invested over $54,000 in the future agricultural leaders of our community! We wish everyone who competed for these awards the best of luck as they continue their studies. They are truly the future of agriculture in Monroe County!