Michigan Farm Bureau’s 2023 Presidential Volunteer of the Year award winner is Washtenaw County Farm Bureau board member Lynda Horning.
MFB President Carl Bednarski presented Horning with the award on Nov. 29 during the organizations 104th Annual Meeting in Grand Rapids, noting her passion and involvement in Farm Bureau and the entire agriculture industry and involvement in promoting ag in her community for three decades.
As part of her more than 30 years of service in MFB, Horning has been on her county’s Promotion & Education (P&E) Committee for 25 years and became the current chairperson in 2014.
Since taking over that role, the Washtenaw County Farm Bureau P&E leadership committee has grown four to nine active members, and several new P&E programs have been created under her leadership. The programs include an annual agricultural trick-or-treating event, a new P&E kickoff dinner, a farm safety program, and an ag advocacy leadership breakfast, along with an expansion of the Farm Bureau fair booths.
“This past year she has just really done a phenomenal job of starting some new projects and just works tirelessly for us to be able to complete our goals not only with Washtenaw County Promotion & Education committee, but also with Washtenaw County Farm Bureau goals,” said Washtenaw County Farm Bureau board member Nancy Thelen.
Raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Horning’s journey into agriculture started at Michigan State University, where she met her husband.
“When you're raised on a farm you understand it, you know the terms,” Horning said. “When you’re not, you just have to learn it — and I'm still learning — and that's why I think it's important to tell your story, because if you don’t, somebody else will.”
The Presidential Volunteer of the Year Award honors those who exhibit next-level commitment to agriculture locally, and who inform the success of their county Farm Bureau. As the 2023 Presidential Volunteer of the Year, Horning receives a $1,000 award and another $1,000 for her county Farm Bureau.