Purdue News

January 7, 2000 Purdue to honor 15 during Ag Fish Fry WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A record 15 recipients of the Agricultural Alumni Association's Certificate of Distinction will be honored at the annual Ag Fish Fry on Friday, Jan. 21, at Purdue University. The event gets under way at 11:30 a.m. in the Purdue Armory. The award is the association's highest honor and recognizes individuals for their service to agriculture beyond the call of duty, according to the association's executive secretary, Donya Lester. This year's honorees are Marion F. Baumgardner, West Lafayette; Robert L. Benson, Noblesville, Ind.; R. Leroy Brammer, Patriot, Ind.; Larry Curless, Wabash, Ind.; Thomas E. Diener, Reynolds, Ind.; Robert F. Fields, Battle Ground, Ind.; Gary J. Geswein, Palmyra, Ind.; Norman D. Long, West Lafayette; Morgan Miers, Greensburg, Ind.; Harry L. Pearson, Indianapolis; Hugh B. Pence, Lafayette; Lee R. Rulon, Arcadia, Ind.; William E. Swern, Rockville, Ind.; Howard M. Unger, Carlisle, Ind.; and Shirley Woody, Estero, Fla. According to Lester, the large number of honorees – typically four are selected each year – reflects the growing number of quality nominations being submitted. "For the last two years we have received a tremendous number of exceptional nominees for the Certificate of Distinction award," she said. "At the rate of honoring only four per year, it was clear that many extremely deserving people would not be honored in a timely fashion." Tickets for the fish fry are $12 each and must be purchased in advance. They are available at all Purdue Cooperative Extension Service county offices or through the Ag Alumni office at (765) 494-8593. CONTACT: Lester, (765) 494-8593, dcl@agad.purdue.edu Compiled by Beth Forbes, (765) 494-2722, bforbes@aes.purdue.edu Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu To the Purdue News and Photos Page