Purdue News
Purdue News
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November 17, 2000 CFS, 4-H Youth Extension educators win awardsNOTE TO JOURNALISTS: Publication-quality photographs of the award winners will be available Monday (11/20) at Purude ag web site. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service honored educators Tuesday (11/14) during the Purdue Extension annual banquet. Extension educators in consumer and family sciences and 4-H youth were among those receiving awards. Judi Merkel of Wells County received the Junior Award in Consumer and Family Sciences. To raise awareness about the health risks of osteoporosis, Merkel, of Geneva, Ind., joined with the Wells Community Hospital to offer an educational seminar. "Understanding Osteoporosis" covered such topics as prevention, early detection, treatment and risk factors. Of the 78 people who attended the seminar, 48 went on to get further evaluation at the hospital and, if necessary, begin a treatment program. Nancy Hunter of Boone County won the Senior Award in Consumer and Family Sciences. As the number of childcare providers increased, Hunter, of Lebanon, Ind., recognized a need for more support and training for caregivers. She established a Child Care Network for providers and planned educational programming. More than $40,000 in grant money is coming into Boone County for provider support, $10,000 of which will support educational training for providers in the network. Margaret Titus of Shelby County won the Innovator Award in Consumer and Family Sciences for her work in developing a money management program for those charged with writing bad checks or shoplifting. At the request of a Shelby County Superior Court judge, Titus, of Manilla, Ind., created a program to keep these offenders out of the legal system. Those attending the court-ordered program learn about their spending behaviors, set up a spending plan, obtain a copy of their credit report and set at least one financial goal. Jan Wahl of Daviess County received the Career Award in Consumer and Family Sciences for her dedication to the health and safety of children and families. Wahl, of Washington, Ind., responded to a 1994 needs assessment that revealed a lack of affordable medical care for low-income families. She collaborated with the local Step Ahead Council to create "Today's Child – Tomorrow's Adult" Art & Information Fair. The fair offers immunizations for children as well as other community and family services. As a result, the county's immunization rate increased from 45 percent in 1993 to 86 percent in 1999. Wahl has been an Extension educator since 1977. Tony Carrell of Boone County won the Bob Amick Award in 4-H Youth Development for his work with the county's school-centered Community Systemwide Response (CSR) initiative. Through CSR, Carrell, of Lebanon, Ind., helped implement drug and alcohol prevention programs, alternative school, countywide mentoring for youth and a character education curriculum for 4-H clubs. The Boone County Circuit Court judge has reported a 16 percent decrease in juvenile detention cases, most notably in drug- and alcohol-related cases. John Woodmansee of Fountain County won the Innovator Award in 4-H Youth Development. Woodmansee, of Covington, Ind., recruited business and community leaders to sponsor Safety Day in Fountain County to help youth recognize potentially dangerous situations and alert them to safety precautions. All third graders in the county attended the safety awareness program, which included such topics as flowing grain, tractors, fires, riding lawn mowers, electricity, ATVs, poisons and farm animals. The Career Award in 4-H Youth Development was presented posthumously to Jeff Moore of Gibson County. During his 28-year career, Moore initiated a number of successful leadership development programs, including those for youth, 4-H volunteers, 4-H Council members and fair superintendents. He also created two new leadership programs – "Connecting Leaders and Youth" and "Gibson County Youth in Government Day" –that paired high school students with community leaders and government officials to identify needs and discuss issues. The awards are presented by the Indiana Extension Educators Association. CONTACT: Floyd Branson, assistant director, Purdue Extension, (765) 494-8490; floyd.branson@ces.purdue.edu
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