December 20, 2004

Merkel receives Hovde Award for service to Hoosier citizens

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service educator was honored for her efforts to improve the health and well-being of residents of Wells County and surrounding areas.

Judi Merkel, a consumer and family sciences Extension educator, received the Frederick L. Hovde Award for Excellence in Educational Service to the Rural People of Indiana. The award was announced during the two-day Indiana Farm Bureau Convention on Friday and Saturday (Dec. 17-18).

"Indiana Farm Bureau and Purdue have a long history of working together for the benefit of Indiana agriculture," said Don Villwock, president of Indiana Farm Bureau. "We are proud to sponsor this award to recognize one of Indiana's outstanding educators."

During her 11 years with Purdue Extension, Merkel has worked to raise awareness about breast cancer, food-borne illness, osteoporosis and the importance of regular physical checkups. She also focuses on issues facing baby boomers as they age and parenting skills for teen mothers and parents of young children.

The American Cancer Society predicts that 4,400 Hoosier women will be diagnosed with breast cancer annually and that 900 of them will die, but early detection is often a key to survival. Merkel worked with the Bluffton Regional Medical Center to create the Circle of Hope, a breast cancer awareness program. In 2002, the program's first year, 100 women attended the event, and this year more than 300 women participated.

Karol Poyser, of Bluffton, Ind., is one of the event's organizers. She said, "Working side by side with Judi these past four years, I have become aware of her love of education and witnessed her never-ending energy. Judi is probably the most respected educator in our community."

Merkel also teamed with the Caylor-Nickel Medical Center to coordinate the Early Detection Health Fair. The fair encouraged Wells County residents to have regular physical checkups and established individual health records for more than 500 people at a cost of $4.69 per participant.

"The mission of the Health Fair is to create community health awareness by providing health screenings and education," said Nora LaVine of the Bluffton Regional Medical Center. "Judi led the way in contacting local agencies to display exhibits. The event has grown from 100 participants in 1996 to just shy of 600 in 2003."

The Hovde Award, which is sponsored by the Indiana Farm Bureau, honors Hovde's demand for excellence in research, teaching and service and has been presented annually since 1972. Hovde served as Purdue president from 1946 until his retirement in 1971.

Writer: Kay Hagen, (765) 494-6682, kjh@purdue.edu

Source: Randy Woodson, dean of Purdue Agriculture, (765) 494-8391

Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722; Beth Forbes, forbes@purdue.edu
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