4 named to Agriculture Hall of Fame

Douglas M. Conine and Duane Stateler were inducted Thursday into the Hancock County Agriculture Hall of Fame. Inducted posthumously were Richard Smith and Paul "Tony" Streacker. The hall of fame recognizes Hancock County community members who have made outstanding contributions to agriculture. Conine, as the vocational agriculture teacher for Arcadia Local Schools from 1981 to 2014, inspired future generations by helping to develop the Arcadia Future Farmers of America (FFA) program. Forty-two of his students received state FFA degrees, two students held state FFA offices, 21 received American FFA degrees and two students received National Proficiency awards. Conine has been active in the community, including involvement in the Lions Club for 25 years and serving the Arcadia Athletic Boosters for 30 years. He is currently the Arcadia girls basketball coach. He's also involved with St. Michael's Catholic Church and the FFA Alumni Association. Stateler has helped steer the direction of a sixth-generation family farm near McComb. In addition to operating a 7,200-head, wean-to-swine operation, Stateler raises corn, soybeans and wheat on 1,200 acres. Stateler has served on the Hancock County Farm Bureau Board, founded the McComb Stockaders 4-H Club and served as the Hancock County Fair's Junior Fair director, while also serving on the Ohio Pork Board and operating as its president. He also was on the National Pork Council, serving on several national committees. Stateler has also worked to educate the community about agriculture, with the family farm being part of the Blanchard Demonstration Farm project. He has served as a volunteer firefighter in McComb for 30 years. Smith began his career in agriculture in the late 1950s when he started working at Hancock Hybrids. He went on to start his own business, Seeds & Service, where he sold a variety of seed products to area farmers. His wife managed the office. Smith attended many schools so he could learn more about soil and seed science, in order to provide customers with the best advice. Smith's community involvement included being a member of the Findlay Garden Club. He was very active in his church, serving as a council member, an elder and a trustee. He devoted his free time to helping maintain the church. Streacker was a part owner and a salesman at Streacker Tractor in Findlay for most of his life. He was known for working diligently with customers to help solve any issues they were having. That love of fixing problems led to him providing tractors for local schools, county and district FFA student tractor competition events, like the Tractor Trouble Shooting Teams. Streacker also worked behind the scenes to support local kids, supporting several different types of school events and activities. Wilin: 419-427-8413