4-H Leadership Recognition Award

The Leadership Recognition Award is designed to honor an outstanding leader, group or organization within the Ozaukee County 4-H Program. Nominees for this award should be current 4-H’ers, leaders or families and their involvement and leadership in the Ozaukee County 4-H Program should demonstrate a willingness and drive to consistently excel at performing their regular 4-H leadership responsibilities.

2023 4-H Leadership Recognition Award – The Down Family – Fritz, Sue, and Rebecca

The Dowe’s dedication and support of 4-H youth’s projects does not go unnoticed.  They are involved in so many 4-H activities and are very strong and active in 4-H at a club and county level.  They have been involved in the 4-H program ever since Sue and Fritz met each other during their early 4-H years!  Rebecca has grown up through the 4-H program and the entire family’s dedication continues!  

The family coordinates the annual Pinewood Derby, which is beloved by so many 4-H’ers and their parents!  They also are heavily involved in The Haunt; both Sue and Fritz are on The Haunt Committee.  The entire family volunteers during the build stage, the acting stage, and the clean-up stage.  Rebecca has been part of the IFYE program and traveled to Japan; she continues to educate and share her experiences with others, promoting international travel.  Rebecca also started the Gardening/Conservation project.  The Dowe family is also very involved with running the Lemonade stand at both Strawberry Fest and Wine & Harvest Fest downtown Cedarburg.  The entire family puts in lots of hours with set-up, staffing, and clean up.  The Dowe family is involved in so many activities—often behind-the-scenes, helping out in humble ways that can be inadvertently overlooked, but are so appreciated.

Sue is also currently serving in her last year of her current term on the Leaders’ Board.  She stepped up to be on the Board when there was an opening—she also agreed to take on the Presidency.  Sue has worked very hard in the President’s role!

2023 4-H Leadership Recognition Award – Jim Hoerchner

Jim is a truly dedicated 4-H leader who models selfless and humble leadership to Ozaukee County 4-H youth and their families.

Jim has served for 19 years as a project leader with Town & Country 4-H Club.  He is a Swine project leader with Town & Country 4-H club.  He has also been the Adult Representative for Swine for the 4-H Livestock Association for as many years.  Jim has organized and carried out the spring weigh-in of all the hogs for the 4-H Swine project members, as well as the weigh-in at the Fair that still happens annually.  He carefully plans and organizes the 4-H Swine Show and the 4-H Livestock Auction.  Jim also plays a significant part in planning and organizing where and how the 4-H animals are transported for processing, which in recent years has become even more of a challenge as the 4-H Swine and other 4-H Livestock projects grow and there are less processors available to take the 4-H Livestock.

Though his own children have long since graduated from the 4-H program, Jim never stops working for 4-H youth and has dedicated countless hours to the 4-H side of the Fair and the youth he leads.  He ensures the hard work of our 4-H youth is recognized.  Jim has also helped to expand the educational opportunities within the 4-H Livestock Association by bringing in guest speakers like representatives from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection to address and take questions from the 4-H youth members.  

2023 4-H Leadership Recognition Award – Alycia Kringel

Alycia is the embodiment of “ to make the best better.”  

Alycia is the Countywide Dog Project Leader, Coordinator of Agility, and Superintendant. She also is a Swine project leader for Town & Country 4-H club. Alycia is also The Haunt Volunteer Coordinator.

Alycia was an active youth member and after graduating high school, never stopped!  She moved right into adult leadership roles.  

As a youth, Alycia created and has continued to improve the Agility portion of the Dog project.  She puts extra effort into her project leadership responsibilities, such as researching AKC protocols to use in the 4-H dog showing education and creating games and awards for our dog quiz bowl practices.  Dog project is a WEEKLY project from January through August.  Alycia is responsible for the planning and organization of 5 adult leaders, 5 youth leaders, and 19 project members during this time—not to mention, their dogs!  This is no small undertaking.  She has assisted with youth participating at the county and state levels, with great success!

Alycia is a KEY coordinator for The Haunt fundraiser and has been all of her adult leadership years.  She handles all the sign-ups, coordination of enrollment verification, organizes staffing & volunteer placement each night at The Haunt, assists with make-up application for actors & staff at the event, and adjusts staffing each evening during the event, “on the fly.”  Alycia sets up and coordinates all volunteer trainings, ensuring all volunteers get the required education.  She takes the time to do background preparation and organization to be sure she is all set to guide our 4-H youth and keep things running smoothly.

Alycia takes on her leadership tasks with an “all-in” attitude.  She works tirelessly to be sure she accomplishes the needed tasks to make whatever she is involved with a success.  She relates well with our youth and takes the opportunity to get to know them.  Alycia guides and supports 4-H youth in all they are doing, while encouraging them to step out of their comfort zone when she sees an opportunity that would be a good fit.  She has an amazing ability to see each youth’s talents and where they lie and is able to push them to achieve things they did not know were in their reach.  


2022 Leadership Recognition Award – Danielle Gettelman

Danielle Gettelman is a Photography project leader and a member of the Ozaukee County 4-H Leaders Association Board. Danielle is very deserving of this award! She has been on the Leaders’ Board for several years. Danielle is in charge of correspondence, holding the Corresponding Secretary position, as well as serving on the Key Award committee on the Leaders’ Board. This past year, she also volunteered to take on running 4-H Parking at the Fair, even though it would be a challenge with Danielle getting married near the same time. Danielle is one of the nicest people and is so organized and on top of all things.  She has done a great job on the Leaders’ Board and is a true asset to Ozaukee County 4-H! We are honored to present Danielle Gettelman with a 2022 4-H Leader Recognition Award!

2022 Leadership Recognition Award – Mary Hamm

Mary Hamm serves as Ozaukee County Dairy Group Vice President, General Leader of Holy Cross 4-H Club, a club leader for Holy Cross dairy, and more! Mary has put many hours into ensuring youth have the best experience in the Dairy Project. She works with youth from her club to teach them how to show Dairy and grow a passion for the industry. Mary helps plan different Dairy events at the county level. She is a great leader because she is thorough and truly wants the best for everybody. As part of the Leaders Association, Mary puts together the volunteer sign-ups for fair and gives updates to make sure that all youth have fulfilled their hours. This role is important because volunteering is a huge aspect of 4-H. In addition, Mary is one of the general leaders for her club which means that she is communicating and putting in the leg work to keep the club running. Mary goes out of her way to make sure that the 20+ dairy animals that come to the fair are cared for by the members of the Holy Cross Dairy project and that the members enjoy their experience. Her passion for the 4-H Dairy project not only shows at the club level, but also at the county level of holding the Vice President position for the Ozaukee County Dairy Group. As Vice President, Mary helps the President with planning and assists whenever there is a need. She puts the 4-H youth’s needs before her own no matter who they are. When a youth needed an animal to show, Mary did not hesitate to help and provided the youth the opportunity to continue to show and learn. Mary has taken the role of “Dairy Mom” at State Fair where she volunteered to coordinate and chaperone a group of 12 teenagers. She made the time to plan and follow through so that the 4-H youth could get all the opportunities. In addition, Mary supports multiple awards for the Dairy show to make sure that the exhibitors and dairy farms get recognized. She truly goes above and beyond for the Ozaukee County 4-H Program. Mary exhibits the love of the 4-H program in every volunteer position she picks up. We are happy to recognize Mary Hamm for the countless hours she has put into the Ozaukee County 4-H program!

2021 Leadership Recognition Award – Marcia Nosko
Marcia has served in a number of leadership roles within the Association. In addition to multiple terms as vice president, she served a total of five terms as board President. She also served as co-coordinator the Ozaukee County 4-H Foundation for 5 years. Marcia co-chaired the Clover Café committee for 6 years and is currently finishing a three year term on the Leaders Board, having been elected as president all three years.

This year, our long-time county fair parking coordinator stepped down after many years of valued service. Without an individual to take over, Marcia assumed that duty herself. She met with the former chair, set up the parking lot, had a map drawn up, wrote a guide book full of parking details and filled it with work instructions, job descriptions, and pictures of examples of passes we accept at the fair. She also signed up to help out on the Clover Café committee and spent quite a bit of time helping in the café. When it was discovered the Association had an insurance deficiency, she took on the work of acquiring a new annual policy for events. She worked with other officers to move the association’s finances to QuickBooks. Marcia looks at what needs to be done and jumps in to complete the job. She is an excellent leader and we are pleased to present her with this award.

2021 Leadership Recognition Award – Deb Poull
Deb Poull is President of the Horse & Pony Project, Recording Secretary for the 4-H Leaders Association Board, and a member of the Jay Road 4-H Club leadership team. As an officer of the Leaders Association Board, Deb has submitted suggestions and helped to implement improved financial processes and controls, much the same as she did for the Horse and Pony project. Deb frequently and proactively volunteers for tasks or projects that need to be done. ‘Just Do It’ isn’t just a phrase for her, it is a mantra that comes alive through her everyday activities. Whether working with youth or adults, Deb is always there to lend a helping hand. Deb’s most recent and very large accomplishment was to totally revamp the summer camp experience to stay aligned with state pandemic protocols. She converted to a day-camp experience, and by all indications and feedback from youth and adults, it was a huge success. Her idea to open camp to the public this year resulted in additional youth joining 4-H. She is already well on her way working with her committee to plan next year’s summer camp experience.

As a middle school teacher and parent of 6 children, it’s amazing to see the amount of volunteer work she accomplishes. We are lucky to have someone with such drive and determination to enthusiastically promote and advance Ozaukee County 4-H programming. We are honored to present Deb Poull with a 2021 4-H Leader Award.

2020 Leadership Recognition Award – Deanna Lee – view recognition video: Video Link (select CC to view closed captioning/subtitles)

Deanna Lee, a leader within the Lindenwood 4-H club for over 10 years, has been an enthusiastic promoter of 4-H as a 4-H alum and mom of 3 4-H members. She has been influential in her time volunteering within her club for Tie Dye, Cloverbuds, and Co-directing the Lindenwood 4-H variety show act. At the county level, she has been a Haunt Chairperson, 4-H Camp Crafts director, Open House, and Communications festival Adult Coordinator, and assisted at other countywide events such as the Bowl-A-Thon and Bunny Breakfast. Mrs. Lee passes along her enthusiasm and positive outlook for this program to those she works with. She is thorough and organized in every event that she works on. Her husband, Rick is her helper and supporter through all her undertakings. Mrs. Lee, on behalf of the Ozaukee County 4-H program, thank you for your time as a volunteer within 4-H.

2020 Leadership Recognition Award – Dan Paulus – view recognition video: Video Link (select CC to view closed captioning/subtitles)

Mr. Dan Paulus, one of the recipients of the 2021 Ozaukee County 4-H Leaders Recognition Award, has and continues to help grow the 4-H program in many different ways. Mr. Paulus is currently Waubeka 4-H club’s woodworking project leader, a Waubeka activity leader,  the coordinator of the Waubeka club annual brat fry fundraiser , and a reliable valued helper at many different community events. Additionally, Mr. Paulus has contributed to the Ozaukee County 4-H program being a recent representative on the 4-H Leaders Association Board, a key asset to The Haunt, a parent of three 4-H alum that have succeeded in the program, and much more.  Not only does Mr. Paulus help grow the 4-H program in his own community, but he advocates for the broader 4-H community especially through his lead roles in the creation and building of The Haunt, Ozaukee County 4-H’s largest fundraiser. To Mr. Paulus the Haunt and a lot of the other fundraisers and activities that he helps lead, are more than just a bunch of meetings and planning; they are valuable teaching moments that help 4-H youth learn and grow. 4-H isn’t about how many projects you make or what kind of awards you get at the fair, it’s about the learning experiences and memories made because of people like Mr. Paulus. He volunteers his time to teach youth life lessons. In addition, Dan is the funniest and most understanding people you can meet. The endless hours that Dan puts into this organization is unbelievable and Ozaukee County 4-H can not thank you enough for everything he has done for the organization and for its youth. Words can’t describe the effect Dan has on people around him. Truly, Mr. Dan Paulus, you are one of a kind, and your positive and encouraging attitude is irreplaceable. The Ozaukee County 4-H program gains a lot with you as part of the leadership team and  thank you for all that you do and have done for the 4-H program.

2019 Leadership Recognition Award – Christie Dieringer
Christie Dieringer is a eighteen year leader with the Holy Cross 4-H Club. Her dedication to the 4-H program is evident through her leadership and planning in various projects and activities for Holy Cross, as well numerous county-wide activities. In addition to serving as a co-general leader for Holy Cross, Christie has been deeply involved on the county-wide small animal committee, as well as with the Livestock Association. Like many of our 4-H leaders, she can often be seen at the county fair helping 4-H members with their animals and volunteering to assist with project judging. Christy has also worked with our 4-H Ambassadors, helping with the annual silent auction at county fair.

For the past few years, Christie has coordinated the weekly brat fry at the Port Washington Farmers Market. Not only does she ensure each weekend has volunteers assigned, but she ensures supplies are stocked to enable a turnkey operation. She follows through with our supplier to ensure expenses are tallied and bills are paid. Because of Christie’s efforts, chartered groups and individuals have an opportunity to earn money to offset expenses for their 4-H projects, trips, or club expenses. Christie truly ‘bleeds green’, and has a contagious passion for Ozaukee County 4-H. Congratulations Christie on being a 2019 Leadership Recognition Award Recipient!

2019 Leadership Recognition Award – Steve and Jackie Rathke
Steve and Jackie Rathke are long time leaders in the Little Kohler 4-H Club, serving as Beef and Rabbit leaders. Over the years, Steve has very capably served as an officer multiple times for the Livestock Association, including President and Vice President. Annually, he leads the weigh in for beef animals on those not so warm January days at the fairgrounds.

Jackie has served as a leader for various projects in the Little Kohler club, and is also very involved in the county-wide rabbit project.

Both Steve and Jackie are strong leadership role models for the youth in their clubs, as well as for youth in county wide projects, and have each served as leaders for many years. Steve has served as a leader for twelve years and Jackie is celebrating her thirtieth year as a leader. Congratulations!

They never stop working for 4-H youth and have dedicated many summers to the fair and the youth they lead. They bid generously at the Livestock and Small Animal sales, ensuring the hard work of our youth members is recognized.

Steve and Jackie are truly dedicated 4-H leaders who model humble leadership to Ozaukee County 4-H youth and their families. It is an honor to award Steve and Jackie Rathke this year’s Leadership Recognition Award!

 Leadership Recognition Award Recipients
1999                       Joan Kruse  – Covered Bridge 4-H
1999                       Judy Rust-Deetjen – Grafton Falls 4-H
2000                       Janice Bublitz – Little Kohler 4-H
2000                       Margo Kraus – Lakeview 4-H
2001                       Paul Jacobson – County Leader
2001                       Evie Rathke – Little Kohler 4-H
2001                       Bob & Mari Schmidt – Lindenwood 4-H
2002                       MaryAnn Erickson – Covered Bridge 4-H & County Leader
2002                       Delores Schwengel – Cloverleaf 4-H
2002                       Phil Steinke – Cloverleaf 4-H
2003                       Barb Batzko – Town & Country 4-H
2003                       Jan Dommer – Knellsville 4-H
2004                       Dorothy Parchim – Cloverleaf 4-H
2004                       Linda Kolbach  –  County Leader
2005                       Carol Boehlke – Lindenwood 4-H
2005                       Jill Rychtik Lindert – County Leader
2005                       Patricia Steffen – Fairway 4-H Club
2006                       Jim & Sherri Melichar – Knellsville 4-H
2006                       Peggy Schoessow – Lindenwood 4-H
2007                       Mary Sampont – Knellsville 4-H
2007                       Lori & Mike Paulus – Holy Cross 4-H
2008                       Bob & Cindy Roden –  Knellsville 4-H
2008                       Peggy & Dick Brown – Holy Cross 4-H
2009                       Tom Hartwig (posthumously) – Covered Bridge 4-H
2010                       Sue Meiller – Cloverleaf 4-H
2011                       Dave & Nancy Salkowski—Town and Country 4-H
2012                       Janet Zausch—Knellsville 4-H
2013                       Brenda Mueller—Jay Road 4-H
2014                       Jody Brzezinski—Lindenwood 4-H Club
2014                       Susan Karolczek—Covered Bridge 4-H Club
2015                       Diane Pfaffenroth- Cloverleaf 4-H Club
2015                       Kurt and Cary Schoessow- Lindenwood 4-H Club
2016                       Roger Knepprath- Town & Country 4-H Club
2016                       Lynn Neumann- Town & Country 4-H Club
2017                       Michelle Kringel- Town & Country 4-H Club
2018                       Aaron Brown- Holy Cross 4-H Club
2018                       Diane Hamm- Holy Cross 4-H Club
2019                       Steve & Jackie Rathke- Little Kohler 4-H Club
2019                       Christie Dieringer- Holy Cross 4-H Club
2020                       Deanna Lee – Lindenwood 4-H Club
2020                       Dan Paulus – Waubeka 4-H Club
2021                       Marcia Nosko- Holy Cross 4-H Club
2021                       Deb Poull- Jay Road 4-H Club

2022                       Danielle Gettelman- Knellsville 4-H Club

2022                       Mary Hamm- Holy Cross 4-H Club