Margaret Tucker’s work for the community was recently recognized by the Bowling Green Human Relations
Committee.
"It takes a person with an instinct for community building," the committee wrote of the award
presented Monday at the Bowling Green City Council meeting. "Margaret Tucker will tell you she did
none of her valuable work alone, that other persons were always there to help and support. Still, her
efforts touched a variety of places in the life of Bowling Green, a town she loves."
Tucker did a daily radio show that interviewed all kinds of people and helped create neighbors all around
town.
As an elected school board member, she was the first woman to be nominated for the governor’s honorary
board of education. Believing in the value of vocational education, she served as the first woman on the
Penta Board of Education.
Having been active in the League of Women Voters before arriving in Bowling Green, she worked to grow the
League’s presence here, with it goal to promote political responsibility.
While on the Parks and Recreation Board, she helped start the Parks and Rec Foundation and served on its
board. She was tireless in working to create and expand a nature preserve built on Wintergarden Woods
and accessible to everyone, the committee wrote of Tucker. The most recent land acquisition, made
possible by her fundraising leadership, is Tucker Woods, named for Margaret and her late husband, Duane.

As director of the Northwest Ohio Educational Technology Foundation, she worked with teachers across 19
counties to involve students in projects that led to appreciation of rural communities. She created a
program called "News 6," in which sixth graders did research and wrote broadcast scripts that
told the stories of their townspeople and rural neighbors. Having grown up on a Kansas farm, Margaret
knew how valuable these stories were. The program was on for 30 years.
When budget issues threatened to close down alcohol treatment services in Wood County, she worked with
her fellow advisory board members to establish a consistent client base of those in need. This led to
the creation of today’s Wood County Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health Services Board.
She served as honorary co-chair of the drive to renovate and upgrade the public library, now a
multi-media asset in downtown Bowling Green, serving the whole community.
"Margaret’s work has broadened the identity of our community and created services and activities
that enhance the quality of life for every citizen," the committee said about Tucker. "We have
a platform for all community members to build their lives as they choose, and Margaret Tucker’s
contributions to that foundation are significant."