Two longtime 4-H volunteers from Wood County were honored by the Ohio 4-H recently.
Cheryl Hagemeyer-Vetter was awarded the Ohio 4-H Alumni Award and Conni Grames was presented the
Meritorious Service Award.
Both women were nominated jointly by Jayne Roth and Jenny Morlock of the OSU Extension 4-H office.
Hagemeyer-Vetter is a Bowling Green resident; Grames is from Weston.
“We were extremely excited to have two state award winners this year,” Morlock said.
Hagemeyer-Vetter said that in 198,4 as she was graduating from high school, she planned to attend the
Ohio Institute of Photography in Dayton.
“I had decided to pursue a passion sparked simply by signing up, along with my livestock projects, for a
4-H photography project,” she said.
She purchased a “new shiny Olympus OM-1” and graduated from OIP with a degree in professional portrait
photography in 1987 and opened a portrait studio locally.
Her career has earned her numerous awards and honors and she said her profession “is best seen in
creating memories and documenting family history and heirlooms. I find value in what I do in a
conversation with a high school senior who tells me that they have never felt ‘beautiful’ before,”
Hagemeyer-Vetter said in her letter with the nomination.
She added that the lessons she learned in 4-H have served her and she continues to spread that through a
history of hiring 4-H members over the years.
Richard Martin, a retired district Northwest Extension district director wrote a letter of support for
the nomination.
“I really got to know Cheryl and her leadership ability when she got involved in Junior Leadership,
Junior Fair Board and especially as an outstanding counsellor at Wood County’s 4-H camp. … However, what
impressed me the most about Cheryl was her collaborative, team building, problem solving approach in
everything she did.
“I could always count on Cheryl to be there when I needed her whether it was at camp, the fair, or
wherever.”
He also noted a follow-up feature published in the Sentinel-Tribune two years ago when she emphasized how
much 4-H played in her career and life.
“She is clearly deserving of this 4-H Alumni recognition award,” Martin said.
Stacie (Wenig) Anderson wrote a letter of support.
“She embodies ‘making the best better’ and I know no other individual more deserving of this honor.”
Anderson was one of the 4-H youth who worked at Hagemeyer Fine Photography calling it a “dream job.” She
said that Hagemeyer-Vetter was someone who “went above and beyond as a boss,” noting especially her
teamwork and drive for success and dedication to serving the employees, the business and the community.

Roth and Morlock said Grames is sometimes called the “Wood County Key Leader” in the county’s horse
program after managing the 4-H and Junior Fair horse programs over the last two decades, coordinating
the entry process.
She serves as the adviser for the Sunset Saddlers 4-H Blu since 1994.
“Leaders such as Conni are a rare commodity. Youth development has always been her passion but also being
a very innovative person, she has used technology to maximize and strengthen the Wood County horse
program into an efficient and model organization.
Yet, if you ask Conni why she volunteers the hundreds of hours annually, she would without hesitation
say, ‘It’s for the kids.”’
They called Grames “a teacher, an innovator, an organizer and a motivator enabling youth to try new
things, and thus providing opportunities that allow them to lead and grow.”
The nomination lists nine different committees and boards which Grames has been involved at both the
local and state levels not only in 4-H, but also other civic and local organizations.
They also noted the fairly recent project which Grames spearheaded and was instrumental in organizing and
seeing to its finish: the installation of 185 box stalls at the fairgrounds in 2016. The cost of the
project was $102,000. She assisted with the fundraising as well as the work force to get the job
accomplished within 11 weeks from start to finish.
“Quite simply, Conni enjoys working with youth and will do anything in her power to provide wholesome 4-H
programs for them.
“Connie has set the bar for Ohio 4-H standards as an adult volunteer. To say she is an active 4-H
volunteer is an understatement.”
Jenna Teet a 4-H alumnus wrote a letter of support.
,As an adviser of the junior fair board, Conni always pushes the teens to try new things and expand their
skills. She would let the junior fair horse committee take charge on many projects but was always nearby
if we needed support. She truly believed in us.
“Conni truly encompasses all of the qualities of a good leader and continues to show her ongoing support
of the Wood County 4-H program year after year.”