Members of the Colorado Agriculture Hall of Fame

Paul Bernklau was born and raised southwest of Rifle. After serving as the FFA state reporter in 1953, Bernklau served in the U.S. Army in Germany. Upon returning to Garfield County, Bernklau served on numerous boards and committees. He has also served the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association for 23 years, and is currently vice president. Bernklau is an active 4-H and FFA supporter. He has been a local 4-H leader for more than 20 years.For 30 years, Bernklau has traveled Colorado, Utah and Wyoming as a field representative and order buyer for three auction markets in Colorado.

Dennis Everhart was raised on a ranch north of New Raymer. After graduating, Everhart joined the U.S. Marine Corps.Five years later, he returned home, attended Northeastern Junior College, and completed his degree in agricultural

education at Colorado State University. Everhart accepted his first teaching position at Woodlin High School, where he and his students enjoyed many successes. After teaching for 25 years, he was elected to the office of Washington

County Commissioner, a position in which he has served since 1998.

John Stencel began his journey on a farm outside of Greeley. After serving as a state FFA officer, Stencel joined the U.S. Army and served two years in Vietnam. Following his service, Stencel returned home to attend Colorado State University. In 1970, Stencel was elected president of Rocky Mountain Farmers Union (RMFU). He left Rocky Mountain Farmers Union in 1993 for an appointment as Colorado state executive director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency. He was then asked by President Clinton to serve in Washington, D.C., first as Farm Service Agency deputy administrator of program delivery and field operations and later as special assistant to the administrator of the Grain Inspection and Packers and Stockyards Administration. He left Washington, D.C., in 2000 to return to Colorado and was reelected president of RMFU. Stencel retired from that position in November 2006.

Don Ament was born and raised in northeastern Colorado, and still farms there today. As a young man, he joined the Colorado Young Farmers Educational Association and participated in a spokesperson contest. He won the state title and went on to use those skills in the political arena, serving first on the local school board, then 12 years in the Colorado General Assembly, chairing the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Energy Committee along with the Capital Development Committee. Most recently, Don served as the Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture for eight years as part of Governor Bill Owens’ administration.

Thomas Ford grew up on a potato farm in Alamosa and has stayed true to his tuberous roots. He has served in almost every position imaginable in the potato industry, including chairman of the board of the National Potato Education and Research Foundation. As if his work in the potato industry wasn’t enough, Tom has also produced malt barley for Coors for more than 40 years, and is a leader in the local banking industry, serving as chairman of the Alamosa State Bank board.

Alvie Rothe has been educating people in and about agriculture for more than 50 years as an extension agent and 4-H educator. Alvie truly understands the “big picture” and has made his life’s work a model of giving back to the state of Colorado in general, and to the dairy industry in particular. Even in retirement, Alvie continues to work with university students, working to help them learn to evaluate cattle and develop their skill sets.

Born a Kansas farm boy, John Shuman moved to Byers, Colo., as a young man and built Colomeadow Farms into a nationally known Shorthorn cattle operation credited with many industry firsts. John’s commitment to excellence didn’t stop with the cattle industry. He was equally dedicated to his community and other agricultural pursuits, including establishing a tree nursery, a golf course and champion quarter horses.

Mr. Mel Coleman Sr. of Saguache blazed a trail in the American food marketplace in the late 1970s as he established the first federally-recognized label for natural meat sourced from cattle that were never administered growth hormones or antibiotics. Coleman was also a leader in establishing federal legislation in 1990 that led to the development of today’s national organic standards.

Mr. Miles Davies of Deer Trail has played a leadership role in the cattle industry for more than six decades. He has served in leadership positions with the Colorado Grange Association, the Colorado and American Simmental Association, the Federal Land Bank Association, the National Livestock Producer’s Association and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board, among others.

Mr. Rex Davis (posthumously) of Kersey learned about service above self as a member of the U.S. Army where he participated in seven of the 10 major European battles of World War II. After returning from the war, he became an agricultural educator, serving first in Wiggins, then starting the program in Kersey in 1958, where he taught for 31 years. A teacher at heart, he had a profound, positive influence on hundreds of students over the years, many of whom wrote letters in support of his nomination for this prestigious award.

Mr. Leonard Pruett of Lamar has been instrumental in agricultural education since his days wearing a blue corduroy jacket a half-century ago. Pruett started his career teaching agriculture in Flagler, then moving to the Eaton program. After two years in Eaton, he accepted a position with the CSU Cooperative Extension Service from which he just recently retired. Over the years, his personable teaching style has touched literally thousands of FFA and 4-H members’ lives, along with those of farmers and ranchers across the state.