Tate Johnson is grateful for being the recipient of this scholarship.
“It means a lot being the first person to receive the Joe Barshinger Ag Scholarship,” said Tate Johnson. “My family has known the Barshingers for a long time now and my Grandpa used to be good friends with Joe.”
Tate was chosen to receive the Joe Barshinger Ag Scholarship from the DeKalb County Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. The Barshinger family established the endowed scholarship with the Foundation in memory of Joe and to honor his dedication to agriculture, history, leadership and education.
The Barshingers created the scholarship to benefit a college student studying agriculture and pursuing a future career in an agricultural field.
Phyllis Barshinger, Joe’s wife, said, “This is the first year that this scholarship is presented to a deserving senior of Indian Creek High School who has shown the same passion as Joe in the future of agriculture. Tate is a younger image of Joe and is very deserving of this award.”
Tate recently graduated from high school and was active in FFA and 4-H, two organizations which Joe supported.
“Tate is dear to my heart because he also represents family tradition. Tate’s late grandfather, Vernon Johnson, was always on hand at the 4-H shows to lend a hand with advice and instruction, just as Joe did. Vernon and Joe shared the same views about family, farming, faith and community. Tate shows these same generational qualities in his desire to continue in a field of agriculture as he attends college,” said Phyllis.
Tate will attend Black Hawk College in Galva, Illinois this fall and major in agribusiness.
“We are so proud of Tate’s accomplishments and we could not have asked for better representation to carry on Joe’s legacy for the future of agriculture,” said Phyllis.
“We congratulate Tate on his hard work and wish him good luck in college,” she said.
“Going forward in life, I will continue to work very hard in the ag industry, which I’m sure is what Joe would have wanted,” said Tate. Tate’s parents are Farm Bureau members Steve and Lisa Johnson of rural Shabbona.
