Cathy and Doran Stakey

A Hamilton County couple was recently inducted into the 4-H Hall of Fame.

Doran and Cathy Stakey of Kamrar are a duo that have given endless support and opportunities to generations of 4-H’ers in Hamilton County, according to local 4-H officials.

The Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame was established in 2002 as 4-H celebrated 100 years of a program dedicated to teaching youth life skills. During those 100 years, it became evident that one of the essential elements of the 4-H program was the caring adults who were committed to the program.

Inductees into the Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame represent the many people in Iowa who have contributed countless hours to the 4-H program. They work tirelessly to see that Iowa’s youth have a great learning experience in a safe and fun environment. These adults have modeled volunteerism, community service, integrity, and leadership to Iowa’s youth. Their legacy is the young people they have mentored who will in turn support the continuation of a 4-H program that builds Iowa’s leaders.

Doran Stakey joined Hamilton County 4-H as a member of the Stratford Town and Country 4-H Club. Throughout his 4-H career he participated in food and nutrition, refinished furniture, and the clothing event. He was an active 4-H’er as a member of the Hamilton County Youth Council, attending the Citizenship Washington Focus trip, and he attended the National 4-H Congress for his petroleum power project.

Cathy was a Boone County 4-H member in the Harrison Happy Hustlers 4-H Club. During her 4-H years she enjoyed exhibiting projects in sewing, food and nutrition and refinishing furniture. She holds many 4-H accolades such as being a National 4-H Scholarship recipient and being crowned the Boone County Fair Queen.

Doran and Cathy met at State 4-H Conference and the love that they shared for 4-H began a new and phenomenal legacy.

Doran serves on the Hamilton County 4-H Foundation board, where he has helped to raise thousands of dollars for 4-H members, and he has enjoyed helping with interviews for county awards. He also has become a fair crowd favorite as the emcee of the annual Farmer’s Challenge.

Cathy Stakey has served as the leader of the Clear Lake Sailors 4-H Club in Hamilton County while their daughters were active in 4-H. Since stepping down as a club leader, she has stepped into other vital roles, traveling across Iowa as a 4-H judge and every summer serving her home county as a volunteer at the Hamilton County Fair Static Judging Day.On the state level, she judges personal development at the Iowa State Fair and serves as an evaluator and interviewer for State Recognition Day. She has recently worked with Iowa 4-H’s volunteer specialists to develop training materials for judges across the state.

As proud 4-H alums, Doran and Cathy continue to stay active in 4-H.