Bill and Mickey Blum selected to represent Washington County in 2022 Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame

The late Bill Blum and his wife Mickey Blum of Crawfordsville have been selected as the 2022 Iowa 4-H Hall of Fame recipient for Washington County. This honor will be presented to Mickey at the Washington County Fair Thursday, July 21 at 6 p.m. at the Lions Club Stage and then later be recognized at the Iowa State Fair.

Bill and Mickey Blum’s family experienced how 4-H grows interests for everyone in the family when their girls, Ruchel and Leslie, wanted to try out the rabbit project area. Despite their first fair with their rabbits stalled in horse barn where the sun beat down on the cages, the Blums became smitten with rabbits and wanted to spread the message that rabbits could be for everyone. Bill stepped in to fill a need as Washington County Fair rabbit superintendent and from the very start, he was “all about the kids” in everything he did.

He was instrumental in growing rabbit project numbers, spear headed tremendous improvements to rabbit facilities at the fair, built new cages by hand, and helped to align the show with the American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) standards. Bill passed away in 2016 and the very next year, his granddaughter took earned top honors with the Overall Grand Champion rabbit at the Washington County Fair. Still today his family and rabbits from his original herd carry on his legacy.

“Sometimes the best volunteers were grown and groomed because they were first supporting their kids in a project area and then fall in love with the fair, the program, the species, the other volunteers and, of course, the kids. Bill has left a legacy in the rabbit department and we are thankful for the time he and Mickey invested in youth across Washington County,” said Amy Green, Washington County 4-H/Youth Coordinator. “We invite the community to show their appreciation and honor the late Bill Blum and his wife at the Hall of Fame presentation July 21 at 6 p.m.”