Giving feels good: Joy Bauman

A lifelong love of 4-H drives gifts to the university — with statewide impact.

Involved with 4-H since the age of nine, Joy Bauman serves as the Pike County 4-H Youth Development Educator for Ohio State Extension. For nearly twenty years, she has given to scholarship funds within the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, and has supported the college’s 4-H youth development programs throughout Ohio and in Pike County, where she lives and works.

“I've always felt connected to Ohio State as a student, alum and now as an employee, so giving back to Ohio State, to me, is a natural thing to do,” says Joy. “It makes me feel good to support the university and the 4-H program that are so important to me and my family.”

Joy values how 4-H provides experiences and skills that set students up for a lifetime of success. “I hope my donations add to those programs to help them keep going for years to come, so that 4-H members can continue to benefit from opportunities to learn, grow and travel.”

Joy’s payroll deduction giving reflects what she values most as a Buckeye — from 4-H to a scholarship fund for Adams County students to a memorial scholarship honoring Ed Johnson, who employed her as a student intern and continued as her employer once she graduated from Ohio State with her bachelor’s degree.

She shares, “If we want people to support Ohio State and the programs that we offer here and the things that we are doing as employees, I think that is a great thing for us to be able to say, ‘I give, too.’”

“I've always felt connected to Ohio State as a student, alum and now as an employee, so giving back to Ohio State, to me, is a natural thing to do. It makes me feel good to support the university and the 4-H program that are so important to me and my family.” - Joy Bauman