Volunteer of the Year Ben Blaho does it all for Emmet

In the best possible way, Ben Blaho is That Guy at your county board meeting — That Guy who politely waits his turn before hitting you with one of these: “Listen. I’ve got an idea to run by you. I’ve been thinking about…”

Fortunately for his Emmet County Farm Bureau, those ideas are usually really good, and “I’ve been thinking about” means he’s already got the biggest components mapped out in his head.

Anyone else just catch a whiff of a classic county Farm Bureau leader? I sure did.

It’s wafting down from way Up North, where Emmet’s longtime helmsman recently stepped away from the board of directors — only to find himself in the spotlight as Michigan Farm Bureau’s 2024 Presidential Volunteer of the Year.

Nominating him was a peer, fellow Emmet County standout Maria Ginop:

“Ben Blaho is the motivation and heart behind the scenes and very involved in the implementation of anything Emmet County Farm Bureau does,” Ginop wrote. “He’s full of ideas but also encourages others to share theirs so we can collaborate and execute them together to benefit our members and connect with the non-farming community.

“And you can be sure that once Ben presents an idea, he has thought it through thoroughly, and yet he truly seeks your input. He has a way of bringing others alongside and involving them.”

Most recently those ideas took the form of an early-summer member-appreciation event, hosted by a member farm, Petoskey Farms Vineyard and Winery. Blaho was central to its planning and execution. That activity earned Emmet County Farm Bureau one of this year’s district Champions of Excellence Awards; read all about it here.

“Everyone played a role and on the night of the event everything came together as planned,” Ginop wrote. “It all went really smoothly because everyone followed through on their role. All the members who turned out had a great time!”

Blaho joined the organization in 1994, after a full career managing Petoskey’s downtown JCPenney store — experience that equipped him with exceptional communication and interpersonal skills. They’re useful qualities that gleam and blossom in the context of Farm Bureau. 

Since 2012 he’s been a key member of the county board, stepping away just recently as its vice president. Fortunately for Emmet, his involvement hasn’t been limited to just one program area; he’s a generalist in the best sense. 

“Ben passionately exemplifies the Farm Bureau mission to uplift its members,” Ginop wrote. “He plays a very active role — seemingly effortlessly” and across the gamut of organizational programming. 

Blaho’s been active in district-level policy development and represented Emmet County Farm Bureau as a delegate at MFB’s State Annual Meeting. Under the Promotion & Education banner his community outreach includes stints volunteering with the FARM Science Lab.

Never hesitant to suggest someone join the organization, Blaho has legitimate chops as a membership recruiter — and the Carhartt jackets to prove it. His successor in the membership captain role will have big boots to fill.

And leadership development? Check.

In his own quiet, observant way — practically from the shadows — Blaho vets members for hints of leadership potential and doesn’t shy from nudging promising prospects toward service on the board or other opportunities fitting their skill set.

From forging relationships with prospects and new members to merging new leaders into the old guard, Blaho excels at managing the human capital and infrastructure that make Farm Bureau function.

Put his wife Lucille by his side and the Blaho tag team are a force to be reckoned with!

“When we have events with invited guests or speakers, they both go above and beyond to make time available to get to know them and show them the agricultural highlights of our area,” Ginop wrote.

“Without Ben’s example — in leadership, ideas, involving as many members as possible, remembering the past and looking toward the future — Emmet County Farm Bureau wouldn’t be what it is today.”

Finally, a postscript for any remaining unconvinced Doubting Thomases: Knowing Ben’s no dummy, Maria went straight to the horse’s mouth for information to complete the Volunteer of the Year application. 

His response was another inadvertent master class in top-shelf volunteering, Ben-style: He just shared with her his preexisting history, a simple document in which he’s kept track of his Farm Bureau efforts since he joined the board.

It’s not a deep dive, but even just hitting the high points it’s still seven pages long. His response begins with a brief note that’s a distilled leadership seminar in its own right — the 120-proof wisdom of an elite Farm Bureau leader:

“I feel everyone has their own way of doing things and it would not be a good thing to try and follow my ways,” he wrote. “The new leader will do what is right for them.”

That’s some pure Volunteer of the Year stuff for you, right there.