Alva Review-Courier -

The OSU Agriculture Champion Award recognizes and honors individuals who are not graduates of the Ferguson College of Agriculture, but who have brought distinction to OSU Agriculture and have demonstrated a continuing interest and commitment in agricultural sciences and natural resources.

A two-time graduate of OSU in business and public administration and marketing education, Brenda Sidwell owns and operates Sidwell Insurance Agency in Goltry, Oklahoma, where she assists producers throughout Oklahoma and Kansas with crop insurance and is an advocate for agriculture.

Sidwell and her late husband, Raymond, funded scholarships to support OSU’s Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, international students and study abroad opportunities in the Ferguson College of Agriculture. Following Raymond’s passing, Sidwell worked with the OSU Foundation to make his dream come true of updating the North Central Research Station in Lahoma, and the facility was named in Raymond’s honor.

Cheryl DeVuyst and Jeff Edwards, department heads for OSU’s Department of Agricultural Economics and Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, respectively, nominated Sidwell for this honor.

They wrote: “Brenda and the Sidwell family have long been highly regarded members of Oklahoma’s agricultural and agribusiness communities and recognized as progressive and proactive agriculturalists.”