Zane Akins one of Five Pioneers elected to National Dairy Hall of Fame - Cowsmo

Zane Akins one of Five Pioneers elected to National Dairy Hall of Fame

National Dairy Shrine has the privilege to honor five individuals for their lifetime service with the coveted Pioneer Award. These gentlemen are outstanding representatives of the dairy industry. Their recognition as Pioneers of the National Dairy Shrine only adds to the honor roll of leaders in the National Dairy Hall of Fame.

One of this year’s honorees is the Breed Association Manager Zane Akins. Zane Akins was born in Bethel, Kansas and began his career as a farmer in the early 1960s, just after acquiring a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture at the University of Missouri.

He then spent two years as a service technician for the Northern Ohio Breeders Association before landing his first role with the Holstein Association of America. Zane was employed with the organization for more than 26 years, running the business as chief executive officer between 1978 and 1990 and executive vice president of Holstein-Friesian Services, Inc. during that same time period.

In 1991, Akins formed Zane Akins and Associates in West Brattleboro, Vermont, where he served as president. He also worked as the business manager for the Legacy Clinic from 2012 to 2015.

Zane has been involved within his community just as much as the dairy industry. He has worked in various capacities for the Windham County United Way, the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, the Windham Humane Society, and the Brattleboro Area Boys and Girls Club. Additionally, he served as regional vice president, on the board of directors, and as grand president for Alpha Gamma Rho, where he was later recognized with a Man of the Year Award by the Chicago alumni chapter in 1991 and inducted into its AGR Hall of Fame in 2006.

Akins will receive the 2018 Pioneer Recognition at the annual National Dairy Shrine Awards Banquet on Thursday, October 4th in Madison, Wisconsin. For more information about the banquet or about students, producers and dairy industry
individuals being recognized by the National Dairy Shrine, please contact National Dairy Shrine at [email protected]

Information on the National Dairy Shrine membership is also available online at Dairy Shrine.

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