Persinger wins Lifetime Achievement Award

GRUNDY CENTER – Harlen Persinger, a Grundy Center native, was recently honored with the 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding service from the American Agricultural Editors’ Association.
Persinger was recognized during the annual Agricultural Media Summit meeting held in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 26. He is the only photojournalist and freelancer to have ever won the award.
“I just couldn’t believe it, it was overwhelming” he said. “I never expected to get this award; it’s such an honor, and a very unique achievement.”
Persinger, who was raised on a farm south of Grundy Center by his parents, Francis and Celestine, has spent much of his life immersed in photography and agriculture.
It was in 1970 that he first became serious about his photography work, and in 1976 he joined the AAEA (American Agricultural Editors’ Association) as a photojournalist and freelancer. Since then, he hasn’t missed a single meeting, and has volunteered his time to numerous committees. His dedication and service to the association all those years hasn’t gone unnoticed, and he said he was shocked to find out he had been selected to receive this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
For the full story, see the August 4 edition of The Grundy Register.