The Sukup name holds weight at Iowa State University and across the state of Iowa. Driving along I-80, silos with the Sukup name stand tall across the rolling farm fields. At Iowa State, students recognize the name from career fairs, Sukup Hall and the Sukup Atrium in the Biorenewables Complex.
An involved alumnus, part-time faculty member and president of Sukup Manufacturing, Charles Sukup received the 2019 Outstanding Alumni award at the 4-H Foundation Legacy Awards in late February.
Sukup (‘76 ag eng, ‘82 MS) volunteers and contributes to 4-H programs in Iowa because he says he sees it as a core builder in creating young professionals.
“The big things would be the communication, being able to present an idea, working with others, teamwork, working with different personalities or ages and working to do things right– those are the important lessons,” Sukup said.
Sukup comes from a long line of 4-H members. Besides Sukup himself, Sukup’s mother and father, his wife and two of Sukup’s children have been involved in 4-H. He sees the integration of ages as one of the greatest benefits of 4-H.
The 4-H Foundation Legacy Awards is an annual ceremony that honors outstanding contributors to the Iowa 4-H program. Four legacy awards are given each year: Contributing Youth, Outstanding Alum, Outstanding Corporate Partner and Outstanding Individual Support. For more information on this year’s honorees check out the 2019 Honoree Videos at Iowa 4-H Foundation.