Nancy Clark Coleman has been named the 2001 Woman of the Year in Service to Georgia Agriculture. The award was presented by Secretary of State Cathy Cox during the recent Women in Agriculture Conference at Callaway Gardens. Charlotte Mathis of Moultrie, the 2000 Woman of the Year, assisted in the presentation.
Coleman is the Director of Alumni Relations at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. She and Cox are both alumni of the college as well.
"I am honored to represent women in all areas of agriculture all across Georgia," Coleman said upon receiving the award, "especially those who are working to support and preserve the family farm. I am grateful for the women, and men, who have supported my efforts through the years. Without their support, I could not have been successful in my efforts, and I certainly could not have received this award had they not worked with me to promote agriculture in Georgia."
Coleman has been tireless in her efforts to support Georgia agriculture. She was a founding member of Georgia Cotton Women, Inc., and has served three terms as president. She has also served as vice president, treasurer, and on the board of directors. Coleman served on the National Cotton Women's Committee as the Georgia chairman and as the Southeastern Regional Chairman. She coordinated the "Grown and Made in the USA" project in Georgia for a number of years and has actively encouraged consumers to buy products made in the USA from cotton grown in the USA. She wrote, directed, and produced two commercials to promote Georgia cotton. She also edited the Georgia Cotton Heritage Cookbook, which recognizes cotton's rich heritage and economic impact on Georgia since colonial times.
Coleman was instrumental in the foundation of Georgia Farm Family Health and Safety, Inc., and serves as chair of the board of directors. The mission of this organization is to promote a safe and healthy working and living environment for Georgia farmers and their families. She has been active in the Georgia Young Farmers Association, which named her family as the Georgia Young Farm Family of the Year in 1993. She is a 1999 graduate of the Georgia Agri-Leaders Forum Foundation Leadership Program and continues to serve the organization as a program instructor.
As ABAC's Alumni Director, Coleman helped to organize the ABAC Ag Alumni Council. She has assisted with the development of several scholarships and awards to recognize agricultural students, farmers, and agri-business leaders. She coordinates the annual Forum on Agriculture, which brings state and national leaders to campus to discuss issues of interest to the agricultural community.
Coleman resides with her husband, Thomas, and son, Clark, on their family farm in the Rose Hill community of Colquitt County. She is active in her community through multiple roles in the First Presbyterian Church and currently serves as president-elect of the Hamilton Elementary School PTO. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Clark of Cairo.
According to those who nominated her, "Nancy is the epitome of what a woman in agriculture is all about. . . .She is an avid supporter of Georgia agriculture and the way of life it represents. . . .She grew up on a farm and loves it more today than yesterday. She and agriculture are inseparable."
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