Anselmo couple honored with Center for Rural Affairs award

Lyons, Nebraska - David and Connie Hansen, of Anselmo, Nebraska, will receive the Center for Rural Affairs’ 2017 Seventh Generation Award at an awards ceremony on March 9 in Red Cloud, Nebraska.

The Seventh Generation Award is a lifetime service award presented to an individual or individuals who have made major contributions in improving rural life and protecting our land and water.

“David and Connie truly live out the Center’s values in every aspect of their life; they are inspiring,” said Brian Depew, Center for Rural Affairs executive director. “Every time I visit with them, I come away with renewed energy for our work.”

In the early 1970s, the couple was involved in groundbreaking talks with Center founders that resulted in the organization's founding in 1973. David was a Methodist pastor, focused on rural issues and concerns. Since those talks, David has served 39 years on the Center Board of Directors, retiring in March 2017. Connie served on the Center’s Granary Foundation Board for several years.

In 1981, they purchased a small farm near Anselmo, where they live today. They farm organically with a focus on conservation. Connie also worked at the Broken Bow hospital, and David was a substitute pastor for many years. The couple are lifetime advocates of family farms and the rural way of life.

“David has helped in our fight against corporate farms,” Depew said. “He has testified in front of legislative bodies in Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, and in Washington, most notably in favor of Initiative 300, Nebraska’s anticorporate farming law.”

“I thought I-300 was extremely important, I think it impacted the trend and direction in land ownership,” David said. “Even though it was struck down, people learned and realized that too much land ownership by too few people is not good.”

David and Connie are longtime supporters of the Center for Rural Affairs.