Donna Betts has been a farmer in Ohio for 60 years. In 1967, she became the first woman in Ohio ever to be granted an FHA Farm Owners loan, which allowed her to purchase a 200-acre farm. Her sustainable agriculture farm has been home to sheep, chickens, goats, miniature donkeys, Tamworth hogs, and Belted Galloway beef cattle.
Donna established an agricultural learning center on her farm called Gwamma’s Farm Retreat and has mentored many adults and children in sustainable farming and marketing. She was also the Farm Bureau Federation Board secretary, a volunteer firewoman, and a member of the Ohio Catholic Rural Life Council Board. She started the Tri-County Graziers Group and aided in the creation of River City Farmers’ Market and Marietta Kitchen Creations, a shared-use kitchen where local farmers can prepare foods in a state-licensed facility.
In 2007, Donna was one of seventeen women featured in Holly Bollinger’s book Women of the Harvest: Inspiring Stories of Contemporary Farmers.
