Henry H. Schriver

A farmer and a true believer in the cooperative model, Henry Schriver’s involvement in cooperatives spans 61 years. He is nationally recognized as an educator, co-op advocate, and organizer whose belief in the power of people working together is unparalleled. Many refer to him as the “Co-op Philosopher” due to his personal dedication to cooperative principles and encouraging others to live by them.

The number of young farmers he has motivated to get involved in cooperatives is legendary. He has made more than 3,000 speeches and participated in a multitude of co-op workshops over the years, and for 37 consecutive years was a featured speaker at the National Institute of Cooperative Education.

He further expanded his outreach by making an educational film titled “Cows, Kids and Co-ops” that was used in U.S. classrooms and throughout the world to help teach cooperation, and by visiting both Taiwan and Russia to share his cooperative and agricultural expertise.

Incredibly, Schriver did all of this as a volunteer, as he was never an employee of a cooperative.