GREENVILLE— State Rep. Jim Buchy, R-Greenville, 84th District, announced Wednesday he will be retiring from the Ohio House of Representatives effective January 2017 and, therefore, will not be seeking reelection on the fall 2016 ballot.

“The trust placed in me by the fine families of western Ohio as their voice in Columbus is humbling,” Buchy said. “At this time it is important that I am able to enjoy retirement with my family and attend the activities of my eight grandchildren.”

Buchy returned to the Ohio House as an appointee in 2011, filling the unexpired term of Jim Zehringer, who was asked to serve in Gov. John Kasich’s cabinet. In 2013, legislative colleagues voted him into House Leadership, and in 2015 he was elected by fellow legislators to serve as the assistant majority leader.

As a member of the Ohio House, he has dealt heavily with issues important to his constituents, most notably improving agriculture in Ohio. The 84th District represents roughly 10 percent of all agriculture production in Ohio.

The current 84th House District encompasses Mercer County, as well as portions of Auglaize, Darke and Shelby counties. In addition, he previously represented Butler, Miami and Preble counties. Buchy previously served in the Ohio House from 1983-2000, holding numerous leadership positions.

Buchy is the former president and CEO of Buchy Food Service in Greenville. Following his first stint in the House, Buchy served as assistant director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture and then on the leadership council and as policy director at the National Federation of Independent Business, where he received numerous business awards.

He has also been honored many times for his support for agriculture from groups such as the Farm Bureau, 4-H and FFA. As a result of local collaboration and Rep. Buchy’s leadership in the legislature, a pilot project in Cleveland and Cincinnati now brings 4-H and FFA to students in urban areas, providing them real-world knowledge of production agriculture. The program is accompanied by a pathway to college at Central State University, which now has a focus on preparing young people to teach agriculture in Ohio’s schools.

“Educating young people on production agriculture is the best way to ensure we are able to keep our families and way of life in western Ohio intact,” Buchy said. “I will continue to work in favor of opportunity for agricultural education in all of Ohio’s schools.”

Buchy will have been in public service for 30 years upon the completion of this current term. This service has been in addition to the work with his family business. He will remain in Greenville with his wife of more than 50 years, Sharon, where they will enjoy time with their two grown children and their spouses along with numerous grandchildren.