ILLINOIS AGRICULTURAL LEADERSHIP FOUNDATION Fall 2014

PROGRESSIONS

W ELCOME TO THE C LASS OF 2016

The IALP Class of 2016: Back row: Whit Dhamer, Steve Bridge, A.J. Woodyard, Brad Uken, K.J. Johnson, Ryan Buckles, Joel Barickman, Darren Sims. Second row from top: President/CEO Don Norton, Joe Zumwalt, Rob Sharkey, Micah Pope, Da- vid Jansen, Stephen Huls, Brian Satorius, Kirk Liefer. Third row from top: Jill Freuh, Julie Wankel, Marc Bremer, Brandy Marron, Dave Mohochko, Krista Lottinville, Grant Noland, Kimberly Meier. Bottom row: Kyle Schaeffer, Katie Lyons, Matt Kellogg, Dana Weigand, Jennifer Waters, Karlie Elliott Bowman, and David Mool. Thirty men and women have been selected to be fellows in the Agri-

IN THIS ISSUE: th cultural Leadership Foundation (IALF) Class of 2016. This is the 17 two-year ►President’s Message.…..1 ►Class Focus……...... 2 class in the organization’s 32-year history. ►Warfield Endowment .....3 The class represents a diverse mix of agricultural expertise – a unique charac- ►New Alumni Director …...4 teristic of the IALF program. There are 13 full-time and six part-time farmers, ►Alumni News .……………...5 ►4th Quarter Investors.7, 8 along with representatives of multinational agricultural companies such as BASF, Cargill and Potash Corporation. Also represented are employees of the

Illinois Chemical & Fertilizer Association, GROWMARK, CGB and TeeJet

Technologies. The class also includes two county Farm Bureau managers, the Facilitating Coordination in Agricultural Education Program (FCAE) in the Illi- nois Department of Education, a scientific researcher from the University of Illi- nois, and employees of 1st Farm Credit Services and Farm Credit Illinois. Page 2 Fall 2014

A Right and A Responsibility by Don Norton My mother passed away last Novem- U.S. Senator, among others. And there ber and I’ve been thinking are five ballot measures as well—two quite a bit about what she are regarding constitutional amend- taught me over the years. ments: the right to vote (and not have One of those lessons is to show identification,) and modifica- about voting. tions to the Crime Victims’ Bill of I vividly recall going Rights. with her to what would be Three ballot measures are advisory my elementary school and and would advise the legislature on in- actually walking into the creasing the minimum wage, requiring voting booth with her. birth control in prescription drug cover- Those were the days of the age insurance, and increasing taxes on massive machines with those with income of more than 1 mil- levers next to candidates’ lion dollars. CLASS OF 2016 names. To cast a vote you had to crank There were also some proposed bal- SEMINAR SCHEDULE: down pretty hard on some of those lev- lot measures that are not on the ballot November 24-25— ers. Looking back, I recall that it took this year; among them are independent Professionalism & Leader- quite a long time to haul out, wait in redistricting and term limits for legisla- line, work the machine and head back tors. Although they had the required ship Opportunities Seminar home. number of signatures, a Cook County sponsored by Cargill at To this day I can clearly recall her judge threw them out. Kinderhook Lodge in Bar- answer when I asked her why she voted. Obviously, there’s a great deal at ry, Illinois. “Many people gave their lives so that stake with these issues. Read up on we have this right,” she said. them, talk about them with your friends, December 15-17— As election season draws close, Illi- and then—VOTE! You know what my Communication Excellence nois voters have some serious decisions mother would say. to make. We’ll vote for Governor and Seminar sponsored by Archer Daniels Midland C LASS OF 2016 F OCUS Company to be held Brandy Marron, Fithian, is a researcher in Stephen Huls, St. Joseph, farms his own on the campus of the Laboratory of Molecu- land and helps John Deere World lar Genetics in the Animal manage his par- Headquarters in Sciences Department of the ents’ farm in Moline. University of Illinois. She Champaign and grew up loving the country Vermilion Coun- life and working with hors- ties. He is active January 21-23, es, and now helps with her in the Illinois and 2015—Richard husband’s 5th generation National Corn Ryan Economics & farm. In addition to her Growers Associa- the Marketplace membership in the Illinois tions and the Illi- Seminar to be held Farm Bureau and the Illi- nois Soybean As- in Chicago. nois Soybean Association, sociation, and Brandy is on the Board of Directors of the serves on the Vermilion County Farm Bu- February 11-13, 2015— Danville Boys and Girls Club and continues reau Board of Directors where he has been Kim Morton National Agri- to be a statewide 4-H horse contest judge. Chair of the Young Leaders Group. Ste- culture Policy Seminar to She has numerous published research papers phen earned an Associate of Science degree be held at the University of and a Master of Science degree from the Uni- in Agriculture from Parkland College and is versity of Illinois Department of Animal Sci- a graduate of the Cultivating Master Farm- Illinois College of ACES. ences. ers program. PROGRESSIONS Page 3

International Perspectives Seminar Endowed by the Warfield Family

The Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation (IALF) has received an endowment from Ron and Melanie Warfield of Gibson City, Illinois, to fund a seminar in the two-year Illinois Agricultural Lead- ership Program. The “Ron and Melanie Warfield International Perspectives Seminar” will focus on issues relating to the global nature of agriculture and serve to in- crease understanding between peoples of different countries. Primarily, the seminar will address is- sues related to the countries that will be visited by participants during the International Study Seminar in the second year of the program. “Melanie and I met while individually living six Melanie and Ron Warfield months with farm families in Nepal through the 4-H IFYE program,” Warfield said. “Since then, we have served, worked, studied and traveled extensively interna- tionally, which instilled in us the value of having leaders who understand the global nature of food production and distribution. We are very supportive of the work of the IALF and believe in its mission of developing knowl- edgeable and effective leaders to be policy and decision makers for agriculture.” Ron continued to pursue his interest in international food and agriculture in his graduate studies and his Mas- ter’s thesis. In part, his international experience continued with: 14 months in Korea as an Army Officer; multiple trips to Brazil to do a feasibility study on soybean processing; a study exchange visiting Russian State Farms; trade missions with AFBF to Brazil, Argentina, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, and ; chairing AFBF’S Trade Advisory Committee; chairing AFBF Trade Committee to Doha Trade Talks; and several personal trips to Africa to visit his son and family. On a separate trade mission trip, Melanie met with Cuban leader . “All of these experiences have reinforced the need for agricultural leaders to understand the intertwined global world in which we live and the importance of the global marketplace for U.S. agriculture,” said Warfield. Ron was elected as the 13th President of the Illinois Farm Bureau and served as full-time executive officer from 1993 to 2003. He was president of the companies that make up COUNTRY Insurance and Financial Ser- vices, Illinois Agricultural Service Company, AgriVisor Services, Inc., and the IAA Foundation. He also served on the Coordinating Committee of GROWMARK, Inc. He was elected in January 1996 to the Board of Directors of the American Farm Bureau Federation and was appointed to the AFBF Board Executive Committee in January 2000. Ron was a member of the first class to graduate from the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program, and was named a Master Farmer in 1992 by Prairie Farmer magazine. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural economics from the University of Illinois, where he was also an instructor, and has served on the University’s Ag Alumni Board. “The IALF is extremely grateful to Melanie and Ron for their devotion to our leadership program and generos- ity to the Foundation,” said IALF President & CEO Don Norton. “Their gift will ensure that we are able to con- tinue to deliver high quality leadership training with an international perspective.”

Page 4 Fall 2014

T ORCH OF L EADERSHIP

It was a grand celebration when 170 people attended the inaugural “Torch of Leadership” award banquet to celebrate the careers of four distinguished ag- ricultural leaders. The August 23rd event filled the ballroom at the Doubletree Conference Center in Blooming- ton. The recipients were Becky Doyle (IALP ’84), former Direc- WE APPRECIATE OUR tor of the Illinois Department of CORPORATE SPONSORS Agriculture along with Dan Kel- ley (IALP ’84), Gerry Salzman (IALP ’92) and veteran farm broadcaster Orion Samuelson, From left, Orion Samuelson, Becky Doyle and Dan Kelley a 30-year member of the IALF with their ‘Torch of Leadership” awards. Gerry Salzman could not attend because of a prior commitment, Board of Directors. but was able to provide an acceptance video.

Meet Our Alumni and Special Events Director

Jill Biehl, of Belleville, IL, has begun her duties as Alumni and Special Events Director for the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foun- dation (IALF). Biehl earned a Master of Science degree in Education from the University of Illinois, has taught in the Illinois public school sys- tem, and has worked on her family’s grain and livestock farm. “Our mission of developing knowledgea- ble and effective leaders includes providing advanced training for our graduates and addi- tional leadership education for the agricultur- al industry,” said Don Norton, President & CEO of the IALF. “Jill brings an excellent program conducted by the IALF, with knowledge of agriculture, familiarity with more than 450 graduates serving in our flagship leadership program, and a su- leadership roles throughout the state, perb background as an educator to help us nation and the world. Bob is a 5th gen- fulfill this mission.” eration farmer, raising corn, beans Jill’s husband, Bob, is a 2008 graduate of wheat and hogs. the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program, the two-year leadership development PROGRESSIONS Page 5 Alumni News Bill Niebur (IALP ‘88) will join several distinguished panelists at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs on October 14th to discuss “Feeding China.” Bill is the Vice President and Gen- eral Manager of DuPont Pioneer in China. THANK YOU TO OUR CORPORATE SPONSORS Alan Forristall (IALP ’90) and his wife, Mary, are moving to the Milwaukee area to The following corpora- open a loan production office for his current employer, Midland States Bank. Alan re- tions provide a signifi- ports that the move places them closer to their adult children and two grandchildren. cant level of financial He’ll continue with Commercial and Agricultural Banking as support to the IALF, Market President. making it possible to present a premier lead- ership development Congratulations to Brian Satorius (IALP ’16) and his wife, Brianne, experience. Please who welcomed their daughter, Ava Jane (pictured at right) to the fam- find their links on our ily on September 22nd. She weighed 6 pounds, 9 ounces and meas- website and, when you ured 20 inches. Mom and baby are doing quite well! meet company repre- sentatives, THANK Philip Nelson and Dan Kelley (both IALP ’84) recently received THEM for making the Illinois 4-H Alumni Awards for exceptional contributions to 4-H. this program possible: Philip belonged to the Miller Township 4-H Club in LaSalle County for 10 years. Kelley was a member of the Linden Lead ’Em 4-H Club in McLean County, also for 10 years, and later served as assistant leader to the club for 23 years.

Ava Jane Satorius It has been announced that Dan Kelley (IALP ’84) will be inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame at ceremonies in May 2015 during an induction at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

Drew Earles (IALP ’12) is now a Corn Specialist with AgriGold Hybrids and responsible for the sales and distribution of AgriGold products in Sangamon and Menard Counties. He can be reached at [email protected] and 217-741-5388.

Doug Childers (IALP ’02) is now the Vice President of the Eastern Grain Division with ADM in Decatur.

Doug Yoder (IALP ’12), pictured at right, has been busy talking about the Farm Bill. He’s con- ducted 52 meetings around the state on behalf of the Illinois Farm Bureau to banks, county Farm Bureaus, crop insurance companies, grain elevators and farm credit offices. He’s going to continue with 15-20 regional meetings in conjunction with the University of Illinois and the state FSA office. In addition, he’ll be holding numerous other infor- mation sessions and can be reached at 309-557- 2993 if your organization is interested in hosting an meeting. Fact sheets and webinars will also be available on this very important topic.

Page 6 Fall 2014

DATES TO Tall Corn REMEMBER: Many people have asked about the introductory ad- dress to the inaugural Torch of Leadership ceremony in August. Alumni Association President Chet Boruff October 5-11 made the remarks, reprinted here. National 4-H week When he was informed that he was awarded the October 14 IALF “Torch of Leadership,” Orion Samuelson im- “Feeding China” is the top- mediately responded, in that rich baritone voice that ic of a panel discussion at has become recognized across the U.S. as the voice of agriculture, by saying….. the Chicago Council on Orion Samuelson and Chet Boruff Global Affairs “Oh my. You have indeed placed me in tall corn.”

November 18 Right off the cuff, and in very simple terms, Orion brilliantly defined what the Torch of Lead- “Engage” sponsored by ership Award is all about. Tall corn.

IARC at the ASMARK For those of us here in Illinois, we understand tall corn. We know that tall corn doesn’t just Institute in Bloomington happen. It requires a great deal of planning, including a careful review of each of the seed pedigrees available to us and selecting those seeds with the greatest potential of succeeding. November 25 Illinois Commodity We know that each seed is carefully planted and provided the nutrients and stewardship it will need to reach its fullest potential. However, we also know that there comes a point in the sea- Conference “STRIVING TO son where there is little else we can do to produce tall corn. From there on, nature must take SUSTAINABLY FEED THE its course. WORLD” Normal, Illinois Nature may not always be kind to each seedling. Even though many will produce, not all will become tall corn. Tall corn weathers the storms of its season, bending at the appropriate time December 6-9 and taking advantage of good days when they come along.

Illinois Farm Bureau We know that tall corn gets taller because of the other plants around it…each one of them Annual Meeting—Chicago competing with another for sunlight, thus pushing the entire canopy higher until each has met its full potential. August 5-8, 2015 ILAC meeting in Colorado Tall corn pushes itself upward, not for its own benefit, but for the seed it is producing for the next crop. It recognizes that its season will end and its legacy will be found in the potential it placed in the next generation.

Tall corn gives its all to make sure that succeeding crops will be even taller.

So it is with the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program and the individuals who have been selected to receive the inaugural Torch of Leadership Awards.

The IALP itself was carefully planned to train leaders for our industry and careful considera- tion made to select those participants with the greatest potential of success.

This sign is near the Each of these award winners has used the investment made in their leadership skills to his and her greatest potential. They have served, competed, been beaten back, survived, and thrived, farm of Steve Huls (IALP all with the ultimate purpose of serving during their season of leadership, while paving the ‘16) in Vermillion Coun- way for the next generation of leaders to follow them. ty, reminding everyone to have a Orion was right. For all of us. We are indeed in the company of tall corn tonight. safe harvest in 2014! PROGRESSIONS Page 7

Thank you to our 4th quarter Alumni and Individual Investors (July 1—Sept. 30, 2014)

THANK YOU TO OUR Individual & Alumni Investors Individual & Alumni (cont) CORPORATE SPONSORS Jeff Adkisson * Melinda Miller Brian Anderson Kim Morton * Steve Arnold * Brent Myers Mary Auth Alison Myers Gary Baise Dan Nafziger Dan Biernacki Rick Nelson Nick Block * Scott Newport * Stan Blunier * Steve Niemann Chet Boruff * Jared Nobbe Andrew Bowman Don Norton Jodie Brooks Steve Postlewait Scott Deakin John Reifsteck Becky Doyle Allan Reusch Rick Edwards John Ross Sara Fernandez Enid Schlipf * John Fietsam Rick Schramm * Julie Gerdes Deb Schultz Matt Ginder * Joe Springer Eldon Gould Greg Steele Randy Grove * Bruce Stikkers Dale Hadden * Leland Strom Gary Hadden * Chuck Studer Heather Hampton-Knodle * Michelle Terry Ray Hankes * Debi Thurow * Matt Hughes * Will Timmons * John Huston * Larry Tombaugh Spencer Janssen Jeff Townsend Joe Kapraun * Brian Waddell Ron Kindred Jamie Walter Penny Lauritzen * David Ward * Katie Leigh Joyce Watson * Porter Martin * Jamie Willrett Don McGillivray * Keri Young Richardson

* = THE I A L F P RESIDENT ’ S C LUB

A T LEAST FIVE CONSECUTIVE YEARS AS AN I NVESTOR IN THE ANNUAL FUND Progressions Thank you to our 4th Quarter Corporate Investors Fall 2014 (July 1—Sept. 30, 2014)

This is a quarterly newsletter of the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foun- dation. The Foundation is a not-for- Corporate Investors profit organization established in 1981 to provide a leadership development AHW LLC program for agricultural leaders in Illi- Anderson Foundation * nois.

P.O. Box 160 • Macomb, IL 61455 Arends and Sons Inc T: 309-837-7711 Buck Bros., Inc. F: 309-836-2259 Email: [email protected] CF Industries, Inc. www.agleadership.org CME Group Chairman of the Board CoBank * Dan Kelley

President /CEO DeKalb County Farm Bureau * Don Norton DuPage County Farm Bureau

Program Director Evergreen FS, Inc. * Alison Myers

Development Director Grain & Feed Association of Illinois * Debi Caspall Thurow Heritage Fs, Inc.

Alumni & Special Events Director Holland & Sons, Inc. Jill Biehl Illinois Farm Bureau * Illinois Soybean Program * Board of Directors

Siamak Mirhakimi Kim Morton Kane County Farm Bureau * Porter Martin Enid Schlipf Gary Baise Martin Andreas Kelley Sauder Rupiper Equipment, LLC Chet Boruff Richard Ryan Madison County Farm Bureau John Huston Robert Easter Ron Warfield Matt Jansen Martin Brothers Implement CO Dan Kelley Tami Craig Shilling Martin Kroencke Sullivan, Inc. Board Emeritus McDonough County Farm Bureau Orion Samuelson Don McGillivray Joyce Watson Monsanto Company – Matching Gift Osborn and Barr Communications, Inc. Pike & Scott County Farm Bureau * = THE I A L F Rabobank Agribusiness P RESIDENT ’ S C LUB Sloan Implement Co, Inc A T LEAST Solon-Andreas Foundation FIVE CONSECUTIVE Wm. Nobbe & Co., Inc. YEARS AS AN I NVESTOR IN THE Wyffels Hybrids Inc. ANNUAL FUND