Legacy Leaders In Ag Retail: Top Awards From ARA Conference
It’s only fitting to celebrate some of our industry’s top names at the premier event for ag retail. More than 600 agricultural professionals gathered to network, share ideas and celebrate ARA award winners at the annual Conference & Expo, held Nov. 28-30, 2023 in Orlando.
Excellence in Advocacy Award
Mike Twining, vice president of sales and marketing at Willard Agri-Service, took home the new Excellence in Advocacy Award to recognize his service as vice chair of the ARA public policy committee, his testimony before the House Committee on Agriculture on the onerous Waters of the U.S. regulations and more.
This award was created to spotlight an individual ARA member for surpassing expectations in grassroots advocacy to educate lawmakers and regulators about the invaluable support ag retailers offer their farmer-customers.
Setting the bar, Mike and his team hosted nearly 30 staff members of the EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs at his ag retail facility in Maryland to show federal regulators the exceptional efforts made by ag retailers to offer safe, sustainable products and solutions to their grower-customers.
“Aside from his remarks to lawmakers and federal regulators about the great lengths ag retailers go to in order to safely provide fuel, feed and fiber to a growing population, he is an active and generous donor to the ARAPAC, our political action committee,” says ARA president and CEO Daren Coppock. “Our entire industry no doubt has benefited from his proactive generosity.”
Retailer of the Year Award
Mid-Kansas Cooperative (MKC) was named Retailer of the Year in part for how its team lives out the company’s core values: safety, courtesy, image and innovation.
“We’re very proud to be named ARA’s Ag Retailer of the Year,” says MKC president and CEO Brad Stedman. “We want to share this distinction with our member-owners and employees. They’re the ones who made this possible, especially our employees. They create the customer experience. This award is a recognition of MKC’s commitment to being an organization that moves the mark in our geography and will continue serving the needs of farmers in the future.”
Annually, the Retailer of the Year Award, which is sponsored by Bayer and The Scoop, recognizes an ARA member—either a retail company or an individual—that has demonstrated noteworthy accomplishments in employee relations, environmental stewardship, customer reliability and industry leadership. Read more about this cooperative in this issue’s cover story.
Jack Eberspacher Lifetime Achievement Award
ARA’s top individual honor went to Joe Hodges for his decades of ag retail leadership.
“Joe is an outstanding example of a genuine, creative, productive and ethical leader in the ag retail industry,” Coppock says. “His career-spanning achievements during his time with Douglass Fertilizer and The Andersons in addition to his support for ResponsibleAg helped to fundamentally advance the ag retail industry. I am one of many to consider him a personal friend and trusted confidante.”
The Jack Eberspacher Lifetime Achievement Award, established in 2001, was renamed in 2010 to honor the late Jack Eberspacher, who served as ARA president and CEO from 2001 until his death in 2009.
Distinguished Service Award
American Plant Food (APF) president and CEO Toby Hlavinka received the honor of this year’s Distinguished Service Award for his efforts to make the industry better for everyone involved.
“Toby has set the bar in his role as ARAPAC committee chair. He has been an enthusiastic supporter of our political action committee, which provides a vital tool to advance our advocacy efforts,” Coppock says. “Beyond his direct service to ARA, American Plant Food under his leadership has also set the standard for how to be prepared for and respond to an emergency situation. Through the way they handled direct response to the incident, communication with first responders and the community as well as safety compliance preparation with the help of ResponsibleAg, APF very effectively mitigated what could have been a
serious incident.”
Rising Stars
The 2023 ARA Rising Stars took up the majority of the conference’s main stage as they were cheered on by the crowd.
The theme “Next-Level Leadership: Always Navigating Forward” was reflected in each video submission created by these emerging leaders as part of the award program. Scott Birth, Rocky Mountain Agronomics, was named the video contest winner.
The value of the ARA Rising Stars award program, sponsored by Atticus, doesn’t end at the ARA Conference. Rising Stars will also complete the ARA NAVIGATOR 360° online assessment to identify their strengths and areas to improve to meet their companies’ unique needs. Developed for ag leaders by NuVue LLC, this tool empowers organizations to thrive in challenging times through developing effective leadership skills.
The 2023 ARA Rising Stars are:
• Newt Albert, The Equity
• Nick Arnold, Co-Alliance Cooperative
• Julia Austin, GreenPoint Ag
• Joshua Beyer, Willard Agri-Service
• Scott Birth, Rocky Mountain Agronomics
• Austin Campbell, MKC
• Rick Clark, Co-Alliance Cooperative
• Brian Dintelmann, Brandt
• Matt Dirlam, Co-Alliance Cooperative
• Kinsey Hall, Growmark Inc.
• Dane Hardebeck, Co-Alliance Cooperative
• JD Hoffman, Co-Alliance Cooperative
• Hannah Kammeyer, Marion Ag Service Inc.
• Amanda Kerbs, Simplot Grower Solutions
• Mike Lee, Southern States Cooperative
• Parker Ludeking, Insight FS
• Dylan Meyer, River Valley Cooperative
• Curtis Miller, Eldon C. Stutsman Inc.
• Chelsea O’Brien, Superior Ag
• James Ragsdale, Southern States Cooperative
• Tyler Schultes, Landus
• Celsey Stevenson, New Century FS division of Growmark
What’s Next for ARA?
Many of ARA’s current and past award winners have strengthened the voice of ag retail among federal regulators and legislators by participating in ARA Legislative Fly-In events. Join ARA at the 2024 ARA Winter Board Meeting and Legislative Fly-In this March 4-6 in the nation’s capital to get involved in grassroots advocacy to benefit ag retail.
