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The 2018 annual meeting of the Lake County Farm Bureau was held recently at Hellriegel’s Inn in Painesville.  It was an evening filled with agricultural friends and great food.

The evening began with a social reception. This was the opportunity to speak with elected officials and candidates running for public office, a very active part of Farm Bureau, working closely with our legislators and other elected officials

Following dinner were Farm Bureau elections and voting on policy resolutions to be worked on in 2019, and Jordan Hoewischer, OFBF Director of Water Quality & Research spoke to the group on water quality.  

Jordan said he appreciates coming to the different areas in Ohio. He grew up on a hog farm, earned his degree from The Ohio State University and worked for Scott’s for about eight years. Jordan has been with the Farm Bureau for about four years.  He works on rules for fertilizer and Senate Bill 150 which requires anyone who fertilizes to be trained and certified.

Since 2014, Farm Bureau has contributed $2.5 million to water quality programs.  Farm Bureau supported several local projects on equine manure disposition. Knox County and Farm Bureau created a smartphone app for nutrient management making it easier to be compliant with the certification. Jordan is currently working on the Demonstration Farms projects.

After the guest speaker, Farm Bureau took time to honor some very special members and guests. Over the past few years, Ohio Farm Bureau has created a Member of Distinction award, giving each county the opportunity to recognize an outstanding member for his or her service.

This year, Carl Broadwater was selected in Lake County. Carl grew up in a farming community in western Maryland. He served in the Army and after the war, Carl attended agricultural classes, graduated and was hired as a manager of a farm in Kirtland. He purchased a farm in Madison Township, and he and his wife of 72 years, Lorena, joined the Farm Bureau where he served on many committees. Carl thanked the Farm Bureau and encouraged the membership to keep up the good work.

Mandy Orahood, organization director, thanked our Farm Bureau Action Team leaders: Organization Action Team Leader, David Wilcox; Communication Action Team Leader, Sam Taylor; Membership Action Team Leaders Sam Taylor and Todd Demshar; and Public Policy Action Team Leader, Steve Ohmes. These dedicated volunteers are the hands of the organization.

We are looking forward to 2019, working together with county organizations, offering great programs and services to our members and our communities!