I trust everyone is plowing ahead as we have emerged from winter chills and are full speed ahead on projects and plans for the 2023 season. It won’t be long until this year is half in the history books.
Over the past couple or three years, I’ve been spending a considerable amount of time on local volunteer work at our church and school and with some local community groups. I’ve considered this work a sabbatical of sorts. At my age and stage of life, I’ve been blessed with the means and opportunities to participate in some important activities and events that shape our culture and our lives at the local level.
It can be difficult and challenging, as an independent professional, to maintain a balance in my professional career at this time in my life, with the desires and needs of tending to personal and family matters in addition to trying to contribute to my community in ways that once were difficult due to time constraints. The time commitments can be daunting, even for someone like me with no family in the daily household.
We move forward each day with a renewed purpose and determination to achieve something, not only for ourselves, but for those around us. Mother Teresa of Kolkata is credited with: “God does not call us to be successful; He calls us to be faithful.” Life is filled with “Woulda’, Coulda’, Shoulda’.” These reflective moments may have benefits as we work on relationships and personal improvement, but I submit they are, for the most part, useless wastes of time and take us away from productive activities and service to family and society. Always move forward.
This isn’t so much of a mea culpa on my part, although I readily admit guilt in some poor planning and decision-making on a number of fronts.
This brings me to the present and how it relates to the Society and our membership. We mustn’t let up on our resolve to help the organization grow and thrive. Being a volunteer-led organization, it’s easy to push our responsibilities aside as we focus on work, family and other obligations. Moreover, with all of us spread across the nation (and the world, now that we have some international members), it’s easy to procrastinate about a number of things.
We join the Society because we see value in membership and the ability to network, educate, inform and improve our professional capabilities and standing in the industry. And, yes, we expect this membership to enhance our profit opportunities and our standard of living. Let’s give ASAC membership a priority standing in our business hierarchy and structure. We get out of something commensurate with what we contribute.
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I’ve been reading some interesting posts on California agriculture in anticipation of being in Fresno in November. I’ve connected with a couple of industry people there through Warren Clark’s introductions and am trying to get up to speed on all things California agriculture. Having never been in the San Joaquin Valley or the Central Valley, I am very excited we’re meeting in Fresno this year for our 60th anniversary. I attended the ASAC conference and meeting in Sacramento in 2004, not long before I left ASAC membership for several years when I embarked on a different career path. I remember it being a well-attended meeting with great topics and speakers. For many of you newer members, here is a link to “ASAC’s 50th Anniversary Book 2013”.
https://www.agconsultants.org/docs/ASAC_50th_Anniversary_Book_2013.pdf.
You can also go to the Society website homepage, Click on “About ASAC,” scroll down to “History,” and then scroll some more to “ASAC’s 50th Anniversary.” This book was compiled in 2013 under the editorship of Sam Bartee, CAC, now retired and living near Kansas City. I encourage everyone, newly joined and long tenured, to read through this authoritative history of the Society’s first 50 years (1963-2013) and think about our original vision and mission, and our vision and mission going forward. I’m so happy to be back amongst the membership of ASAC and once again working in the profession of agricultural consulting.
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We’ve been regularly fielding inquiries from people hearing and reading about ASAC, expressing interest in membership and the Certified Agricultural Consultant program. The AgPR news releases from Warren Clark have been a driving force for these inquiries.
Ron Rabou and the Membership Development Committee approved a number of new members in April. At the time I’m writing this, our membership stands at 84.
It’s exciting to announce these new members.
Kenneth Osenabi – SmartAg Solutions Limited – Nigeria
B Abhishek – Protected Cultivation – India
Love Hammond – Green Acres Agricultural Consultancy Group – Madison, Tennessee
Abbasali Yadollahi – Agronomy Consultant – Fresno, California
Bryce Irlbeck – Boasafra Ag – Manning, Iowa
Andrea Krahmer - Oregon Agricultural Trust - Salem, Oregon
As you can see, we have two more new members on the international roster.
One hundred members on the Society roster by December 31 is certainly an achievable goal.
Repeating from last month’s Communique...............
Shop Talk program: Contact Jean Merry and Russell Morgan for information to help develop a program. Consider putting something together from your company or industry and host one.
The Blog Post: Write an article on something pertinent to our ag consulting profession and submit it to Don Tyler, Northern Region Director (don@dontyler.com). He’s taking the lead on getting content to the website. Keep an article to no more than 600 words.
Standing Committees:
Membership – Ron Rabou - raboufarms@gmail.com
Nominating – Kyle Walker - kyle.walker@peoplescompany.com
By-Laws – Dave Mielnicki - mielnicki1@gmail.com
Ethics and Grievance – Ethan Robertson - ethan.robertson@farmcrediteast.com
Continuing Education – Russell Morgan - education@agconsultants.org
Annual Meeting – Keith Dickinson - keith.dickinson@farmcrediteast.com
Finance – Keith Raynor - keith@trpsumner.com
Ad Hoc Committees
Marketing and Promotion – Paige Gilligan - collateralexec@gmail.com
Strategic Alliance – Norm Brown - norm@fbssystems.com
Remember...............
The Sky is NOT the Limit!
Pete Weisenberger
President
