Another Successful Washington Watch
The 2007 Member Directory
NAFB Thinks Big in the 'Big D'
President's Report Marketing & Promotion Advisory Board Update Bob Miller, called "Mr. Ohio" by Ohio State's dean of agriculture, died after a brief battle with cancer...continued Chad Moyer Joins The Rural Radio Network Susan Littlefield
Helps Reaches Out to Iraqi Families WIBW Turns 80 Years Young! 31 Years Celebrated at the Ag Radio Network NAFB Calendar of Events eChats Formatted for Printing National Association of Farm Broadcasting | P.O. Box 500 | Platte City, MO 64079
Another Successful Washington Watch NAFB members converged on our nation's capital April 30 - May 2 for an action-packed agenda that included a variety of key thought leaders and influencers in agriculture policy and production. The meeting included a surprise visit by Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman, who spoke to the group at the Tuesday afternoon "Energy Forum" event, sponsored by the American Farm Bureau Federation. The Secretary requested to attend the event to speak to NAFB broadcasters.
Participation at Monday's "Issues Forum" was exceptional, with 22 groups represented. That evening, a reception and dinner featured the colorful Charlie Stenholm, former U.S. Congressman. Many attendees of Issues Forum took advantage of the extra opportunity to interact with farm broadcasters. The reception was sponsored by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, and dinner was courtesy of the American Soybean Association. Larry Quinn, of the USDA Office of Communications, did his usual magic on Tuesday morning by having a stellar line-up of USDA leaders and officials, headlined by Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns. Tuesday evening ended with dinner at the farmer-owned Agraria restaurant located in a beautiful area of Georgetown. Former Chairman of the House Agriculture and Intelligence Committees, Larry Combest, spoke to the group. The fabulous dinner was sponsored by the National Farmer's Union. The story of the farmer-owned restaurant is worth learning more about. The web site for Agaria is available by clicking here. Another highlight of the event was the Wednesday morning visit to the Capitol for the "Farm Bill Forum," which was attended by representatives of multiple commodity groups and five leading agriculture voices of Congress. "It is a good reflection of NAFB membership and what we offer by having Senators Harkin, Conrad and Chambliss attend this event. We were also able to feature Congressmen Peterson and Goodlatte from the House of Representatives. There was a lot of influential leadership in that room speaking directly (and candidly) to NAFB members," said NAFB President Pam Fretwell. The event at the Capitol was sponsored by the Propane Education & Research Council. NAFB also wants to thank all sponsors who made the 2007 Washington Watch possible, including those previously listed and The Fertilizer Institute. Transportation was courtesy of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative.
NAFB thanks participating advertisers for their support.
If you would like any additional copies of the printed
directory, contact Jeremy Povenmire at the NAFB
office. As always, the NAFB directory is also available
online at www.nafb.com.
NAFB Thinks Big in the 'Big D' NAFB members were living large April 11-13 at the 2007 Agri-Marketing Conference in Dallas. In addition to a lot of great programming and networking, the event also celebrated the 50th anniversary of the National Agri-Marketing Association. NAFB presence was strong on several levels. The closing reception of the "Connection Point" trade show was sponsored by NAFB. The association also had an exhibit booth to promote NAFB leadership and membership, both for farm and rural lifestyle. Roger Olson and Ted Haller conducted one of the educational breakout sessions at the conference. The session presented NAFB's national rural lifestyle research and attracted more than 50 interested NAMA delegates. NAFB also took advantage of the gathering of so many influential members of the agri-marketing community to hold several meetings, including -- Strategic Planning sessions for the Association and Foundation, and a meeting of the Marketing & Promotion Advisory Board. NAFB Member Services Manager Jeremy Povenmire arrived safe and sound in Dallas along with his fellow members of the "NAMA Bombers Motorcycle Club." The group rode down from Kansas City to Dallas for the meeting. They also donated an autographed movie poster from "Wild Hogs" to the ABEF auction. The trip and auction donation were sponsored by NAFB, Adculture, Farm Industry News and John Deere.
NAFB 2007 President Pam Fretwell invites you to listen to her President's Report by clicking here.
Marketing & Promotion Advisory Board Update The NAFB Marketing & Promotions Advisory Board met April 11 in Dallas during the NAMA Conference. Turnout for the meeting was great, with members Stan Koenigsfeld, Bob Brunker, Vic McGill, Lynn Ketelsen, Don Schultz and Ken Anderson in attendance, joined by Taylor Brown, Rick Coyle, Jeff Stewart, Randy Koenen, Hugh Whaley, Roger Olson, Janice Dahl, Jeremy Povenmire, Denny Waddle and Bill O'Neill. Hugh Whaley updated the group on the significant progress made with the Strategic Plan, and Roger Olson reported on the excellent reception and response he is getting with the NAFB Rural Lifestyle Research. Bill O'Neill reviewed the most recent marketing activities this year, including the latest research initiatives and the newest materials available. There was excellent discussion about NAFB's marketing calls to date, and everyone had a chance to give input toward future calls. The group expressed many positive ideas about how to promote NAFB. The rural lifestyle and farm presentations work well together, and NAFB wants to increase the number of calls this year. We also plan to increase the use of Webinars to get the message out to agri-marketers in the industry. Denny Waddle
Bob Miller's Passing
Bob was still in his Navy officer's uniform when he attended the first meeting of NARFD in 1945. He served NAFB as president in 1958 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989. Bob was a founder and a director of the National Ag Hall of Fame, served as chairman of National Farm City Week, and was co-chairman when the World Plowing Matches were held in Peeples, OH. A native of Litchfield, OH, Bob graduated from Ohio State in 1943 with majors in rural sociology and economics. That same year he and Dorothy Holladay were married. Bob joined Roy Battles at WLW after WWII, doing daily broadcasts from "Everybody's Farm" at Mason. When he learned that Ohio Farm Bureau members were planning to build their own radio station, he and Dorothy moved to Worthington in 1947, and Bob was the first voice heard when WRFD signed on the air. 1n 1952 Bob returned to WLW to head the Farm Department when Roy Battles left to join the National Grange. His radio and television work continued for the next 27 years. On WLW-TV, he hosted a 10-minute daily farm report, plus a 30-minute Saturday show carried on WLW television stations in Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati. A world traveler, Bob Miller went with Agriculture Secretary Ezra Taft Benson to Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand in 1960. He reported on Peace Corp agricultural activities from Africa and Central America. This led to Bob donating all fees from his speeches to the Peace Corps with enough to build a school in Zaire and to buy tractors for several African countries. He also set up fund-raising chicken barbeques with several area churches to buy more tractors for developing countries. He went with some farmers to deliver one tractor to Honduras. Bob Miller founded the "Cincinnati Reds Farm Night." Each year it was the second game to sell out after opening day. He was inducted into the Ohio Agricultural Hall of Fame and the Ohio State Fair Hall of Fame. NAFB offers condolences to Dorothy, a son and two daughters, eight grandchildren and three great grandchildren who survive. Correspondence may be sent to Dorothy at 5346 Hickory Trail Lane, Cincinnati, Ohio 45242. Chad Moyer Joins The Rural Radio Network
Chad grew up on a 160-acre, 45-head dairy farm in Lake City, MN. In 1999, he graduated from Brown Institute in Mendota Heights, MN, with an AAS degree in TV and radio broadcasting. He then joined the Wadena radio stations just after graduation, where he has served until now. Also, as a graduate of the "University of Rollag (MN) College of Steam Traction Engineering," he is licensed in Minnesota to operate historical steam boilers and steam engines. About his new assignment, Chad said he is "looking forward to serving farmers and ranchers in the Great Plains on KTIC and KWPN in West Point, NE."
Susan Littlefield
Helps Reaches Out to Iraqi Families Paul McKellips, a USDA public affairs specialist, will be working on the Iraq side, and Susan will be coordinating on the U.S. side. "I think it's a great opportunity for us to teach the youth that with a few seeds they can help to spread good will thousands of miles away," Susan said. Eighty years ago radio station WIBW began broadcasting to Kansas listeners. There were other fascinating facts that year, too. WIBW Farm Director Kelly Lenz said the average wheat yield in Kansas was 11 bushels per acre, and wheat sold for $1.24 per bushel. The average corn yield was 27 bushels per acre, and it sold for 74 cents per bushel. In 1927, Kansas was experimenting with a brand new crop called soybeans with average yields of 12 bushels per acre commanding a price of $1.98 per bushel. In the same year as Charles Lindbergh's transatlantic flight and when comedians Laurel and Hardy were a big hit, there were 731,000 dairy cows in Kansas, compared to 112,000 today. Yet, the volume of milk produced today is virtually equal to that produced in 1927. There are three times more cattle and calves in Kansas today than there were 80 years ago, but hog numbers are one-third less. Kelly and his fellow farm broadcaster, Greg Akagi, are busy gathering these and other fascinating facts so they can salute, on the air, how agriculture has changed during the 80-year history of the station. 31 Years Celebrated at the Ag Radio Network
Tom, a regional Vice President and member of the NAFB Board of Directors, participates in public meetings and activities representing the network and reports daily farm news. Larry handles market reports, farm news and their farm and consumer report. Tim manages studio operations and voices reports, too. A total of 75 stations in New York, Vermont, Maine, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware comprise the network.
World Pork Expo
NACAA Annual
Meeting/Professional Improvement Conference
Cattle Industry Summer Conference
Ag Media Summit
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"Having Secretary Bodman
proactively attend our
event shows how agriculture policy in the U.S. is not just
limited to food. The production of fuel and alternative
energy is a big part of farm broadcasting now and will be in
the future. We were flattered that the Secretary valued NAFB
members to this extent, appearing for the second consecutive
year," said NAFB Executive Director
Bill O'Neill.
The
new NAFB printed member directory is arriving in member mailboxes.
The 2007 edition features a Member Network, Station Profile
section that includes key contact information, both for
broadcasters and business.
Bob
Miller, called "Mr. Ohio" by Ohio State's dean of
agriculture, died after a brief battle with cancer on April
10 in Cincinnati. 
A
new assignment began April 9 for Chad Moyer. He joined the
Rural Radio Network in Nebraska and will be located in West
Point, NE, according to his new colleague, Randy Koenen. 
In
its 31st year, Ag Radio Network, based in Barneveld, New
York, continues as a family business. Holly Cassidy is
president and business
manager of the network established by her late father Ed
Slusarczyk. Tom Cassidy (Holly's husband),
Larry Slusarczyk (Holly's brother), and Tim
Slusarczyk (Holly's son) share the network's
on-air duties.