Four vie to be Minnesota Farmers Union vice president
Janet Kubat Willette
Date Modified: 12/01/2009 11:31 AM
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Agri News staff writer
Four men have filed to become the next vice president of Minnesota Farmers Union.
Tim Henning of Adrian, Scott Hoese of Mayer, Tim Velde of Granite Falls and Gary Wertish of Renville are vying to replace long-time Farmers Union vice president Dennis Sjodin, who chose not to run for re-election.
There will be a question and answer session with the nominees at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 21 during the annual Minnesota Farmers Union Convention at the Ramada Plaza in Minneapolis.
The vice presidential election is 9:45 a.m. Nov. 22.
Here's a little more about the candidates:
Henning is president of the Nobles County Farmers Union, a post he's held since 2001. He's been a member of Farmers Union for more than 20 years.
He raises corn, soybeans and alfalfa on 800 acres. He also has a herd of 80 stock cows.
Henning is running for vice president because of the encouragement he's received from other county presidents and a desire to give back to Farmers Union. He is also motivated to educate more people about the farmers' share of the retail dollar, a project he and the Nobles County Farmers Union have worked on for the past couple years.
When corn hit $7, people blamed farmers for the hike in food costs, Henning said. The Nobles County Farmers Union printed 5,000 placements showing the farmers share of the food dollar. The placemats were distributed the week before the fair.
Another project was having people guess the farmers' share of the food dollar at the Nobles County Farmers Union fair booth. Of the 210 people who came through, only 10 knew the right answer. This showed that less than 5 percent of people in rural areas that have been given the information know what the farmers' share is, Henning said, and he assumes that even fewer people in the urban area know the facts.
Henning is proud to be a member of Farmers Union and he enjoys working with other members of the organization.
"We believe in making people's lives better," he said.
The vice president serves at the discretion of the president and attends functions that the president is unable to attend. The vice president also sits on boards and does a fair amount of lobbying to make sure farm and rural issues are addressed at the state and national level, Henning said.
The bylaws require that the vice president be a full-time farmer. Henning said that provides essential insight. Until you sit at the kitchen table and try to figure out how to make the money stretch to cover all the bills, it's hard to understand what it means to be a family farmer, he said. That's reality, he said, that's what family farmers are going through every day.
Hoese is president of the Carver County Farmers Union. He farms in a family farm partnership in Carver County. He and his wife, Yvonne, and their son and daughter-in-law, Eric and Erica, raise 600 acres of corn, soybeans and alfalfa. They also milk 120 cows.
Hoese has been a Farmers Union member for 30 years, but he only became active six years ago when asked to serve as the county president. Since then, he has served on the state policy committee and participated in national lobbying efforts. Most recently, he testified on the dairy crisis before a Congressional subcommittee on behalf of National Farmers Union.
Hoese is running for Minnesota Farmers Union vice president because he wants to be involved.
"I believe in family farms and I want to speak up for them and show support for them and be active in Farmers Union to show support for them," he said.
Hoese is past president of the Minnesota Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts and said that experience helped prepare him to serve as vice president of Farmers Union. He also has testified in front of the state Legislature and Congress.
He is willing to commit the time needed to be an effective vice president, be it getting around the state to attend county meetings, representing family farms at the state Legislature or meeting with and representing Farmers Union at organizations not familiar with family farmers.
"I'd be honored to represent the people of Minnesota by serving as vice president of Farmers Union," Hoese said.
Velde lives between Granite Falls and Hanley Falls. He is president of the Yellow Medicine County Farmers Union.
He and his son, Grant, raise corn, soybeans, wheat and Berkshire hogs for export to Japan and Korea.
Velde has been a long-time member of Farmers Union and he's served on the state policy committee for two years, including one year as chairman.
He said he's running for vice president of Farmers Union to preserve the family farm lifestyle for his son and his grandchildren. He wants to make sure the policies connected with agriculture make it possible for independent family farmers to continue to farm.
Velde wants to represent the Farmers Union policies that come directly from the farm.
"It's one of the best grassroots organizations there is," Velde said.
Thirdly, he wants to see the things that Sjodin, and MFU president Doug Peterson and the staff have worked for continued. He wants to be part of what he calls an amazing team.
"If I didn't think I'd do a real good job, I wouldn't be running," he said.
The vice president is the right-hand man of the president, Velde said. He serves as needed, talking to groups and attending meetings. The vice president, who must be an active farmer, is also eyes and ears for the statewide organization, bringing emerging issues to the attention of full-time staff.
Velde said his lifetime experience of farming, first with his father and now with his son, has prepared him to serve as Farmers Union vice president. He has also served on a variety of other boards, including the township board, pork producers board, school board and is now on the Minnesota Valley Co-op Light and Power Board and Yellow Medicine County Zoning Board.
Wertish farms with his son, Tom, raising corn, soybeans and navy beans in Renville County. They also finish hogs and cattle.
Wertish has been a member of Farmers Union for 35 years. For the past two years he has been a MFU field representative. He is on leave from that position to run for Farmers Union vice president.
He is running because of his longtime membership and because of his belief in the organization. Farmers Union is a grassroots organization, Wertish said, and he believes in the strength of the grassroots voice representing family farmers.
Thirdly, it's another way of public service. Wertish wants to use his experience gained at all levels of government, including working as Sen. Mark Dayton's agricultural director, to help make sure family farmers' voices are heard in St. Paul and Washington.
When he traveled the state for the senator, he saw many small communities that were struggling. As farmers struggle, rural communities struggle, Wertish said. Minnesota probably won't go back to smaller-sized farms, but he wants to push for policies that give people who want to farm the opportunity to farm.
He views Farmers Union as an organization with a big tent that tries to represent all sizes and all types of farmers. He wants to play a strong role in making sure family farmers are farming the land and raising the food for consumers.
The vice president works for the membership under the direction of the president. The primary role is to represent family farmers, Wertish said.
His years of involvement in Farmers Union, his experience in managing a farm and now working with his son, plus his experience working for Sen. Dayton make him a good fit for vice president of Farmers Union, Wertish said.
Working for the senator, he saw firsthand how public policy can help people. He has knowledge of how various organizations work and has contacts from all levels of government.
"I'm excited about agriculture," Wertish said.