When he was about 3 years old, Tom Blackwell decided he wanted to be a farmer. Except, he lived in the city and the extent of his agriculture background was carpet farming in the living room. 

Tom held on to that dream, and while he doesn’t farm full-time today, he does work as an Associate Grain Merchandiser on Co-Alliance’s grain team. Join us this week on Cultivated as we visit with Tom about his untraditional path to Co-Alliance, the work he does daily to ensure needs are met from time zones away and why the Co-Alliance grain team is one of the best in the market. 

In August of 2022, we lost Director Gregg Alexander. Gregg had a heart for service, rural communities, his family, and agriculture. Prior to his sudden death, Gregg worked with our team to organize a donation to the Kempton Methodist Episcopal Church that would aid community outreach and equip local students with items they need to begin a new school year – free haircuts included! In our December podcast, we sat down with Lissa Litka, pastor at the Kempton Methodist Episcopal Church, to discuss Gregg’s vision and how his legacy lives on in the Kempton area of Tipton County, Indiana.  

The family of Gregg Alexander created the  Gregg Alexander Memorial Scholarship Fund. To contribute to the Scholarship Fund, please make checks payable to Co-Alliance Cooperative, Inc. 

Please write in the memo Attn: Board Scholarship – Gregg Alexander. Mail to Co-Alliance Cooperative, Inc., Board Scholarship Fund – Gregg Alexander, 770 N. High School Road, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46214.

Often, it’s the ones who are raised on the farm that are convinced they’ll never leave. There's something about the land, the heritage, and the promise of a new day with every sunrise over the eastern sky that keeps those boots firmly planted in the place called home.

Except for Scott Logue’s boots. They were on the move.

Scott Logue, Executive Vice President of Co-Alliance, actually knew at an early age that he did not want to return to make a living on the family farm. And his story really takes off from there. In the heart of National Cooperative Month, we invite you to listen to our latest podcast to hear Scott’s motivating story, gain his insight on winning with risk and learn about his bone with plastic forks.

Like many driven and eager college freshmen, George Madison was ready to take on the world and study animal science to become a better herdsman. Running cattle was the end goal and he was confident in that direction. Until he took an ag business class on the advice of his college advisor, and that single class changed everything. We invite you to join us for this podcast, where we sit down with YieldPro Specialist George Madison who talks about transitioning outside of his comfort zone for a greater reward, work-life balance with a growing family at home, and how he’s transformed communication to his growers to cultivate trust and transparency in the field.

Over the last ten years, three United States Presidents have been in office, approximately 19 million acres of farm ground has been lost to development, and the coronavirus has changed life as we know it.

But more important than any of those historical tidbits is the fact that some seriously amazing kids have spent the last 10 years learning how to make the best better through the 4-H organization.

Co-Alliance made a commitment to spend a portion of our time at the Indiana State Fair sitting down with 10-year 4-H members and visiting about their experiences over the last decade. What a sincere joy it was to hear from these seventeen and eighteen-year-olds how 4-H has impacted their lives, made them better people and shaped them into the fine young people they are today. You won't want to miss this episode! 

Co-Alliance recently hired Angela Hudgins, Vice President of Human Resources and Talent Management. The struggle to find employees is no stranger to any industry or business, but Co-Alliance doesn’t just want any employee – we want the best ones. We’re building a bench of talent that can take our growing cooperative to the next level for the next generation. Angela is confident we can do this monumental task with the right plan, benefits and efforts to find the right people. Our people.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

We couldn’t help but think back to Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” when we sat down to visit with Co-Alliance’s agronomist Jason Roth. To say Jason’s path to becoming an agronomist is unconventional would not be a stretch; in fact, it may be an understatement.

At Co-Alliance we talk often about our Why, the mission, and the passions we have individually and as a whole. And while most people cannot articulate their personal Why, Jason can do it well. In fact, his Why is very clearly the guiding light in his life. A transformational trip to Alaska provided great direction for Jason, and to this day he is intentional about how he uses his career as an agronomist to keep that direction moving forward to serve others.

Dumpster diving, bighorn sheep, homeschooling, India, and more are all components of Jason Roth’s interesting and uplifting story. We invite you to join us for 30 minutes to learn more about the personal side of our agronomist Jason Roth. And we won’t leave you without education; Jason also offers his agronomic expertise and advice as we march ahead in 2022.

Some daughters inherit their father’s eyes, others get his chin. Kylie Schakel will tell you without hesitation that she inherited her father’s relentless competitive spirit. Her drive to do better, challenge herself, - and win – comes from hours of work in the barn with her dad. The Schakel family has a rich FFA and livestock history, one that crosses generations and many county lines within Indiana.  

It’s the week of the Indiana State FFA Convention and this month on the podcast we are excited to have Miss Kylie Schakel, former Indiana FFA State Secretary with us, as well as one of our own Co-Alliance team members, Mr. Chris Schakel, more importantly, known as Kylie’s dad. Chris, too, was an active FFA member, livestock enthusiast, and Indiana farm kid.

We wanted to bring the two of them together for this conversation for two reasons: to celebrate the power of FFA this week and always, and to also commemorate Father’s Day and the valued bond between fathers and daughters. 

Kylie and Chris dive into the experience of raising a State FFA Officer, and letting her go for a year, and how that experience changes the family dynamic. Kylie truly took the bull, er ram, by the horns for her State FFA officership and made it a learning experience of a lifetime. We invite you to listen to this father/daughter banter to learn more about their special bond, the power of agriculture education, and how some of life’s most valuable lessons are learned in a barn.

Mike Bradley learned at a very early age that you’ll get left in the dust if you don’t show up and aspire to outwork everyone else. He didn’t grow up on a farm, but his childhood experiences and one very special man lead him there early in life. Mike is the Sales Manager for Co-Alliance's Energy team, working with our energy sales to ensure that supply is guaranteed for farms, businesses, schools, and construction companies so they stay fueled with premium products.

Whether in his career or at home being a devoted husband and active father to three children, you can count on Mike to reflect on his upbringing to do his absolute best for the people who count on him.

In this episode, Mike reveals how he overcame the odds thanks to his mentors at home, at the horse track, and on the football field. His motivational story is one that will leave you encouraged to treat others with compassion, hustle, and to never, ever give up on yourself.

The Howard family of Logansport, Indiana exemplifies the verse, To whom much is given much is expected (Luke 12:48). The Howards are contract swine growers for Co-Alliance and while animal husbandry and herd health are at the top of their daily to-do lists, they also ensure giving back to others is a top priority. Through service to their Cass County community, and representing Indiana Pork in a variety of ways, Dave, Tony and Mike of Howard Swine Farm are trailblazers in terms of impact and community support through production agriculture.

Their continued efforts to always do the right thing, whether in production practices or raising the fourth generation on the farm, were recently recognized as they were named 2021 Indiana Pork Contract Grower of the Year. The family learned early that diversifying their operation would allow for continuous generations to return to the farm and today their “Why” lies in making sound choices to ensure that succession continues.

If you take an interest in creative ways to involve the next generation on the farm and in supporting rural communities to serve the common good, you don’t want to miss this episode.