Executive |
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Jason O'Neil
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Jason has been involved with the MFA since 2015 and holds the position of Vice President. He runs both an organic dairy operation and a conventional dairy herd. He grows grains & oilseeds on 600 acres of land. He is involved with the Middlesex Junior Farmers, Canadian Young Farmers Forum and likes to play broomball and travel in his spare time.
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Patrick Verkley
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Patrick is a 29 year old director and has been involved with the MFA since 2018. He also is Vice President of the MFA. He grows broilers and runs a 50 acre grain and oil seed farm near Kerwood. He purchased his farm in 2018. He graduated with his Bachelors of Architectural studies from the University of Waterloo in 2015. He also has his own designing firm "Verkley Design Modeling". Patrick sits on the PAC committee at OFA and he is a new director on the Middlesex Soil and Crop Improvement Association. He is a pianist, he enjoys listening to podcasts and audio books and reading conventional books, conversing with people and spending time with his family especially his niece and nephew.
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Marcel Meyer
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Marcel is a grain and oilseed farmer and was previously a dairy farmer. He is a member of the Grain Farmers of Ontario and has been involved in municipal politics for about 18 years. He loves to curl in his spare time and enjoys singing as well.
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Ian Brebner
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Ian is a past Middlesex Warden and is a director on the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority Board. He is also a board member for the Lake Huron Primary Water Supply System. Ian has been farming for more than 40 years.
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Ruth Talbot
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Ruth is a retired Veterinary Technician and also runs 400 acres of grain and oilseeds. She is married to a dairy farmer and they have two sons who work with them on the farm as well. She is a past 4-H member and leader, Junior Farmer member, local fair board director and a past director on the local mutual insurance company. She loves to ride her horses, line dance, do pilates, swim and play baseball. She is a new director to the MFA board and has been there for only a year.
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Ed Lee
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Ed has been involved with the MFA organization for the past 20 years. He owns a dry walling company with his brothers "Mur-anda Dry Wall". He farms his family homestead which has been in the family since 1855 where he grows grains and oil seeds.
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David Bolton
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Dave is our Past President and has been involved with the board for the past 7 years. He grows grains and oilseeds on his 800 acres and does 800 acres of custom work on the side. He is a director on the Town and Country Mutual Insurance board and he has given his services to the local fire department in Kerwood since 1986. He also is a member of the Kerwood Optimist Club since 1987.
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Board Members |
Jack Brown
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Jack owns a egg layer operation and has been doing this for more than 50 years of his life. He grows cash crops on 100 acres of land as well. He has been involved with the MFA for the past 15 years . He loves to ride motorcycles and has been doing this all of his life. He feels the MFA is a good way to communicate with agriculture and brings all of the commodities together.
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Brian Farquharson
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Brian is a mixed farmer and grows mostly field crops. He farms on his homestead and has been doing so since 1971. He has been involved with the MFA since 1996.
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Tom Heeman
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Tom Heeman is part of the Heeman family that owns Heeman's Greenhouses. He has been working there for the past 3 years. They run 300 acres of a variety of crops including berries and grains and oil seeds. Tom is a cider maker and he also makes mead, honey wine. He has 115 bee hives in his diversified operation as well. Tom is the President of the Ontario Berry Growers Association and he is also a councillor in Thames Center and also the Vice President of ALUS in Middlesex County.
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Rein Minnema
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Rein is a pig farmer and has 1500 farrow to finish operation. He has spent the last 60 years in hog production. He bought the farm in 1980 where he also grows corn, soy beans and wheat. He has two boys who help him with his chicken broiler operation as well. Rein immigrated to Canada in 1978 and settled in the Glencoe area. In Holland he was a dairy farmer and was college educated. He enjoys reading and he has seen a lot of ups and downs but more ups than downs. Rein says there is a light at the end of the tunnel for agriculture.
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Jim Reith
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Jim currently is a grain and oilseed farmer and has been for many years but he also had a beef feedlot operation for many years as well. He is the past president of the MFA, Middlesex Cattleman's and the Ontario Vegetable Growers.
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Mario Slegers
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Mario is a ginseng grower in the Strathroy area and he and his family have been doing so since 1992. Ginseng is a very specialized crop and requires attention all year round. Mario has been involved with the MFA for an extensive length of time....so he says. He enjoys educating the public about this specialty crop.
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Brian Steeper
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Brian grows turkeys and is a grain and oilseed farmer. He has a separate business where he roasts grains especially soy beans. He lives in North Middlesex near Parkhill. He has been farming for 14 years and been involved with the MFA for the past 5 years. He enjoys spending his spare time with his family.
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Organization Representatives |
Herb Pierce
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Herb is the 4-H representative to the MFA board and has been there since 2012. He is a 4-H leader and has been for the past 42 years. He works for Marbolt Fasteners in Strathroy and is a 20 year employee there.
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Campbell Talbot
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Campbell is the Junior Farmer Representative to the board. He grew up and lives on a dairy farm and is a Ridgetown Agricultural College graduate specializing in the dairy program. He works for D-K Equipment Limited and Talgrove Farms. His interest include working with cattle, playing baseball, broomball and hockey. He is a past 4-H member and is a Junior Farmer member as well.
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