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Well, my brothers and I had to move our mother from her home in Gibson City to Tatman Village in Monticello the end of July. What a nice retirement facility. Heck, if Bonnie gives me any more slack I just might move there myself. They have reasonable rates, great food, lots of nice people, and a great staff. Of course, any move to an 86 year old is traumatic, but Mom seems to be adjusting well with help from some of my friends that live there.
Change is inevitable and this move by Mom reminds me of some changes we are going through here at Topflight Grain. Scott Docherty, our grain merchandiser, will be moving his office to Monticello so he can share his knowledge about merchandising, with Derrick Bruhn, our Monticello branch manager. Eventually we are in hopes that Derrick can take over the merchandising and Scott can come back to Bement and become the “Big Kahuna”. You know every company has to have a succession plan, so the board and management are making plans for this transition.
Right now we have no exact timetable on when Scott will become the Big Kahuna but wanted you to know a plan is in place.
Our family is changing also. My youngest son Todd and his wife Cheri just presented us with a new grandson born August 14, 2002. His name is Tyler Nelson Thomas (TNT) and I hope he lives up to those initials. With the addition of Tyler that gives us a total of five grandchildren, three boys and two girls. The oldest grandson will be a freshman in High School this year.
If our crop tour is any indication of the yields we can expect this fall, our volume will be changing also. This could be a tough year for the company. We’ll continue to do the very best job possible running your company, but next year at the annual meeting I may be talking about averages.
Have a safe harvest, and bring us as much grain as you can this year, because we’re going to need it.
NEWS
FROM EMERY
By Denny Hill
It sure
seems hard to believe that this will be my 28th harvest that is
almost upon us. Over the years one-thing remains constant and that is no two
years are alike in this occupation and this crop year will be no different.
After a wet
spring that saw about 65% of the corn crop planted around the middle of April
and the remainder planted in late May and the first of June, the weather turned
hot and dry for a couple of months. A record number of 90+ degree days put the
corn and soybeans through a long period of stress. This will be one of the
hardest years to determine what kind of crop we have out in the field before we
get the combines a rolling around the middle of September.
At this
time we are anticipating a 15% to 20% drop in the corn yield from last year’s
total, which averaged around 185 bushels. If this holds true we will not be
making a ground pile for the first time in the last five years. The soybean
yields with some late August rains still could turn out to be respectable.
Unless
the USDA has missed their crop production numbers badly in their August report,
there will not be an LDP to collect this fall on your corn and soybeans.
Patrons will need to satisfy their cash flow a different way than we have in
the past 3 harvests.
The
Emery facility has not made any improvements or changes since last harvest. We
will be dumping GMO beans at the west bin like last year and the non-GMO’s will
be dumped in the old house. For the most part corn will be dumped in the east
dump or in the old house on especially busy days.
As for
the Hill family, we have been busy with softball and basketball this summer
along with cheerleading camp for our 2 daughters and it has made the summer fly
by. As school is set to start we will be enjoying Jessica cheer at the
Maroa-Forsyth varsity football games and Meghan will be playing basketball for
the 8th grade girls team. Looks to be a busy fall for us.
HAVE A SAFE HARVEST!
READY
FOR HARVEST!
By Brock Casteel
At the time I am writing this article we are all just getting ready for our crop tour. I have talked to a few customers who have already started to get their combines out to get ready for this fall, which I’m sure will be a challenge for all, with the variety of different planting dates that we had in the spring. We at Topflight have also been getting ready for harvest with sweeping bins, putting together flats, and shipping grain.
The long awaited finish of the La Place project is right around the corner and just in time for fall. The inbound and outbound scales will stay the same as last year, and we would like to have all traffic drive back on the south side of the elevator after you have unloaded to return to the outbound scale. The recent grading, drainage, and resurfacing for the loop around the elevator should make a smooth trip for all haulers.
As much as I like summer, I am glad to see harvest getting close, it always proves to be an interesting and exciting time of year, and I hope all of you, have a profitable and safe harvest.
Have a Happy
Harvest!
By Keith Whitaker
It seems like every year the summer goes by faster! It’s been a busy one, but a good one. I’ve had a lot of fun with the family this summer and we’ve got a lot of work done at the elevator.
We’ve had a lot of fun activities at home this summer. Such things include going camping at the Bo Woods Access Area for a night, going to see some movies, seeing a ball game in St. Louis, going to see the Bears play in Champaign, and helping coach a little league baseball team of 6 and 7 year olds. It’s been really nice to enjoy these things this summer.
Just an update on our Non-Gmo Soybean program: Our 2001 program finished up at around 18,500 acres. To date we have around 13,500 acres enrolled in the 2002 program. This program pays 25 cents per bushel in premium. We also have our High Oil Corn program. This program pays 22 cents for fall and 27 cents for buyers call. To date we have around 674,000 bushels contracted. We would like to thank you for your participation in these programs.
We’ve also been working on our ISO 9000 project this summer. We have Charles R. Smith, CPA, Ph.D, Larry Stapleton, Ph.D, Professors at Millikin, and Paul Mariman, Unit Educator, of the Macon County U of I Extension Service. Sara Rawlins, our Atwood Branch Manager is also helping us with the project. As a review, ISO 9000 is a series of international standards for quality management systems that was developed by the International Organization for Standardization in Geneva, Switzerland. (ISO). The ISO 9000 series of standards is comprised of several specific requirements that are intended to ensure a quality process in providing services or products to an organization’s customers. Over 140 countries recognize the standard. ISO will hopefully make us more efficient and ultimately save money. We also hope it will help to increase marketability.
We’ve had another good year at TopFlight Grain, and hopefully we will have another.
As always, I hope everyone has a safe and prosperous harvest!
It has been a busy summer in Monticello. The maintenance crew has been making several repairs in preparation for harvest. The outside guys have been working hard to make sure all of the bins have been cleaned and everything working for harvest. Stason has been running parts and making sure everything gets done for this fall. He also made time to get his Class B license this summer. Jim Shaffer was recognized at the annual meeting for having 30 years with the company. That is quite an accomplishment and he still is ready for a couple more. Its no wonder everyone knows who he is. Tommy has everything blended for our last train. Tommy is supposed to get an extra special Valentines Day gift this year; he and Becky are expecting a child. Jim and Steve have been traveling around helping out at Seymour, Lodge, and Monticello. Rob’s hands are full with the repairs and the updates of the facilities. The office has been busy with everyday jobs, and lately, I have been digging up old grain records for the new farm program. We will be more than happy to help anyone who needs help with the information needed to make the best decision with the new farm program. It looks like we are going to loose one of our helpers at the scales this fall, at least during the day. My wife Lynne has taken a job teaching at the Monticello Christian Academy. She will be teaching the 1st & 2nd grade kids. I hope she will find time to help us out in the evenings after school.
In the office we have been doing a little remodeling. We have taken out a wall to enlarge one of the offices and put down some new carpet. On the exterior we will be repairing the cedar siding on the top of the office and replacing it with some metal that we won’t have to worry about for a while. The office will be run similar to last year. If you have any new farm divides make sure to get them in before harvest. There is one change at Lodge this year. We will be taking in wet corn. We have found the bottom of every bin this year at Lodge, so Jim is going to have lots of space to fill up.
It as been a short, dry and hot summer. We hope that the rains were timely enough for the crops and that everyone has a safe and bountiful harvest.
“IT’S A BOY!!”
by Mikki Burns
Boy!! Blaine Michael Burns was born 7-30-02 at 9:02 a.m. He weighed 7# 6 oz and was 20” long. Mom and Dad did a wonderful job bringing Blaine into the world! Jim and I are very proud Grandparents and naturally, he is ‘soooo’ cute!! He is really growing. In two weeks, Blaine was up to 8# 4 oz and 22” long. So, everyone is doing well!
Boy!! Hasn’t it been a ‘trying’ year?? Someone said that we were due – well, it seems like we have been blasted with every possible problem. Hopefully, harvest will go smooth once we get started. Cisco is empty as far as soybeans go, and will carry some corn over. Joyce Bennett will be back to help in the office this fall, along with Darci Dyson. Stacey Burns and Laura Shaw will help me again on the weekends. So with experienced help, things should go great!
Boy!! The new ‘Farm Bill’ has everyone up in the air. It took us awhile to comprehend the ‘LDP’ program completely – so we WILL get this figured out, too. The more meetings that we can attend will help us to understand. We will be happy to run your production evidence, so just let us know what you need.
Boy!! The summer went fast, as always. The Cisco guys have been tremendously busy! They put two new belts in the East Elevator, have emptied the flats, been on farm jobs, and just the normal every-day busy routines. They are ready to take your grain. Please be careful and have a ‘safe’ harvest!!
ONE EXTREME TO
ANOTHER!
My boys like watching Extreme Games on TV where kids are performing all kinds of tricks that don’t seem possible on skates, skateboards, and bikes. When I think about this past spring and summer growing season that what old Mother Nature threw at the farmers, you could call it Extreme weather games. Rain totals kept at the elevator totaled 23 inches for April and May with 4-5 inches coming on Mothers Day. Denise was not a happy mother dragging wet carpet and other items floating around the basement out to the patio. The rain was shut off in June and July, with no good root system established.
And with the heavy Japanese beetle pressure, we definitely had pollination problems.
The USDA surprised the trade with much lower August production numbers. Corn yield at 125.2 is projecting a corn crop of 8.88 billion bushels and soybean yield of 36.5 projecting a bean crop of 2.62 billion bushels. The 2002/2003 carryout for corn and beans will be extremely tight at 767 million bushels for corn and 155 million bushel for beans. The USDA raised the average farm price range for corn from $1.80-$2.20 to $2.30-$2.70 and the bean range from $4.15-$5.05 to $5.15-$6.05. Ohio and Nebraska will suffer the worse crop reductions with Indian and Illinois and Western Iowa off last years corn crop by 30 to 50 bushels per acre averages also. The only thing that this crop has not endured this year is frost?
In my last Topflight article I talked about the funds short 350 million bushels of corn and when they covered this short corn would breakout and rally from the narrow range we had been in for 6-8 months. The funds are now net long 540 million bushels of corn and long 252 million bushels of soybeans. December corn has rallied from $2.30 (June 1) to $2.88 (August 15) and November beans have rallied from $4.87( June 1) to $5.79( August 15). The corn demand is a big question heading into 2003 with foreign corn exports expected to be double the levels seen in 94/95 and domestic demand should be questioned with livestock prices under pressure also! The soybean market is inverted and will continue to have a premium for nearby beans versus the deferred. The corn market is showing very little carry to January at this time and end users will continue to scramble to cover new crop needs.
The new farm program is not easy to understand, so take your time and ask the right questions until you feel comfortable with your acreage base and yield choices. We will help you with production reports and will try to answer any questions you may have with the new program.
It is hard to believe that the kids are back in school and harvest is here. There will be some changes here this fall. I will be moving my office to Monticello this September, so you can reach me at 217-762-2163 or 888-762-2163. I look forward to working with Derrick Bruhn and believe this will strengthen the Topflight Management team. Enjoy the wonderful colors of fall and have a safe harvest.
By Sara Rawlins
It’s hard to believe, but it’s almost that time of year again. Summer is coming to an end, the days are getting shorter, and harvest is just around the corner.
It’s been a great summer full of fun activities. In June, I attended the National Guernsey Convention in Sacramento, CA and celebrated the 125th anniversary of the American Guernsey Association. We went to Fisherman’s Warf in San Francisco, rode the trolley cars and saw many interesting “sites.” It was definitely a learning experience to be in San Francisco. We also got to tour a few dairy farms to see how they do things in California. While we were at convention, we participated in the dairy quiz bowl and received 3rd place. I was really proud of our Illinois Guernsey kids for their accomplishments at this year’s convention. I guess you know you’re getting older when you’re asked to be the chaperone on a trip like this and you start saying things like “I remember when…” and “When I was your age…” Ah yes, the good old days. I guess time flies when you’re having fun.
And speaking of having fun, my husband, Ben, spent his vacation 4-wheeling with Brock and Katie Casteel in Wisconsin the beginning of August. He had a wonderful time, but I just hope that someday, we will actually be able to take a vacation at the same time to the same place!
The annual Apple Dumpling Festival was held in Atwood August 16th and 17th. I think we had a pretty good turn out this year. The weather was a little more cooperative this year than last. Ben helped sell apple dumplings for the fire department and got to drive the lead fire truck in the parade.
Bill is back from his vacation working at the Illinois State Fair. Now that all of the summer activities have concluded, we can focus on the coming harvest. I wish you all a safe harvest. And remember, smiles are contagious, so catch one and pass it on. God Bless!
PARTY TIME!!!!
By Pam Jarboe
This is our fun newsletter!! Look through it and you will see several get togethers and meetings that we have had through the summer. Some of these were for fun; some of these were for information; some of these were for business. They all gave us the opportunity to visit with you and have a good time. We’ve had the golf outing, the crop tour, the annual meeting, and open house at LaPlace. We’re even trying to talk Louie into a “Country Scents” meeting at Milmine. We’ve attended plot tours, where we learned a little bit, and ate very well!! We’ve attended as many FSA meetings as we could! We’ve enjoyed the time we have spent with all of you!
You’ll also see pictures of some of our most important people – you! We love your smiles!
You’ll also see a few stories, for fun!! We like to have fun with you!
These events are all possible because we are a cooperative with members who support us. It’s a company where we all benefit by working together, helping each other, participating in our local communities, and actually sharing part of our lives together. We learn together, we have fun together, and we worship together. It all works, together, to make our business a strong company that can serve your needs as an ag producer.
Let us know what we can do to make your life easier. . . or more fun . . . or whatever we can do!
By Doug Adloff
Harvest is approaching us quickly it seems, and we have been busy getting trains loaded and making repairs to the elevator in preparation for this year’s harvest. There was a three-week period this summer that we loaded four trains, so the elevator has been running quite a bit of grain lately. We are finished shipping grain now, and ready to receive the next crop.
A new face has come to the Seymour area this summer. Mike Peebles will be the man in charge outside now, and I believe that he and I will work together to get you in and out of here quickly this fall. He worked with Rob to rebuild the distributor for the main house and repair some of the leg sections that had worn thin over the years. Earlier this spring, Roger redesigned the outside pit to include a power gate to regulate the flow of grain better than the previous design. This will also help make the harvest much smoother. Rob has been doing some work on the fill conveyor for the dryer, to make it as efficient as possible. It seems that we could be getting some considerably wetter corn this year due to the late planting and some downed corn, so drying efficiency will be very important.
As we get into harvest and get back into that fast-paced mode, please be careful and think safety.
By Chuck Bentley
I have just returned from our crop tour. It appears this year’s yields will be substantially lower than last year’s. This will have a direct affect on our volume, which will have a direct effect on our profit. It is still too early to tell for sure, but expect the profit level of your company to be affected.
That’s enough bad news, now for the good news. I have been golfing a lot this year and have made some upgrades to my golf clubs. Even though my score has dropped somewhat, my consistency is still needing improvement. Seems like everyone wants me to give them strokes when we are playing. So in the end, winning is hard to do even though you have improved your game.
Not much else to report since last time. Another new harvest approaches and new challenges await. Have a safe harvest.
By
Vanessa Stinson
Hello from LaPlace. We hope that you
have had a great summer and are looking forward to an even greater fall. It will
be a challenge for all , but we are strong and will get through it . At least
that is what I am telling myself.
Happenings in LaPlace this summer has been
the new bean complex which is near completion.
This complex will hold 600 ,000 bu.
I hope all of you were able to come to the open house that we had here
in LaPlace on August 29th.
If you didn’t, feel free to come by any old time. I will be happy to show it to you..
We still have 400,000 bu. of corn on the
ground from last harvest. We recently sampled it and it is still in good shape.
I believe that the plan is to pick it up after harvest this year.
We have built up the road between the
railroad tracks so that all out bound traffic will flow that way. Some great improvements have been made here.
When you get the chance, thank your board members for the improvements.
LaPlace is now a non-gmo bean facility. If
you have not raised non-gmo beans in the past because you did not want to
travel to another elevator you can now bring them to us.
As I am writing this newsletter, my girls
are starting their first day of school. That used to be such an exciting time
when they were young to watch their little faces when they made that first big
step onto the school bus. They are now driving. Nicolle is a junior, Ashley is
a senior and Gretchen is a
senior in college. They are still excited to go back to school, but Mom does
not get to see their little faces get on the bus anymore. I just get to hear
them say “MOM CAN I TAKE YOUR CAR”
How things change. That is how I feel this
harvest will be. A change!
We have been used to good crops in the past few years and this is not
going to be that way this year. But as I said at the first of this newsletter
we are strong and will get through it. Have a great harvest!
LONG
HOT SUMMER
By Eric Clements
It sure has been a long hot summer. Lisa had to take the boys to the pool every weekend. The village has made a lot of improvements to the pool in Bement the last few years. Hayden had a few problems with a lifeguard but we got that worked out. I do not think that he will pull that stunt again.
Adam, Brandon, Henry and Michael finished emptying the big flat at Shacks. This is a very hot and dusty job. I appreciate all their hard work on this project. They had bets placed near the end of this project on the remaining bushels. I think that Michael is the big winner. I do not know if he was able to collect his winnings yet. Roy, Jim and Roger are helping them put the aeration back together so we can fill the flat this fall.
Rob, Roger and Willard have made a lot of repairs this summer in our elevators. They have fixed everything from dryer floors to installing new leg belts. These guys work very hard to keep all this equipment running smooth. They also are willing to lend a hand whenever a train shows up. The maintenance staff also receives help from the elevator superintendents on all of the maintenance. Items that are checked out regularly are: leg belt tension, drag chain tension, condition of bearings, etc.
In preparation for the harvest Brock, Stason and I are meeting to go over storage reports. We discuss where we are going to put the different grains we handle and the available space that we anticipate at the different locations. These plans may change during the harvest but they provide us with a good starting point. We also go over these plans with our elevator operators to get their input. Hopefully all this planning and work will provide you with an elevator that will be open to receive your grain all harvest.
I hope everyone has a safe and productive harvest.
It has been a busy time here at Pierson since the last newsletter. The outside crew of Benny, Bobby, and Bill has loaded more rail cars as well as emptying bins. They also emptied the little ring. Now comes the pre-harvest cleanup and fix-up. Willard has been busy repairing dryers, spouts, legs, vehicles, and getting bins ready for harvest. Brock has been busy coordinating all this work as well as working on safety issues. Congratulations to Brock and Katie on their recent marriage, may they have many long and wonderful years together. They also spent a few days in Wisconsin riding four-wheelers. That was a true test of their marriage, but they passed with flying colors, at least they are still talking.
Gloria has been busy with United Prairie billing and spending her evenings at Hillary’s softball games. She also enjoys time with her other daughter Stacey and grandson Michael.
As for me, Debby and I went to Colin and Tyler’s little league games. We also took Zac, Kady, and Tatum to Rockhome Gardens. They had a good time watching the animals and taking the train ride. We also took a lot of side trips in our Mustang convertible. You would be amazed how many strangers wave to the “old folks” in the convertible. I want to remind everyone to have a safe harvest and take time to watch the fall colors.
By Louie Tieman
Well it’s that time again, and Vanessa hasn’t
called me yet. This might be the first time in years she hasn’t called and read
me her newsletter. Ok , I am a step ahead of her.
I have been keeping notes since last April, because everyone said my last letter was too short. They said I must not have had anything on anyone so here goes.
April 12: Les, Dave, and Duane sitting here talking about when is Mark and Roger going to plant. Somebody has to be 1st, but you also have the followers.
April 22: Got my newsletter in the mail. Results from the focus meeting, “Send Louie out to load the planter”. It must have worked, just ask John Clark, Mark Morgan, and Roger Hendrix. Roger’s was the first time I loaded a planter in the dark; the midnight oil was burning that night.
April 23: Duane has been out digging up his corn already with his pocketknife. I think he wears only 2 out each year.
April 30: “Another day’s rain is another day’s rest”, that is the popular saying around Milmine. He has ½ of his corn dug up, we were wondering if Pioneer would reimburse him for all of it that was dug up. This would be a 1st for Bill S. !!!
Henry’s Kenworth dusted Curt Durbin’s Mack, it really did !!! You could see the dust coming off of Henry’s truck a mile away. The only trouble was the Mack was behind Henry…
May 2: Got the new market computer today and Les is showing Duane how to get Hooter’s on there. Too bad Myrna doesn’t know how to pull up history on the computer! Man she would be surprised what she could find out! Whooooooeeeee !!!!!
May 8: Larry Belton is a new Grandpa, so I gave him a Topflight shirt for his new grandson, Zachery Emitt White. Didn’t realize Jeanie was that old, LOL…
Les was in at the ‘puter station giving Dave lessons on it.
May 9: Ask Dick Thomas about Jim Kleiss’s son playing 1st base. It was real cute hearing him tell the story. It was good for a grin. Talking about playing 1st base and he tells the coach, “Get me outa here, they keep throwing the ball at me…”
May 10: Another famous saying around Milmine, “Well you guys have a good one”.
May 16: Jack Gallivan said “Send these pictures to Bosnia or some country that plows with goats.”
June 2: “Spanky”, Jerry Orwig, for the people in Gordy, he won’t admit it, but he got stuck in the field today and Jim Burns, “THE BOSS”, had to pull him out. Way to go Spanky !!!!
June 3: I was told to be nice because payback’s are hell. So I won’t say this person’s name but she locked her keys in the car in the garage. She was afraid some was going to steal it. Her name slipped my mind, but she is the manager of the Cisco elevator. Whooopss!!
June 5: Francis Durbin told me today that corn will go to $3.00 by fall. Seems like he made the right move, he retired and his wife just loves it…Honey do this, Honey do that !!
June 28: The most excitement in Milmine since the tornado of ‘96. I got to weigh all the truck and tractor’s for the Cerro Gordo fair. A lot of towns people watching.
July 5: Chalk Taylor said one way or the other Japan will take over this country. He was talking about the Japanese beetles. That got ’em laughing..
July 8: Dave beat Les to the ‘puter this morning. He’s learned how to master it now.
What was once Duane’s chair is now the ‘puter chair. Gotta up date Duane..
July 25: Francis said his name is Charity……
July 29: Well I just heard 80 bushel corn. Probably will be if you dig it all up.
Not filled out, maybe 50 bushel.
August 8: Lynn Larson stopped by and we had a nice visit. Were talking about his Mother and sister, Polly, and Mike. We got to talking about my arthritis and what I was taking for it, Celebrex, and it really helped me. I had seen her in the store in Bement about 2 or 3 months ago and she spoke to me right off the bat. She is a very nice lady and I was glad Lynn stopped by and we got to talking about old times. Whoo, that went back a couple years.
August 13: Fly away, fly away!! Crop tour flight over our trade area. Pam, Les ,Louie and Larry Bartram, our navigator. We didn’t see anything like we did 3 years ago but had a good flight, and landing. As Larry always says “Any landing you can walk away from is a good one”. Oh yea, I heard a story about Lubbock and Amarillo a few years back. I won’t say this person’s name but he runs a business south of Bement about, I said about 2 miles ..Anyway him, Chick, Larry, and Donnie Ford were down there on business. Don drove the semi down there with the El Camino on the semi. Any way it seems like the El Camino went down a one way street the wrong way that night. I could only guess why it went the wrong way. The lady said it probably had Illinois plates on it. We better ask Jim.
Now for the serious part: I am going to be a Grandpa in December. I still don’t think I am old enough (51). Misty is going to have a baby boy. He is all ready photogenic, takes after PE PA as, Mylinda and Steve call me..
Brian is getting married Sept.7, and going to Hawaii. Sure wish he would have asked me to go. How many people do you know that get to go on the honeymoon with their children?
I went with Misty for 11 days, it was great……
Travis is back out on the road again. Debra, his girlfriend is going to “HOOTERS” ,when we get the wedding over with. She told me she worked at Hooters and I could get a 10% discount. She fibbed to me so I owe her big time. We always laugh about it, but as Mikki says “pay backs are hell”.
I am staying out of trouble…And of course everyone believes that too.
I did buy me a new motorcycle and have a chick for the back too…
And that’s all I’m going to say about that !
Have a safe harvest and Thank you for your business. Doing business with Topflight has its advantages: golf outing, women’s program, patronage checks. You name it we are striving to make your life easier…
Topflight Golf Outing
By Denny Hill
The 5th annual Topflight Grain golf outing was held on July 24th at the Hickory Point Golf Course in Forsyth. On just an ideal day to play golf, 144 players turned out to play a 4-person scramble event and enjoy the company of fellow patrons, vendors, and guests of Topflight Grain.
After doughnuts and coffee were enjoyed, before the 8:30 shotgun start, the Atwood-Hammond cheerleaders distributed snacks and drinks to the players on the course and then everyone enjoyed hamburgers and brats in the new clubhouse and prizes were awarded to the winning teams and individuals.
Winners of the proximity prizes were: Closest to the pin #8- Cecil Damery
Longest Drive # 12 - Nathan Hieronymus
Longest Putt # 18 - Jeff Heinz
Closest to the pin #16- Don Cochran
Winning Team: Mike Ferrill, John Hill, Mitch Myers, Ralph Myers- 12 under par
A special thanks to the many vendors who donated prizes that enabled everyone to go home with a gift and help make this outing a success. We look forward to next year’s annual event.
by Russel Wright
August 1, 2002 was another milestone for my family and me; I celebrated my thirtieth year working for your company. It seems like just yesterday that Dick offered me a job with Bement Grain Co. I started at Voorhies running the scales as well as the elevator. All the young kids, like Roger Hendrix, Tim Morton, Larry Larson, Richard Larimore to name a few, would ride to the elevator with their dad. Now some of them have young children to ride with them to the elevator. And some were and still are board members of this company. We have another generation of farmers to do business with Topflight Grain. My family of Matt, Marcus, Sarah, and Paul, as well as my wife Debby, all grew up with the Bement Grain company. Some how we would find the time to attend their ballgames as well as school functions. Now they are all grown up and some have kids of their own.
After working in Bement, I started driving the semi. Before harvest, Dick showed me how to shift the Mack by going to Piatt, getting a load of corn and bringing it back to Bement to unload at the flat. So a few trips by myself, I was getting the hang of it, and lo and behold, it turned into 24 years and approximately 36,000 loads hauled. I met lots of fine people when I was trucking. Now I am the branch manager at Pierson, and still find the time to attend little league games and spend time with the grandchildren. Over these thirty years I have met lots of people, many new faces, many old faces, and sadly faces that are not here anymore. I want to thank Dick for sticking with me for these years as well as to thank the board for the nice plaque and gift that was given to me at the annual meeting. I also want to congratulate Jim Shaffer and John McCabe for their thirty years and Gary Hunter for his twenty-five years.
The Topflight Grain annual crop tour was conducted on August 20. 11 teams canvassed the entire Topflight trade area, counting rows of corn kernels, and pods of beans. Each team made approximately 10 stops, taking two corn samples and two bean samples at each stop.
Results of the crop tour were announced at the Bement Country Opry, later that evening, in a meeting that also included a market outlook by Harry Wood of FCStone and an FSA update by Brian Malone. A representative from each tour group described what they had found on their route. Most of the comments included good and bad crops in each area. Most areas had some wind damaged corn. Most areas had some pollination problems. Most areas had some fairly good yields. The representative samples displayed at the meeting showed the well filled ears next to the poorly pollinated ears.
Harry Wood reviewed the year’s supply and demand numbers, using the projected yields of the last USDA report. He suggested a new curve on the price chart, which indicated that prices may not have to rally as much as they have in the past, to ration the supply of a reduced crop.
Brian Malone reviewed some of the changes in the new farm program, answered questions, and suggested a website to use, to aid the decision of updating your bases and yields.
In addition to all the good information provided that evening, a steak dinner was served to all who attended.
Along with the actual crop tour, Louie reported on the aerial crop tour, that Les Syfert, Pam and he observed on August 13. Larry Bartram piloted the plane for the other three passengers who were eyeing the crops, taking pictures, and trying to take location notes for the pictures. Flying above the crops, wind damage was noted throughout the area, as well as variations in the crop as ponds were planted in later. Hybrid differences were also noted from the air, in a few cases.
If you’re interested in the pictures, to see your fields from the air, stop by the Milmine office. Louie will be glad to show them to you, and help you locate some familiar landmarks to coordinate your fields.
To keep our Internet users more current on market news, Denny has begun updating the market comments on www.topflightgrain.com, each morning. This information will give you the overnight markets, and an indication of opening calls for the day trade.
We are in the process of changing the bid page and market news to include CBOT quotes and current bids, along with more market news and weather news. This change should serve you better, when you check the Internet for bids, to see the quotes on a 10 minute delay, and what the grain bids would be, based on the bids from Chicago.
We’ll keep you posted as we make some changes. We think it will make your life easier!!
Our sympathies to
the families of Marietta Marker, Maurice Howe, Bob Allen, Aldene Beery, Lynden
Adams, Don Smith, Viola McCartney, Patrick McLaughlin, Marilyn Ann Bullock,
Patricia Albert, Judith Ann Howard, Russell Burdick, Marjorie Bourquin, “Mikie” Gross,
Jerry Watt, Charles Winters, Rob Marsh, Bob Foran, Grace Evans
Edmundson.
The scientist approached God and said, “Listen, we’ve decided we no longer need you. Nowadays, we can clone people, transplant hearts and do all kinds of things that were once considered miraculous.”
God patiently heard him out, and then said, “All right. To see whether or not you still need me, why don’t we have a man-making contest?”
“Okay, great!” the scientist said.
“Now, we’re going to do this just like I did back in the old days with Adam,” God said.
“That’s fine,” replied the scientist, and bent to scoop up a handful of dirt.
“Whoa!” God said, shaking his head in disapproval. “Not so fast, pal. You go get your own dirt!”
Alan Parrish, a Bement native, recently received the “Astronauts’ Silver Snoopy” Award for professional excellence. NASA Astronaut Jerry Ross presented the award to him. In the letter of commendation, Astronaut Ross described Alan’s work for the International Space Station Structures and Mechanisms in the Space Station Hardware Integration Office. Alan was credited with discovery of many shortcomings in the mechanisms and forcing numerous problems into redesign and/or additional testing. Astronaut Ross told Alan “You are recognized throughout the International Space Station Program community as an expert. The problems International Space Station has avoided due to your efforts are unquantifiable.”
These praises, awards and the accomplishments have earned Alan a well-respected reputation throughout the International Space Program. He has traveled in many countries, coordinating the international program and assisting in engineer and design mechanisms.
Alan graduated from Bement High School and from Southern Illinois University. He and his wife, Carrie Lee, have two children, and live in Merritt Island, Florida. In a visit with Jim and Wilma Fendley, Alan told them, that “it sure has been quite a journey from working on the farm as a young boy and helping you with your farming chores, on to college, then working on Allis Chalmers equipment to finally working with the Shuttle and Space stations hardware systems. I will say that my background has surely helped me in my career path . .”.
We’re proud to recognize one of the “hometown kids”, whose background and training have guided him to an international career, with profound responsibilities.
We’re interested in other
people who grew up in central Illinois, with stories to tell. Please let us know!!!
FSA PROGRAM
The FSA office has been mailing farm program information to all farm operators and owners, to assist each one in making decisions based on the new farm program. One-time decisions must be made about updating base acres and yields. These decisions will apply to the next six years of the farm program. To assist you with these decisions, the FSA offices have sent information regarding base acres, and will continue to send information to assist with the decision making process. The FSA offices have also held numerous meetings to explain the program and answer questions. Information is also available on several Internet sites to help with questions, or as spreadsheets to help with decisions.
Your Topflight offices will be glad to help you, too. We have attended most of the same meetings you attended, plus a few more; we’ve tried some of the Websites and spreadsheets; we’ve discussed and discussed it among our staff. If you need crop production records, please let us know. We will print a copy for you. (Please call ahead, and allow several days for us to accumulate the information.) If we can assist you with a spreadsheet, please ask us. Each office has Internet access and will be happy to help you put the numbers in, to evaluate the results.
As the front page says, “Hang in there!” We’ll be glad to help you!
Specialty Grains
The Non-GMO bean program has filled up quickly for the fall 2002 delivery period. We can still contract bushels for post harvest delivery at this time, but a word of caution for those who wait, because this year’s program will be limited to a total bushel amount for our 2002/2003 program at the 25 cent premium. The contracting, delivery and testing of the Non-GMO beans will be the same as last year. I also want to remind everyone that the Non-GMO certificate will need to be completed and signed before payment will be issued for these beans. Look for details concerning our 2003/2004 Non-GMO bean program coming soon at your local Topflight Elevator!
The High oil corn program for 2002/2003 will be the same for delivery also. We still
require that the moisture must be below 20% at time of
delivery. We will also do a farm composite for the oil content unless otherwise
instructed. Remember that load by load #1 grade factors will apply to the other
grade factors. FM at 2% or less and
Damage at 3% or less and Aflatoxin
will be checked this year also!
If you have planted a Hard-endo corn variety and or a Non-GMO variety and will store on the farm , you may want to segregate for the possibility of a premium for a post harvest delivery period! If you have any questions or concerns about your specialty grain contracts, please call or stop in our office before harvest begins.
FALL PROCEDURES
You should have received, recently, from Topflight Grain, an information packet that included the fall policy, any farm codes that pertain to your grain, a customer status statement, and a “fall instruction” sheet. Please review all of this information.
If any of the information is incorrect, please let us know immediately. If we need to know anything else to handle your fall grain deliveries, please let us know. If you have any questions, please ask.
THE RAT, THE CHICKEN, AND THE
FARMER
A rat looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package. What food might it contain? He was aghast to discover that it was a rattrap. Retreating to the farmyard the rat proclaimed the warning: “There is a rat trap in the house, a rat trap in the house!”
The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head, and said, “Excuse me, Mr. Rat, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it.”
The rat turned to the pig and told him, “There is a rattrap in the house, a rattrap in the house!”
“I am so very sorry, Mr. Rat, sympathized the pig, “but there is nothing I can do about it, but pray. Be assured that you are in my prayers.”
The rat turned to the cow. She said, “Like wow, Mr. Rat. A rattrap. I am in grave danger. Duh?”
So the rat returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer’s rattrap alone. That very night, a sound was heard throughout the house, like the sound of a rattrap catching its prey.
The farmer’s wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer’s wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital.
She returned home with a fever. Now everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup’s main ingredient. His wife’s sickness continued so that friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
The farmer’s wife did not get well. She died, and so many people came for her funeral that the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide meat for all of them to eat.
So the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think that it does not concern you, remember that when there is a rattrap in the house, the whole farmyard is at risk.
Our congratulations to . .
Todd and Cheri Thomas, parent of their first son. Tyler Nelson Thomas (T.N.T.!!!) is Dick and Bonnie’s fifth grandchild;
Tasha Murphy, daughter of Jim Murphy, who was student of the quarter last spring;
Larry & Pam Hissong, grandparents of Erin Anne Gwaltney. Great-grandparents are Merle & Florence Hissong;
Wayne and Carolyn Davis, recently celebrating their 50th anniversary. Wayne retired from ADM, where he was a grain merchandiser;
Andrew Hiser, son of Lynn and Diane Hiser, who received a scholarship as part of the fourth annual Commitment to Agriculture Scholarship program by Monsanto and the American Farm Bureau;
Max and Marilyn Olson, recently celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary;
Megan Thompson, who was awarded the Piatt County Retired Teacher’s Association Scholarship;
Dean and Doris Ritchie, recently celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary;
Larry and Jeanie Belton, grandparents of their first grandson, Zachary Emmitt;
Tim and Jeannine Walsh, parents of a new son. Grandparents are Mike & Gloann Walsh and Jack & Catherine McHale;
Emily Brackebusch, who interned with Dick, for a day, for her U of I class in business. She received an “A” on the paper;
Kirk Whitaker, son of Keith and Laura Whitaker, for receiving his Tiger Patch award;
Bill and Shari Schable, new grandparents of Sidney Alexander;
Joe and Norma Boyd, recently celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary;
Katana Schultz, daughter of Arnold and Marlene Schultz, recently married to Ryan Louis Baker;
Les & Myrna Syfert, recently celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary;
Brock & Katie Casteel, recently married;
Denny Hill’s girls’ softball team, winning first place in their league;
Brook Morris, crowned Junior Miss Piatt County Fair;
Earl and LaVerne Whitfield, recently celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary;
Sarah Parsons, recently married to Eric Nieukirk;
Angela Warnick, who recently became “Mrs. Jeff Babiak”;
Jarrod Gregg, son of Jerry Gregg and Andrea Gregg, 2002 valedictorian of Cerro Gordo High School;
Ramona Hendricks, Jo Redman, and Kate Redman, honored as past Piatt County American Legion Auxiliary Presidents, in April;
Earl Wright, Ron Hoffman, Terry Parsons, Glen Parker, Bob Lieb, and George Dick, honored as past Piatt County American Legion Commanders, in April;
Allan Perry, son of Fred and Janet Perry (and spring intern at Topflight Grain), 2002 valedictorian of Bement High School;
Heather Mulvaney, part-time employee for Topflight Grain, 2002 Salutatorian of Bement High School;
Willard and Opal Shoemaker, recently celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary;
Trent Brandenburg, Rob Flavin, Jim Reed, and Mike Bateman, winners of the 2002 Piatt County Farm Bureau golf tournament;
Sherri Griffith, Sally Hicks, Carole Abbott, Sara Dubson, Rhonda Buchanan, Dorene Harter, Beth Hicks, Georgia King, Jamie Mumm, Laura Smith, Kim Snyder, Wendy Wileaver, Pam Romine and Angie McCabe, members of the top Piatt County Relay for Life Team. The event was co-chaired by Kaye Dick and Beth Manuel;
Ron & Donna Edwards, recently celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary;
Marjorie Knowles, recently celebrating her 80th birthday;
Jackie Walsh, appointed to office manager at Franklin Financial Planning in Urbana;
Mikki and Jim Burns, proud grandparents of a new grandson;
Chad and Cammie Sparks, proud parents of a new daughter. Bill and Norma Sparks are the proud grandparents;
Chris and Heather Houser, proud parents of a new daughter. Dave and Gina Ritchie are the proud grandparents;
Gene Pirtle, recently celebrating his 75th birthday;
Kurt and Kristi Robson, recently married;
Jim Shaffer, Russel Wright, John McCabe, and Gary Hunter. Jim, Russel and John were honored, at the annual meeting, for 30 years of employment. Gary Hunter was honored for his 25 years of employement:
Gary and Bibby Appleby, grandparents of new granddaughter. The proud parents are Craig and Synthia Appleby;
Steve and Diane Sayers, recently married;
Bill and Trudie Lemon, proud grandparents of Neal William Lemon;
Dan Seal and Doris Metsger, engaged to be married;
Mildred Bolsen, recently celebrating her 90th birthday;
Justin Huisinga and Angela Neff, engaged to be married;
Bob Morgan, finally awarded his high school diploma, having left school early to serve during wartime. His diploma was presented in a special ceremony at the Bement High School;
Misty Tieman Smith, who just received certification as a registered nurse. Father Louie is very proud of her!!
If you had bought $1000.00 worth of Nortel stock one year ago, it would now be worth $49.00.
With Enron, you would have $16.50 of the original $1000.00.
With Worldcom, you would have less than $5.00 left.
If you had bought $1000.00 worth of Budweiser (the beer, not the stock) one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the cans for the 10 cent deposit/recycling you would have $214.00
Based on the above, my current
investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle.
WELCOME!!!
I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am Mike Peebles, originally from Pleasant Hill, Illinois. I have worked in the grain industry for 10 years starting my career with Quincy Soybean Company (now known as ADM Quincy). In March of 1998 I accepted a position with Bunge North America in Louisiana Mo. working there until August of this year when I started my new position with Top Flight Grain. My wife, Jenny, and I have two children, Jalie and Grant, who are 4 and 2 years old respectively. We will be relocating to the area in the next few weeks. I have met a lot of great co-workers and customers already and look forward to meeting many more in the coming week and months.
What’s happenin’ . . .???
Dillon and Annie Docherty counted the caps in Dick’s office. He has 59 caps.
Adam, Jim, Eric, and Roger upgraded the leg in the east elevator at Bement with a new belt and new buckets.
Angela and Roy served on jury duty during March. Vanessa had jury duty in May.
The Monticello crew has installed a new conveyor and new spouting, and cleaned the filters on the dust collector.
Zach Warnick attended Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama in April.
Derrick’s pastor and youth minister toured the Monticello elevator, in April. The tour included a ride to the top of the elevator. Next Sunday’s sermon was “The View from the Top.”
Pierson has a new Kubota mower.
Dick took the Topflight girls to Von Maur for Secretary’s Day, where they met with Nancy Bieker, about customer service. Lunch was enjoyed by all at Red Lobster.
Morgan Park Academy visited Topflight Grain, as the last of their visits to Bement in May. Richard Ayers and the Farm Bureau organize the tour for the fifth graders from the Chicago suburb. The students learn about agriculture and the sites of Bement.
Eric, Dick, and Doug have been meeting with the Champaign Zoning Board, to gain approval of the outside storage bunker at Seymour.
Rob rebuilt the bean pit at Monticello.
Jim, Roger & Willard installed a new floor in the dryer in Bement.
The fire siren for the Cisco Fire Department is installed on the top of the Cisco elevator. It is activated by a remote signal from the new fire station.
Doug, Brock, and Derrick attempted to dress a calf in these boxer shorts during the Rodeo in Monticello.
You can buy soy diesel at the self serve pumps at our Shackelford location.
Eric served as tour guide at the Bement elevator for friends of Joanne Body’s who were visiting from Denmark.
ADOPTED CLASS
We finished up the school year, with our adopted class, with a field trip to Monticello, and a play day.
The field trip included a tour of Monticello Ambulance, Shorin Ryu Martial Arts Academy, the Courthouse, lunch at McDonalds, playtime at Nick’s Park, and a tour of B&A Screenprinting. Monticello Ambulance showed a video to demonstrate how to call for help during an emergency, guided the group through the ambulance, and displayed some of the equipment used to treat emergencies. Jerry Sample, owner of Shorin Ryu Martial Arts Academy explained a little about the history of martial arts, and set up an “obstacle course” for the students to participate in. At the courthouse, tour guide Jason Shumard led the group into a court room, and explained where some of the courtroom participants sit.
Judge Shonkwiller entered the courtroom and visited with the students, explaining parts of the judicial system to them. Lunch at McDonalds and playtime at Nick’s park is always fun. Al Arney greeted the young guests at B&A Screenprinting, presenting birthday flowers to Mrs. Strack, his daughter, who is one of the second grade teachers. Al showed the graphics room and the composition room to the students, then led them into the production room. At the end of the “clothes dryer”, each student picked up a T-shirt that was printed with the Field Trip’s events. It was a fun day, an exciting day, filled with new experiences and knowledge from some very good people and businesses in Monticello.
The last event with the 2nd grade class was the annual Play Day. This is usually held on the last day of school, when the students bring their sack lunch, and we join them in their class room with our sack lunches. Following lunch, each student is handed a quiz and an ink pen. The quiz covers the activities of the year, that Topflight Grain and the class have spent together. It’s a group quiz, that we all answer together, just for fun. Following the quiz, everyone met in Coles Pasture for a Tug-of-War, potato sack races, wheelbarrow races, and three legged races. With lots of hugs and “hi-fives”, we said good-bye to the class as school dismissed for the summer.
It has been another fun filled year with our adopted class, as we have met the students, taught them a little about agriculture, developed some good friendships, and gained some new experiences with them. We look forward to another exciting year with Mrs. Hammond’s and Mrs. Strack’s classes.
MAKING YOUR LIFE EASIER, AND MORE FUN . . . .
The Topflight crew and float appeared in many of the local celebrations this summer. The float displayed a reconstruction of the Bement facility, with an added ground pile, and a moving Norfolk-Southern train. Usually, employees walked along the route, or rode on the float, distributing candy to the townspeople who had gathered to watch the parade. We meet many good people during these events, and enjoy the opportunity to be a part of their celebrations.
PEDAL HARD!!
4th of July is always fun at the Pedal Tractor Pull in Bement. Topflight Grain and the Piatt County Farm Bureau Young Farmers sponsor the Pull, for all youth who meet the weight requirements. The contestants are divided into three classes, depending on their weight, then line up to take their turn at pulling the weighted sled. It’s a pull that takes a lot of strength as the weights shift to add more weight to the sled as it progresses down the road.
The top three in each class, who pedal the furthest, advanced on to the state pedal pull, which was held at the Illinois State Fair. Each contestant was awarded a sack of M&M candies, in the blue and yellow colors of Topflight Grain.
Kendra Wright and Sarah Hendrix attended Farmland’s Youth Leadership Conference in June, at Liberty Missouri. Topflight Grain sponsored the girls’ attendance at the conference. The four-day event gives the participants an opportunity to become members of a marketing coop, make some of the business decisions, and share in the profits of the coop. They learn leadership skills through events and training sessions; they also participate in events that teach team building and trust. The conference is not all “studies” as a talent show, and usually a trip to the local amusement park, are some of the “fun” events of the program.
The conference is open to all juniors and seniors in high school. Topflight Grain will sponsor up to four youths to the event. Manager Thomas usually drives the group to Liberty; Russel and Debbie Wright usually bring them home. The return trip home is always interesting, as they discuss the events, the friends, and the good times of the conference.
READERS ARE WONDERING . . . .
When was the Tipperary elevator torn down?
If you have the answer, or any storied to tell of the Tipperary elevator, please share the information with your local Topflight manger. We’ll print it in the next issue of the High Flyer.
HOW DID HE DO
THAT?
“How did he do that?” was the frequent question, following the annual meeting program. Mentalist Keith Matheny asked Jim Fendley to help him secure the tape and blindfolds over his eyes, so that he could not see. Jim reassured the stockholders that the tape was in place over Keith’s eyes and that the blindfold would completely block any sight. Keith was then able to describe a picture taken from one of our stockholder’s wallets, describe the numbers and denomination of money taken from another’s wallet, and read the word “possum” that Jim Smith had written on a easel board. How did he do that?
Margie Menacher assisted Keith as he used a deck of playing cards to predict the key number that would unlock the padlock that was secured to Manager Thomas’s suit jacket. They tested the padlock keys, shook them up in a bag, and passed them out to members of the audience who called out a number that would unlock the padlock. The number of the correct key was also the number on the playing card held in Manager Thomas’s jacket pocket. How did he do that?
Betty Whalen assisted Keith as he chose four members from the audience who planned a dream vacation. Keith reached into his wallet, unzipped a pocket, unsealed an envelope, and asked Betty to read the paper enclosed in the envelope. The paper set the time as earlier in the week, when Keith was traveling. Betty read the dream vacation, just as the four members had planned it. Now, how did he do that?
790 stockholders attended the annual meeting that was held at the Decatur Civic Center on Friday, August 9. The buffet dinner was served from 5:30 to 6:30 by Hump’s Cut Catering. The Monticello FFA served tea and water, and assisted in cleaning the tables.
As the meal was finished, annual meeting chairman Kenny Ruff welcomed the guests and introduced Pastor Steve Bramlett who gave the invocation. President of the Board Richard Larimore then called the business meeting to order. Secretary Allen Reeder read the minutes of last year’s meeting. Chuck Bentley presented the financial statement. Manager Richard Thomas introduced Kendra Wright and Sarah Hendrix who attended Farmland’s Youth Leadership Conference. The girls described their adventures in setting up a marketing cooperative, attending meetings, and the talent show contest. They thanked the board and stockholders for sponsoring them to the conference, as they concluded their speech.
As Manager Thomas continued his speech, he introduced the employees who were in attendance. Special recognition was given to Russel Wright, John McCabe and Jim Shaffer, who have worked for Topflight Grain (and their previous company) for 30 years. Each man was given a plaque to honor their achievement, and a monetary award. Gary Hunter was also honored for his 25 years of employment, with a monetary award.
Manager Thomas also introduced special guests, and presented his annual report to the stockholders.
President Larimore then called Sid James, as chairman of the nominating committee, to present the slate of nominees for the 2002-03 fiscal year. The re-elected board members of Kyle Johnson, Tim Morton, Allen Reeder, and Duane Robson will serve with the current members of JW Day, Cary Hinton, Richard Larimore, Tim Menacher, Ron Meece, George Riley, Kenny Ruff, Bill Schable, and Louie Stoerger.
The business meeting was adjourned, with no further business, and Kenny Ruff introduced Keith Matheny, as the evening’s program. How did he do that???
We would especially like to thank Ray Ahlrich, our photographer for the annual meeting. You will see his work throughout the newsletter, and on the website.
ANNUAL MEETING SPEECH 2002
By Manager Richard Thomas
I just wanted to take a little time to explain to you what we were able to accomplish this past fiscal year. Each year we have a board retreat where the board and management get together and discuss future plans for the company. This past year we met at Jumers in Bloomington on July 20th and 21st. Here are some of the topics that we discussed.
1. Financial position
2. Company Decisions
3. Company Direction
4. Facility Decisions
5. Questions for the future
6. Company programs
7. Customer service
8. Employee relations
9. Safety programs and equipment
So out of this meeting the board directed the management team to accomplish the following things in this fiscal year.
1. They wanted us to make money
a. At least a 10% return on fixed assets
2. They wanted to continue our policy of buying back stock
3. They wanted to build more storage and improve our existing facilities.
4. They wanted to continue to pay patronage
a. At least 50/50 cash and stock
b. And pay as little taxes as possible
5. They wanted to build working capital
6. They wanted to hire and keep the best employees possible
7. They wanted to improve our safety program AND
8. They wanted us to stay involved in the community
So here is the report card on how we fared.
1. We made 1.3 million dollars
a. That is a 12% return on fixed assets
b. And an 11% return on patron equity
2. We bought back $308,000 of stock last fiscal year
a. Estates amounted to $77,000
b. Retired stockholders with NO farming interests $60,000
c. All of the 1981 and 1982 stock which totaled $171,000
3. We spent 1.6 million dollars of new storage and improvements
a. At Laplace $915,000 office, storage, and equipment
b. At Seymour $262,000 temporary storage
c. Larger receiving leg at Bement east elevator $75,000
d. Conveyor and leg at Monticello $75,000
e. A house at Cisco $44,000
f. Electrical panel at Seymour $24,000
4. We paid out $736,000 in patronage
a. $368,000 in cash
b. $368,000 in stock
5. Our working capital went from 2.2 million last year to 2.3 this year
6. We are very proud of our personnel
a. We only have 38 full time employees to run 17 facilities
b. These 38 employees have a combined years of service of 440 years
c. Making the average years of service 11.5
7. We now have a safety director as part of the management team
a. We spent over $10,000 on safety equipment this last year
b. And initiated many safety procedures
8. We continue to be involved within the communities we serve
a. Our float has been in 7 parades this year
b. We continue to publish 4 newsletters a year
c. We had over 150 golfers at our outing in July
d. We had over 175 in attendance at our women’s program
e. This was our 10th year of adopting the 2nd grade class
f. And we expect to have over 750 in attendance at this annual meeting
We were able to
do all of this without having any off balance sheet investments, or
capitalizing pencils. We had no stock
options, no penthouses for the manager, no consulting firms, no bank account in
the Caribbean, no insider loans, didn’t have to use the employee’s retirement
fund, and we only pay our board members $75 per meeting. It’s because we did it the old fashion
way. We earned it.
Looking ahead there is no time in business to rest on your laurels. You just get through with one year and you’re already into the next. I look for this next year to be very challenging. This company is built for volume. We need to handle at least 25 million bushels of grain a year to meet expenses and make a profit. If we would lose 15% off our volume and service income it would affect our bottom line by a million dollars.
Then I’m sure most of you are aware of the Tywalk elevator bankruptcy that depleted our grain insurance fund and left us with a 4 million dollar deficit. That money will have to be paid back to the state plus more money to build the fund back to whatever amount the legislators think is needed. If we don’t get farmer participation in this fund it will end up costing your company several thousand dollars that we didn’t have to pay before. Add to that the increases we are seeing in insurance of 64% and it makes the future very interesting.
The management team of Topflight Grain will continue to run your cooperative with trust and integrity, which I think, is important. And then maybe we’ll even make a little money.
TO HONOR OUR EMPLOYEES
As
presented by Manager Richard Thomas at the 2002 annual meeting
When we merged all these elevators together, one of the biggest challenges was to bring the employees together. We all had different health insurance plans, retirement plans, and different employee policies. You know that when you go messing with someone’s 401K plan, or vacation time, it can get pretty serious. The spouses even get in on those discussions. I’m proud to say we were able to work all the differences out to everyone’s satisfaction.
And because our employees are the most important assets we have, I want to honor four of them tonight. The first three have worked for one of the merged cooperatives and Topflight Grain for 30 years.
1. John McCabe. John worked for the Cisco Cooperative 26 years and then became part of the Topflight Team four years ago. The reason John is so valuable to us is that he can operate all the elevators in Cisco as well as the one at Emery. One of my first encounters with John was riding the Santa train from Cisco to Argenta in December of 1999. Everyone knew John! On our way back to Cisco, I said to John, “Everyone knows you, John, especially the women!” He got this smirk on his face, like only John can, and he gave me this lame excuse about having run the elevator in Argenta at one time and sometimes he went there for lunch. So that was why everyone knew him. Yea, John! I think Dean Carroll summed it up best when he told me from the start, that John McCabe had done a lot of hard dirty work for Cisco Grain, and I can honestly say he continues to do the same for Topflight Grain today.
2. Jim Shaffer. Jimmie, as those who work with him, call him, is quite a conversationalist. Jim came to work for us through the Monticello merger. If you want to know anything about a customer or one of the elevators in the Monticello area, just ask Jimmie, and he can tell you all about it. The only problem is, make sure you have enough time for the answer. When I think of Jim Shaffer, I think of this long whiskered person behind the wheel of an old maintenance truck with so much stuff on the dashboard you could hardly see him and you wondered if he could see you coming down the road. I never asked his wife this, but I always wondered if he ever threw anything away. Well, we’ve moved Jim out of the maintenance truck and put him on a golf cart. He ran the Lodge facility for us last year during harvest and we furnished him a golf cart to get back and forth from the office to the elevator.
3. Russel Wright. I hired Russ in August of 1972, soon after he cam back from the Vietnam war. He started by running the Voorhies elevator and soon advanced to be our semi driver. Russ drove for over 25 years without any accidents. He won several awards for his safe driving record. A highlight of Russ’s semi driving career came when he got his picture taken with President Reagan back in August of 1984, when the President visited ADM. Russ has moved on up in our organization to become the branch manager and originator at our Pierson facility.
We are presenting John and Jim a plaque with the inscription “In grateful recognition and appreciation for 30 years of dedication and hard work as a member of the operation and maintenance team.” And to Russell, it says “transportation specialist and grain originator.” Plus a monetary award.
I also want to honor Gary Hunter who worked 21 years for Cisco Grain and 4 years for Topflight, making him a 25 year employee. Gary is famous for getting more corn put through the west elevator in Cisco than anyone else. During harvest, he works up to his waist in corn. As you can tell by looking at Gary, that’s not a lot of corn, but he can get a farmer unloaded in a hurry. When I first saw Gary in his Saturday night partying clothes, with that big cowboy hat on, he reminded me of Little Jimmie Dickens. He tells me that women really like the look.
Gary has been off sick for a few months, but is coming back to work full time, just in time for harvest. We’ll be glad to have him back.
ANNUAL MEETING VOTE
As the teller’s committee counted votes for the annual meeting, a lot of votes were missing. 60.14% of our stockholders did not return their ballots and proxies for the election of directors and the company’s yearly business. To the 39.86% who voted their ballots, signed their proxies, and returned them in the postage paid envelope:
Congratulations! You are great! You own stock in a company that buys your grain, stores it, dries it, provides you records, updates your facilities, has good employees and management, has made you money, paid you a dividend, bought back your old stock, all because it is a coop and you voted your stock to let them know that you cared about your company, so all these things can continue to happen. Please remember, it only works because of you. Thank you!!!
As we neared the end of the corn piles in the flat at Shackelfords, Jim collected estimates on the corn that was left to be cleaned up. Adam and Brandon were in the flat, running the skidsteer and tractor mount auger. Michael and Henry were driving the semis, hauling the grain to other destinations. The bets were placed on Friday, ranging from 28,600 to 48,871 bushels. They were moving over 20,000 a day, so they anticipated the flat would be completely empty by Monday evening. They worked all day Friday. They worked all day Monday. They worked all day Tuesday. They worked all day Wednesday. They worked most of the day on Thursday, before the last pile was hauled to town. The total bushels hauled out, from that Friday forward, was 102,639! The guys were elated to find the floor of that big, big building!! In a 2 million bushel flat storage, it is very difficult to take an accurate grain measurement!