OABA Announces Board of Directors’ Newly-Elected Members and Officers

The Ohio AgriBusiness Association has announced the election of three new members to its Board of Directors, and has named the board’s newly-elected officers. The board members and officers were selected during the association’s Industry Conference and annual meeting in February.

 The OABA Board of Directors consists of 15 individuals representing various segments of the agribusiness industry in Ohio. They contribute their time, experience and expertise for the good of the industry and the association. Board members are elected to three-year terms, and can serve up to two consecutive terms.

 Newly-elected board members include:

• Robert Mullen, Director of Agronomy, PotashCorp - Mullen, of Wooster, Ohio, has spent six years working in the agriculture industry. He has served as a member of OABA’s Crop Production Conference Committee since 2005, and is the current chair of the association’s Agronomic Education Committee. He represents the fertilizer industry on the board.

• John Ward, President, ABIS/J.H. Ward Agency - Ward, from Unionville Center, Ohio, fills an at-large seat on the board. He has spent 37 years in the agribusiness industry, and is a past OABA board member. He has served as the chair of OABA’s Educational Trust with more than 25 years on its Golf for Scholarships Committee and over 10 years on its Bowling for Scholarships Committee.

• Kristi Kress Wilhelmy, Attorney/Partner, Barrett, Easterday, Cunningham & Eselgroth LLP - Kress Wilhelmy, of Mt. Sterling, Ohio is filing at at-large position on the board. She is a graduate of OABA’s 2013 LAUNCH (Leaders Achieving Unexpected New Career Heights) leadership program and is an associate member of the Ohio Risk Coordinator Group.

“Once again, the members of the Ohio AgriBusiness Association have selected an outstanding new group of influential leaders to help guide the organization,” said OABA President and CEO Chris Henney. “We’ll rely on their insight and experience in addition to that of our existing board members to help build upon our achievements and success for Ohio’s agribusiness industry.”

Newly-elected officers of the OABA Board of Directors include:

• Andy Swerlein, Chairman - Swerlein is the CEO of Luckey Farmers, Inc. He graduated from The Ohio State University in 1991 with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics. His previous professional experience includes working as a grain originator for Countrymark from 1991-1993; and grain originator, branch manager and division manager for Blanchard Valley Farmers from 1993-2008. He also served on the Southeast Grain & Feed Association board and has is Series 3 Commodity License. Swerlein, his wife Tracy and their three children reside in Perrysburg, Ohio.

• Nathan Louiso, Vice Chairman - Louiso is a regional sales manager for AgriGold, where he has served Ohio, southeast Michigan and Pennsylvania for the past 10 years. He spent four years prior to his current position as an AgriGold district sales manager in central Ohio. He graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and has also served as a chairman and member of OABA’s Seed Committee. Louiso is also actively involved with his wife and father in his family’s business, Louiso Trucking, in southwest Ohio.

• Mark Sunderman, Immediate Past Chairman - Sunderman is CEO of Legacy Farmers’ Cooperative in Findlay, Ohio. He graduated from Grove City College in Grove City, Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in business management. He previously worked for U.S./The Farmer’s Commission Co. from 1995-2005, and was CEO of Deshler Farmers Elevator Co. from 2006-2014. Sunderman has also served on the Land O’Lakes Executive Council, the board of directors for the Agri-Insurance Exchange and the Nutrient Stewardship Council.

The full list of the 2016 OABA Board of Directors includes:

• Jean Bratton - Town & Country Co-op Inc.
• Larry Craft - Schlessman Seed Company
• Tim Hockman - Farmers Elevator Grain and Supply Association
• Brad Johnson - Kalmbach Feeds
• Nathan Louiso - AgriGold
• Robert Mullen - PotashCorp
• John Oesch - Crop Production Services
• Jackie Seibert - United Equity, Inc.
• Mark Sunderman - Legacy Farmers Cooperative
• Andy Swerlein - Luckey Farmers, Inc.
• Scott Thibaut - Consolidated Grain and Barge Co.
• John Ward - ABIS/J.H. Ward Agency
• Kristi Kress Wilhelmy - Barrett, Easterday, Cunningham & Eselgroth LLP
• Chris Williams - Rosen’s Inc.