Carolina Farm Credit recently sponsored three couples attending the Cooperative Education Conference at Pawleys Plantation Golf and Country Club in South Carolina. The three couples were: Luke and Meredith Knox from Cleveland; Luke and Kathy Beam from Lawndale; and Jeff and Mary Cornwell from Lawndale. Thirty-four couples from North and South Carolina and Georgia gathered to learn how cooperative businesses are organized and maintained, how they differ from other types of corporations and what economic and service benefits they offer to member-owners.
Luke and Meredith Knox were selected by the other North Carolina couples as Outstanding Couple for 2009. Dale and Melinda Davis were selected as alternate couple. Luke is a farmer on the Knox Hill Farm with the dairy replacement heifer operations. Meredith is a medical assistant. They are co-op members with Southern States, Energy United and Carolina Farm Credit. They are both active with the Holstein Club in Rowan and the West Rowan FFA alumni. The Knoxes are invited to attend the Cooperative Council’s annual meeting next year and serve as Host Couple for the 2010 Couples Conference.
The Cooperative Councils brought together a group of outstanding cooperative leaders from around the country to serve as session facilitators for this year’s conference: Craig Scroggs, USDA-Rural Development, Georgia; Dr.Tommie Shepherd, The University of Georgia, Athens; and Joy Upchurch, AgFirst Farm Credit Bank, Columbia, S.C.
The couples also met in small groups with cooperative leaders representing farm supply/marketing, electric, dairy and financial cooperatives to learn about the manner in which various types of cooperatives provide services to their members. Jamie Cantrell with Dairy Farmers of America led the dairy sessions; Rich Schneider with Southern States Cooperative led the farm supply/marketing sessions; Gale Cutler, Georgia EMC, led the electric sessions; and Christy Smith with AgSouth Farm Credit, Miriam Pflug with AgSouth Farm Credit, and Mary Dickson with ArborOne Financial led the financial sessions.
Others on the program included Dick Schermerhorn, executive secretary of Georgia Cooperative Council; Joe and Devon Deal, 2008 N.C. Host Couple from Franklin, N.C.; Flint and Beverly Holbrook, 2008 S.C. Host Couple from Columbia, S.C.; Shawn and Karen Lyons, 2008 S.C. Host Couple from Cottageville, S.C.; Dennis and Lynne Gay, 2008 Georgia Host Couple from Lincolnton, GA; and Marie Stiles, CMP, executive director of the South Carolina Cooperative Council.
