Veteran Farmer Award of Excellence Spotlight

Please join us to hear from the recipient of American Farm Bureau’s 2024 Veteran Farmer Award of Excellence and Farm Credit as we celebrate veteran farmers and the critical role they play in agriculture and our communities.

Speaker:

Col. Joe Ricker

Col. Joe Ricker served 24 years in the Army, retiring from the Pentagon as Senior Deputy to the 2-star general over Logistics, responsible for $2.5 billion in hard assets. Joe's ribbons and badges nearly throw his back out of alignment after tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Before retiring in 2022, Joe purchased a 10-acre central Indiana farm to take on his next mission to bolster America's food security. Joe hit the ground running, remodeling the house & barns before his wife and kids moved in. Honing his business plan, he laid out an orchard and completed a 2-year bee school. While waiting for his trees to produce, Joe took a Purdue University position as National Veteran Outreach Coordinator for the AgrAbility Project. He founded Veterans IN Farming (IN=Indiana) which is up to 1,143 members, drawing attendance of 458 to three statewide overnight training conferences. Joe also affiliated with Heroes to Hives, a 100,000 strong worldwide bee school for veterans recognized by USDA.