The American Farm Bureau Federation recently hosted a national competition to recognize top professionals from state Farm Bureau organizations for their exceptional work in communications. New York, Illinois and Utah Farm Bureaus received the most awards overall, earning honors in several categories including writing, media relations, social media and video production.
This year’s contest included 177 submissions for work produced in 2022 by state Farm Bureaus across the country.
“Highlighting the important work farmers and ranchers do each day is critical to the mission of Farm Bureau,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “State Farm Bureau communicators are the best in their field, amplifying the trusted voices of our grassroots members to become a powerful voice for agriculture across the country.”
Awards were presented to Farm Bureau communicators in Alabama, California, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.
A list of award winners follows. This year’s honorees are being recognized for excellence in several new digital categories as well as the inaugural Anne Marie Moss Team Effort Award. The Moss Award recognizes outstanding collaboration on an issue that is a priority for AFBF; sustainability is the issue for this year’s contest. Each award is divided into three groups based on membership size, with larger state membership winners listed first. Only two awards are listed in categories where there were entries in only two of the divisions.
Anne Marie Moss Team Effort Award
New York, for “Focusing on the Future,” a multi-faceted initiative that shares the innovative sustainability work farmers are doing – Seth Moser-Katz, Steve Ammerman, Brooks Brown, Tim Bigham, Renee Ciardi, Lauren Williams, Ashley Oeser, Kyle Wallach, Renee St. Jacques, Mark James, Todd Heyn, Lauren McGrath
Wisconsin, for “35 Under 35,” a program that recognizes members for leadership in environmental, social and economic activities – Rachel Gerbitz, Amy Eckelberg, Cassie Sonnentag, Lynn Siekmann, Wendy Volkert, Bob Nash
Alabama, for “Down to Earth: Agriculture Sustains Alabama,” a campaign that shares the sustainable- and conservation-minded practices of farmers and forest landowners –
Jeff Helms, Mary Wilson, Marlee Jackson, Laura Unger, Matt Wilson, Kevin Worthington, Maggie Edwards, Mike Moody, Chris Thomas, Melissa Martin, Sara Beth Beals, Brooke Foster, Brooke McBrayer
Best Agriculture Story
New York – Brooks Brown
Kansas – Greg Doering
Alabama – Marlee Jackson
Best Single Blog Item, Editorial or Column
New York – Steve Ammerman, David Fisher
Utah – Matt Hargreaves
Michigan – Mitch Galloway
Best Newspaper or E-Newsletter – published at least quarterly
New York – Steve Ammerman, Brooks Brown
California – Christine Souza, Ching Lee, Caleb Hampton, Peter Hecht, Nicole Pacheco, Paula Erath
Illinois – Deana Stroisch, Timothy Eggert, Daniel Grant, Kay Shipman, Allison Preston, Tammie Sloup, Catrina Rawson, Nicole Dowling, Jenny Gentes
Best Magazine – published at least quarterly
Montana – Rebecca Colnar, Bobbi Burow
California – Christine Souza, Ching Lee, Barbara Arciero, Linda Dubois, Paula Erath, Peter Hecht, Nicole Pacheco
Illinois – Chris Magnuson, Mike Orso, Nan Fannin, Jeff Brown, Tammie Sloup
Best Member/Leader Newsletter – print or e-newsletter
Kansas – Sheridan Wimmer
Illinois – Brenda Matherly, Ryan Tate, Ryan Whitehouse, Jenny Eisenbeis, Melissa Rhode, Nicole Dowling, Jeff Brown, Katie Zelechowski
Best Graphic Design
New York – Brooks Brown
Missouri – Rebecca Hoelscher
Illinois – Melissa Rhode, Tifani Shea, Katie Zelechowski, DeAnne Bloomberg
Best Audio News Story, Feature Story or Commentary/Editorial
New York – Steve Ammerman, Seth Moser-Katz
Kansas – Shelby Varner
Texas – Tom Nicolette
Best Video News Story
New York – Seth Moser-Katz, Steve Ammerman
California – Aubrey Aquino, Jeff Bell
Texas – Pedro Rosas, Ed Wolff, Julie Tomascik
Best Video Feature Story
New York – Seth Moser-Katz, Steve Ammerman
South Carolina – Carey Herndon
Kentucky – Matthew Hilton, Michael Corrigan
Best Promotional or Education Video or Ad
New York – Seth Moser-Katz
Utah – Matt Hargreaves, Wade Garrett, Faith Jolley, Phil Tuttle
Mississippi – Jon Kalahar, Alex Lowery, Karen Miller, Sam Boone
Best Unique Tactic or Execution
Wisconsin – Cassie Sonnentag, Lynn Siekmann, Bob Leege
Iowa – Caitlyn Lamm, Zach Bader, Aaron Siskow, Andrew Wheeler, Sara Payne
Best Website
California – Christina Apkarian
Illinois – Gracie Pierson
Best Social Media Video
New York – Seth Moser-Katz, Steve Ammerman
Oklahoma – Dustin Mielke, Rebekah Nash
North Carolina – Kathy Bostrom, Lynda Loveland, Mark Stebnicki, Jamie Thomas
Best Social Media Campaign
Kansas – Sheridan Wimmer, Meagan Cramer, Sandi Cowdin, Greg Doering, Jennifer Alonso, Shelby Varner
Iowa – Dana Ardary, Zach Bader, Bo Geigley, Sara Payne
Best Social Media Presence
Montana – Rebecca Colnar, Dylan Davidson
Wisconsin – Cassie Sonnentag, Amy Eckelberg, Lynn Siekmann, Rachel Gerbitz
Illinois – Sabrina Burkiewicz, Katie Zelechowski, DeAnne Bloomberg
Best Media Relations Event
Utah – Matt Hargreaves, Aubree Thomas, Clayton Beckstead, Susan Furner, Heidi LeBlanc, Jennie Taylor
Mississippi – Jon Kalahar, Alex Lowery, Karen Miller, Sam Boone
Best Public Relations Campaign
New York – Steve Ammerman, Tonya Van Slyke, Chyresse Wells
Utah – Matt Hargreaves, Aubree Thomas
Mississippi – Jon Kalahar, Alex Lowery, Karen Miller, Sam Boone
Dave Lane Award for Media Relations Excellence
Utah – Matt Hargreaves
Illinois – DeAnne Bloomberg, Sierra Henry, Andrea Casali
