Matt Beasley, Georgia, was appointed Municipal Representative by Governor Sonny Perdue of Georgia. Matt is the Mayor of Hartwell. He began his career as a teacher and served as a member of the Hartwell City Council. Beasley is a member and past chairman of the Georgia Mountains Regional Development Center and a member of Emmanuel College's Area Advisory Board. He also serves on the Georgia Municipal Association as an officer of the 2nd District and a member of the Legislative Policy Board. Matt and his
wife April have one child. Matt became a member of the Alpha Eta Chapter in 1989.

Sidney Bledsoe Jr., Georgia, has been very busy in the past few years helping to get the Farmer's Oilseed Cooperative, Inc. up and running in Georgia. The "New Generation" cooperative is actively selling stock with voting rights to farmers and class b stock to non-farmers. The purpose of starting the cooperative is to add value to the members' crops of oilseeds by crushing, refining, packaging, and marketing the product all through the cooperative. The mission statement is as follows: "The mission of Farmers Oilseed cooperative, Inc. is to maximize member profits by adding value to their oilseeds through
effective and efficient processing, innovative product development, and imaginative marketing." The new plant for the cooperative will be located in Claxton, Georgia.

Bledsoe and his son, Bryant, also of the Alpha Eta Chapter, farm in Houston County near Perry. They are both active alumni of Alpha Gamma Rho at the University of Georgia. Sidney became a member of the Alpha Eta Chapter in 1966.

Mark Dempsey, Western Illinois, placed first in the 2004 National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) Competition for the state of Illinois, and second in the nation for the Class AA Non-Irrigated Till Division. Dempsey raised 320.2718 bushels per acre. There were more than 3,380 entrants in the 2004 contest. Dempsey has been participating in the annual contest since 1996. Dempsey became a member of the Alpha Tau Chapter in 1987. The Dempsey farming operation includes 400 acres of corn, 300 acres of beans and 300 acres of hay. The Dempseys live near Fowler, Illinois.

Lyle Eastman, Oklahoma State, received the Silver Beaver Award form the Cimarron Council. This award is the highest honor given to adults in Scouts. Eastman has served as Cimarron Council Troop 820, chartered by the First Presbyterian Church in Stillwater, as Scoutmaster for more than seven years.

Lyle is the Construction Supervisor for CAMCO Home Improvement Inc. He became a member of the Pi Chapter in 1974. He and his wife, Leah, have been married for 26 years and have two children.

Kailan Elder, Washington State, has been appointed the Import/Export Sales Manager for C.M. Holtzinger Fruit Co. Elder began his career as a field representative for Yakima Fruit and Cold Storage, responsible for direction of harvesting, implementation of horticultural practices and coordinating communication between growers, warehouse and sales desk. Kailan then worked in Export Sales for Orion Pacific Traders, one of the largest exporters of fresh fruits to Southeast Asia. Kailan became a member of the Sigma Chapter in 1995.

Anthony Haynes, Tennessee-Martin, began the position of director of state relations for the University of Tennessee on April 1. Anthony has been serving as the executive director of the Tennessee Emergency Communications Board. He also served as the director for governmental affairs for the United State Department of Agriculture. Anthony became a member of the Alpha Upsilon Chapter in 1986.

Charlie Main, West Virginia, has developed a forecasting system for the development of Asiatic soybean rust in North Carolina. As the disease has spread in to the nation many scientists at many universities have closely watched it. Charlie is an emeritus professor of plant pathology at NC State and an export on the movement of fungal diseases spread by wind-blown spores. The forecasts will aid growers in deciding if and when to spray fungicides.

Main became a member of the Alpha Alpha Chapter in 1957 while attending West Virginia University where he received a B.S. and a Masters degree. He continued with his graduate program, earning a Ph.D. and completing a post-doctorate at the University of Wisconsin. He has served on the faculty of North Carolina State University since 1964, retiring in 1999 after 32 years of service. Charlie served as Faculty Adviser to Nu Chapter from 1976-1983, was an ex officio officer of the alumni Nu Club and participated on the committee charged with planning and construction of the new 60-man fraternity house for Nu Chapter completed in 2002. He remains a close friend and counselor to the undergraduate men and housemother of Nu Chapter, with frequent visits and assistance in various house improvement projects.

Mason Mungle, Oklahoma State, is the director of government relations for the Oklahoma Farmers Union and represents all members concerning agriculture and rural issues at the state capitol. Previously he was farm and rural public relations manager for the OFU. Mason became a member of the Pi Chapter in 1967.

Gary Nelson, California State - Fresno, has been given the State Teacher of Excellence in Agriculture Award. The award was chosen by Gary's peers, which he received at the California Agricultural Teachers Association Conference, held recently in San Luis Obispo.

Nelson is a high school agriculture instructor for Central Unified School District, which is located in the San Joaquin Valley in Fresno, California. He is a 1976 graduate with honors in Agriculture Education from California State University, Fresno. He has severed on his A.G.R. Alumni Board for 29 years. His past accomplishments include Outstanding Young Active A.G.R. in the Nation 1972, Outstanding Single Man Agriculture Department in the State 1998, Fresno County teacher of the Year, Central Unified Teacher of the Year, State Nurseryman Educator of the Year, California Continuation Educator of the Year for District V, National Honorary FFA American Degree recipient, Who's Who Among America's Teachers honoree, Kingsburg City Council's choice as its outstanding educator, and he was honored by the City of Fresno, California 2002 as "Gary Nelson Day." Gary became a member of the Alpha Sigma Chapter in 1975.

Robert Oehrtman, Ohio State, has received the CASNR Exemplary Faculty Award from the Agriculture Alumni Association at Oklahoma State University. Oehrtman became a member of the Beta chapter in 1958, and graduated from Ohio State University in 1961. He is a Full Professor, Emeritus at OSU, but is still serving one quarter time on the Faculty. He has also served as Pi Chapter Adviser since 1979.

John Pitto, California State-Chico, is the president and ranch manager of Pitto Ranches, Inc. He runs a progressive livestock operation consisting of a 1,200 head cow/calf operation, 7,000 - 10,000 feeder lambs, livestock and hay hauling services, livestock brokers, and management to livestock and ranches for customers.

John is a member of the board of trustees for Reclamation 2068 Irrigation District, board of directors of the Dixon Regional Watershed Joint Powers Authority, and president of Napa/Solano County Cattlemen's Association. John became a member of the Beta Kappa Chapter in 1993.

Jack Robertson, Western Illinois, owner and president of Robertson Lawn Care, received the Lawn and Landscape Leadership Award, also known as the lawn and landscape industry's leadership hall of fame. The award was announced on behalf of Lawn & Landscape magazine and Bayer Environmental Science, six were bestowed the honor. The award spotlights individuals and organizations whose business management practices have contributed positively to the growth of the lawn care and landscape industry, while respecting and caring for the environment. Jack became a member of the Alpha Tau Chapter in 1975.

David Roseleip, Montana State, was honored with the prestigious Outstanding Leader Award at the annual meeting of directors of the Association of International Agricultural Leaders, held in Oklahoma City. He was chosen from a list of 36 directors of programs in the U.S., Canada and Australia. The award is based on outstanding performance in creativity, leadership skills, vision, program quality and integrity.

Roseleip is president of the Washington Agricultural and Forestry Education Foundation, in Spokane, Washington. In addition to his role in improving leadership skills, Roseleip has been a major force in economic development in the northwest. His contribution to numerous civic and business organizations was cited in the presentation. He has served as Chairman of the Pacific Northwest Farm Forum and on the board of the Farming and Environment committee to benefit the state. As a director on the board of Leadership Spokane, he advanced the development of the knowledge base and personal skills of promising leaders. David became a member of the Alpha Delta Chapter in 1969.

Fellow alumnus Bill Pope, Michigan State, executive secretary of the association, presented the award.

Brian Vowell, Oklahoma State, is now vice president of commercial lending with Gold Bank in El Reno, Oklahoma. Brian became a member of the Pi Chapter in 1994, and graduated from OSU in 1998.

Ralph Welsh, Jr., Maryland, has retired form NASA Goddard Space Flight center as an Aero-Space Engineer after 42 years of service. Ralph's work included developing state-of- the-art space instruments used for weather and climate research. Ralph became a member of the Alpha Theta Chapter in 1960.

Joe Williams, New Mexico, has received the CASNR Exemplary Faculty Award from the Agriculture Alumni Association at Oklahoma State University. Joe was initiated in his senior year at New Mexico State University where he received both his B.S. and M.S. Degree's in agriculture economics. He then spent two years in the army. He returned to New Mexico to work as a lender for his hometown bank and then accepted a research position at NMSU. Brother Williams earned his PhD at Iowa State University and began teaching at Oklahoma State in 1975. He has advised two Truman Scholars from OSU's College of Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources and was awarded the first Academic Mentor Award in honor of his dedication to his students.

Williams has been an invaluable asset to Pi Chapter. Along with being active with the local Stillwater Alumni he served the Chapter as financial advisor for 13 years and was awarded with a plaque for his years of service to Pi Chapter at Founders Day 2001. Joe became a member of the Alpha Lambda Chapter in 1964.

Frank Witt, Montana State, has been named manager, resident director, of the Billings Merrill Lynch office. He has been a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch for almost six years and in addition to office oversight he will continue to be a producing financial advisor providing comprehensive wealth management to high net worth clients, retirees, and business owners. Witt also recently attained the designation of wealth management advisor (WMA). The WMA recognizes Merrill Lynch financial advisors who have met rigorous guidelines in serving the financial needs of affluent clients. Frank became a member of the Alpha Delta Chapter in 1979.

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