EYES ON ASSOCIATES

By WPVGA Associate Div. President Chris Brooks, Central Door Solutions

Spring greetings, everyone. We have been spoiled with some great late March and early April weather. As I write this in mid-April, the grass has turned green, the trees are leaving out and most importantly planting is underway in Wisconsin.

It has been five years since we started this column in the Badger Common’Tater during my last term as Associate Division president. Over the last several years, it has been a great place to create awareness about the work and activities of businesses supporting agriculture. We will continue to drive forward with goals, push through the obstacles and discuss projects we have along with some new and exciting opportunities for 2021. I am proud and humbled to continue to serve the agricultural industry and Wisconsin Potato & Vegetable Growers Association (WPVGA). I want to commend our outgoing President Kenton Mehlberg on his work and involvement in what was one of the most trying presidential terms maybe ever for the Associate Division. Kenton left the Board in a good position and created some great opportunities for us moving forward. Over the last year, many of us in the ag industry and business in general have had a lot of obstacles and changes to our work environments. A constant message I hear is the adaptation to the current workplaces has made businesses more efficient and forced them to be further accepting of technology. Once we break through the walls of our comfort zone, we tend to be surprised how a few days or weeks of struggles can help us exponentially

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moving forward. Humans are creatures of habit and it is sometimes difficult to keep from just going through the daily motions.

For business owners, managers, sales staff and even the new guys sweeping the floor, one of the greatest qualities we can find in ourselves is the ability to get up and kick our own butts every day to find the success we crave.

Many of you have found success in times when some would like to believe everyone is struggling. I commend you and challenge you to hold that edge and keep our industry strong and moving. As we approach summer, the always popular Association Division-hosted Putt-Tato Open starts coming to mind. This year, the golf outing will be at Lake Arrowhead Golf Course in Nekoosa. Save the date for July 13 and start assembling your foursomes now. Information will be in the weekly Tater Talk emails and on the WPVGA website. As part of this event, we will be asking for sponsorship help. It is the single biggest networking opportunity and fundraiser of the summer with all our industry partners. Money raised in this event is directly put back into programs, from political to marketing to goodwill. I will also mention it’s a great time! I want to close this month’s column by bringing a new project to light. One of the biggest struggles we are all incurring is labor. Whether you are a grower or a company supporting farmers, we need handson tradesmen.

The need for fabricators, welders, machinists, electricians, HVAC (heating, air conditioning and cooling), mechanics and, yes, even doors guys, is immense. There is a potential light at the end of the tunnel. You will soon be hearing about an industry-wide endeavor called “Project Workforce.” This will be a push for all of us in the ag industry to invest in ourselves and our future labor.

Mid-State Technical College has a new project called the Advance Manufacturing, Engineering, Technology and Apprenticeship Center. This center will be designed to train a workforce that will be essential to the ag and trade industries. Funding this project will not be easy. Both the Associate Division Board and the WPVGA Board Have pledged $25,000 each with hopes of receiving matching funds from growers and Associate Division members.

We will be looking to come together to help support this project. It is something that, in coming months, you will hear a lot about and something I would suggest educating yourself on how it might help your business in the future.

Until next month, always remember, when you’re green, you’re growing, when you’re ripe, you’re rotten. Keep growing!

WPVGA Associate Division President