GCA President’s Report, By Rodney Hilley

Rodney Hilley

As of this writing, it is early August and many of you have had some rain by now. If not, I hope and pray that you do get some because the chances have increased greatly since late spring. If you have had some rain, you are probably just cutting and baling hay, which is a good thing because most of the state is behind compared to most years. At least the cattle market is pretty good; this helps all of us, with prospects to get even better because of the lack of calves and cows that will be available down the road. It’s always tough when we benefit from other parts of the country suffering from drought; but as they say, “It is what it is.”

The first Cattlemen’s Connection Quarterly meeting has been held in Bartow County, and it was a great event with a really good group of attendees! If you aren’t familiar with Gaines Cattle Company, you should check them out; it’s a really unique operation. They are located just outside of Cartersville, so it’s easy to get to. Hopefully, this event was of great value to everyone, and we will all learn from it and try to make each one better than the last one. If you have any suggestions, please let one of the members of the Board of Directors or your Region VP know about it, so that it may be considered for future events. The next Cattlemen’s Connection meeting will be held in Moultrie on Sept. 22, so watch for details about this event in the magazine or on Facebook. This event should be excellent also, so please attend if you can.

We had an Executive Committee meeting last month, and I am happy to report that everything with GCA is doing well! We have a great staff and a lot is happening. Most members don’t realize how much the staff has to deal with – from local issues to legislation in Atlanta and Washington – but I can assure you that every effort is being made to look out for this industry and the members in it. GCA has recently had input on issues with the Director of the Farm Service Agency in Washington as well as Georgia. If you see any of the GCA staff, please thank them for what they do and show them your support!

If you have any questions, concerns or ideas, please let me or one of the Board of Directors know. If you have neighbors or friends who aren’t GCA members, please explain the benefits of being a member and ask them to join!

Until next time, Rodney