24 minute read
his church shaped his values (pg
Combining faith and finance
Skills developed over 25 years in banking help Ken Hochstetler lead Everence
photo courtesy of Everence
Goshen, IND — Ken Hochstetler’s office at Everence’s corporate headquarters isn’t adorned with the trophies, diplomas and awards you might expect in the workspace of a man who heads a $3 billion company.
The only framed mementos that reflect his journey are a print he received after serving nine years on MEDA’s board, and a smaller certificate that dates back four-and-ahalf decades. His outstanding paper carrier award from the Goshen newspaper in the early 1970s, near the doorway of his office, is one recognition he recalls fondly.
“You never quite know what experiences shape you, but I always had that on the wall of my offices,” he says when asked.
When Hochstetler returned to Goshen four years ago after living in Pennsylvania for almost three decades, he encountered his sixthgrade teacher on the street. Wondering if the man would remember him, Hostetler was surprised to hear the man describe a report he had given
Ken Hochstetler
in sixth grade about his paper route and being organized. Hochstetler is quick to credit a variety of teachers and mentors for “any sense of accomplishment I may have and where I am today in life. “For me, it’s instrumental to remember where I came from, and experiences a long way back.” He met his wife Sue, a Pennsylvania native, at Goshen College. “The biggest thing I learned in a couple years was — I’ve got some more things to learn.” After completing a Master of Business Administration degree at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA., he expected to return to Indiana within a few years. “Twenty-nine years later, we were still living in Pennsylvania.” Hochstetler’s career in financial services included five years of commercial lending, then a 24-year career with Univest, rising to president of wealth management, a division that has over $3 billion in assets under management. A career in banking, investments, insurance and financial planning gave him a solid grounding in Everence’s business areas by the time they approached him to consider leading the organization.
The aims of publicly held Univest were for profit. “Now I get to work in a space that is not for profit — faith-
based, member-owned, fraternal. For this chapter of my life, it’s a pretty cool place to be.
“There’s a place for private enterprise, and there’s a place for people of like mind and faith orientation to come together to do good work.
“MEDA does that (latter task) in all kinds of places. It’s people of faith expressing their values in the marketplace, and I believe that people can do that back here.”
His first exposure to MEDA was at Goshen College. “I came out of college with a global awareness. That’s one thing Goshen College is good at.”
After entering the financial services industry and becoming a young parent, Hochstetler found that a life he had previously viewed as balanced became unbalanced.
“One of the things I was then looking for was, how can you be faithful to your family, your faith call, while you are participating in the marketplace, and have a professional career and aspirations to do good work.
“It was MEDA that gave me the understanding and the language of how you put those together.”
Initially drawn to MEDA because of its international efforts, he came to deeply appreciate “the other half of MEDA’s mission, around faith and work, being a Christian in the marketplace.”
Hochstetler served on the Delaware Valley (Souderton, PA.) chapter board for 19 years.
“It was at MEDA that I ran into
photo courtesy of Corinne Graber Alvarez
This aerial photo of Everence’s Goshen headquarters shows a building that is as complex and multi-faceted as the organization.
people who had many more years than me that could talk about how they did all that (balancing and integrating life aspirations).
“The truth is, you can’t do it all. There are trade-offs you have to make, and they were instructive for me on how you craft a life that puts these pieces together.”
Hochstetler credits the “incredibly generous people” he met at MEDA and the Mennonite church his family attended as shaping his values orientation.
Those encounters attracted him to Everence and the call to move back to Indiana after his children had grown up and moved away. “The people at church who were part of the stewardship and finance stuff that I was pretty deeply involved with were also MEDA members. It’s the interplay of all those (connections).”
Hochstetler’s favorite story from the Old Testament in the Bible is Samuel hearing the voice of God three times prior to understanding (1 Samuel 3 7-11).
He was approached by Everence about becoming a senior leader in three different searches. The third time they asked, the timing was right.
Howard Brenneman, a former head of Everence predecessor MMA, is someone Hochstetler has known since high school. Sitting together on a bus during a MEDA tour, Brenneman told Hochstetler of feeling blessed to have had careers both in the private sector (Hesston Corporation) and in the church (through MMA).
“I have to say, that really resonated with me, and was helpful input into my decision to come to Everence.”
Everence, MEDA and MCC all share the values of Orie Miller, who was involved in founding these and other organizations, Hochstetler said.
Miller’s 1943 suggestion that “in this changing situation, the church intends to go along with its members and help them, wherever in good conscience they need to go,” has been a guiding principle for Everence.
“We listen to our members and figure out what they need, and meet their needs,” Hochstetler said. “I’m glad that the folks who came before had the foresight for some of this stuff.”
His current job is shaping the organization “for people who aren’t even with us yet.”
“The interesting challenge I have is working with talented, gifted people, and enabling them to do lots more good work than I could ever do by myself. That gives me a lot of energy, to think in those terms.
“I can’t think of anything that’s more satisfying than helping other people find great fulfilment.
The largest opportunity Hochstetler sees is improving what Everence already does, taking it to more people and helping them “be faithful in combining the areas of faith and finance.” ◆
Managing complexity and changing to meet future needs
To passersby, Everence Financial’s main office, a few blocks out of Goshen’s downtown core, looks like many other modern commercial buildings.
Only the sign listing the businesses working under the Everence corporate umbrella gives any hint of the complexity of an organization that includes a trust company, the Praxis mutual funds firm, and the Everence Federal Credit Union.
“Our job is to be the concierge and manage that relationship for those folks and manage the complexity,” says Ken Hochstetler, the company’s president and chief executive officer.
Everence is one of the larger employers in the city of Goshen (the largest employers, recreational vehicle manufacturers, are based in outlying areas of the county), but Hochstetler worries that the organization is one of the better-kept secrets both in the community and the wider church.
“We’re working to make sure that people learn more about us.”
Everence currently has 75,000 members, who live in all 50 US states, and over 350 employees in 20 locations across the nation, about half of whom work in Goshen.
It has volunteer stewardship advocates in 1,000 congregations, serving more than 30 denominations.
The organization has over $3.4 billion in assets. Medicare supplement insurance, annuities, mutual funds and banking are the engines that drive earnings. It has had $1.3 billion in charitable impact over the past 73 years, including sharing funds and client donor-advised funds.
A current strategic priority for the organization is providing distanceoriented electronic solutions for clients who live in areas where Everence doesn’t have a physical presence, Hochstetler says. That is important preparation for a future where people are very mobile “a diaspora, going places.”
Everence is working to become more diverse in the racial and ethnic makeup both of their employees and the people they serve, with a focus on Spanish-speaking clients, he said. “We have been largely baby boomers serving baby boomers and retirees. As our baby boomers retire, we have the opportunity to become more diverse. People generally want to work with people who look and sound like them.”
They are opening a presence in Philadelphia as a way of growing beyond their rural and suburban base. “We’re looking to help people at the intersection of faith and finance, in urban settings, in a way that will serve the future church.” ◆
A tradition of quality
Miller Poultry named supplier of the year by Whole Foods
GOSHEN, IND — Miller Poultry has enjoyed remarkable growth in recent years. Its focus on quality and animal welfare has been honored by Whole Foods, its largest customer.
But the Orland, Ind.-based poultry processor is quick to stress that it is a small niche player in a massive US market for what has become American’s favorite meat.
“People around here think we’re quite large, 800-plus employees and a total of about 750,000 birds (processed) a week, but that’s less than two percent of the size of (industry leader) Tyson (Foods),” which processes over 40 million birds a week, says company president Galen Miller.
More than 165 million chickens a week are processed in the US., about half a chicken per person for each person in the US. Since 1970, the amount of chicken Americans eat has nearly tripled, with beef consumption falling by close to half, US Department of Agriculture statistics suggest.
Miller has been a supplier to the Whole Foods chain since the mid-1990s, when the retailer had only a handful of stores in Chicago.
Now one of three main US suppliers of fresh poultry for Whole Foods, Miller supplies about 100 Whole Foods stores in five regions. Earlier this year, Whole Foods honored Miller as its perishable food supplier of the year. “The reality is, it is a pretty big deal,” Galen Miller admits. “I kind of poo-pooed the thing, but it is a pretty big deal. We should celebrate that. “They’re looking at the quality of the product, they’re looking at the relationship, at customer service.” Miller Poultry is a family-owned business dating to 1942, when Galen’s parents and an uncle bought a Goshen feed mill and changed it into a turkey processing plant. They hatched and processed turkeys until the early 1970s. After a series of difficult years, they got out of turkeys, moving into hatching chicks and growing chickens for live markets. In the early 1990s, they purchased a custom processing plant from a failed firm, gradually transitioning that operation to fresh tray pack chicken, with increasing success.
The company is vertically integrated, owning their birds from birth. They grow 1,500 acres of crops for most of their own feed, have their own feed mill in New Paris, and a breeding facility in Vandalia, MI. They hatch their own chicks in Goshen and have about 150 contract growers (over half of
Galen Miller
Photos courtesy Miller Poultry
them Amish farms, most within 250 miles of Miller operations) who raise those birds, which are later processed at their Orland plant.
“Where we play, it’s the story (of) quality, animal welfare, relationships,” he said. “We take the intangibles and double down on those. Where the big guys play, it’s how many pounds can I come in at a more competitive cost at retail?”
Miller sells under five brand labels, for Whole Foods, Kroeger (the largest supermarket chain in the US), Meijer’s, Busch’s (a Michigan grocery chain) and other customers. Miller Poultry, the name used since 1992, is the primary legacy brand. The company used the Pine Manor brand from the 40s through the 90s. Its plant and real estate still operate under that name.
Katie’s Best (named after Galen and Sue’s daughter) is used in Meijer stores in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and Illinois. Miller also produces chilled production for most of its birds, and certification that no genetically modified organisms are used, are among these measures.
Air chilling involves hanging birds in large chambers that blow cool air through to chill the chicken. The advantage this has over the more common process of chilling by immersion in cold water is that air chilling results in less water retention, giving the chicken a firmer texture and richer flavor. Miller has also adopted global animal protection, a third-party audit system to ensure consumer confidence that things are being done appropriately. Most recently, Miller has embraced CO² gas stunning. Controlled atmosphere stunning is a more humane way of harvesting birds than traditional methods. Animal rights expert Temple Grandin, upon touring Miller’s facility, concluded that controlled atmosphere stunning is the best system available.
two private label lines.
The market niche Miller sells in, antibiotic-free birds, is increasingly one that its competitors have embraced. Tyson Foods has gone 100 per cent in that direction. Half of all chickens in the US are now grown without use of antibiotics.
That change in Miller’s approach, and several others, was prompted by Whole Foods. Air-
Galen and Clayton Miller
The Global Animal Partnership, a nonprofit that seeks to promote the welfare of farmed animals by rating the welfare standards of various farmed animal products, has also endorsed the Miller approach.
“I never imagined that we would have the kind of success that we have, and there would have been room for the small niche players, because that was not the case in the ‘70s, and even early ‘80s,” Miller says in reflecting on the company’s growth.
“There was barely any room for the small niche guys. Everything was price. Over time, late ‘80s, early ‘90s, what used to be a small co-op model became a national model.”
Miller deliberately operates below capacity, says Galen’s son, Clayton, who works in sales and marketing. Its existing plant could process another 150,000 birds a week. “We have existing customers and grow with them,” Clayton said. “We always leave something on the table for our existing customers, so we can grow with them.” That philosophy also allows flex room if new customers arrive. This summer, Clayton was frequently travelling to promote the firm’s expansion into Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Like most businesses, Miller faces its challenges. Online giant Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods has led to changes in Miller’s relationship with its largest customer. “They went to a bid program, which is totally new for us,” Galen said. “That just means, you give ‘em your best price, and they decide who they’re going to use.”
All the major chains take a similar approach, he conceded.
Miller has managed to maintain its workforce in the face of stiff competition from a booming recreational vehicle industry, which the area around Goshen is known for.
“Even if they would go to the RV industry, it could be three weeks and they could be looking for a job again (due to the boom and bust nature of that sector).”
Eight major nationalities speaking 11 different languages work for the company, including many Asians and Hispanics.
One of the reasons for their success in retaining workers is that employees know that even though there are difficult times in the poultry industry, Miller takes steps to ensure workers are physically safe, rotating people through tasks to minimize repetitive work that would stress their joints. Strengthening the benefits that accompany vertical integration, Miller Poultry started a breeder program in the past two years to produce its own hatching eggs. “We’re trying to consolidate, and build depth, and evaluate what the next step would be,” Galen said. He has had suitors who wanted to buy the firm but has no desire to cash out and retire. “I don’t know what I’d do, and there are still some things to be done.
“The entrepreneurial spirit thrives on activity and deals, and growth and success.”
He also feels a responsibility to people in his organization — families and leadership-“folks who have been here a long time.”
Galen hopes his legacy will be “that we put people either before, or equal to profit. That we gave back to the communities that we are in, that we produced a high-quality, premium product that was raised in a humane way.” ◆
Most of Miller Poultry’s production at its Orland plants is air-chilled
Service is recipe for flourishing food business
Family produce stand grows to four Sarasota area supermarkets
By JB Miller
PALMETTO, FL — Anticipating the opening of the newest Detwiler’s Farm Market in July, the Detwiler family wondered, “Will anyone come?”
There was no need to worry. Cars jammed the parking lot and nearly 5,000 shoppers visited that first day. With the opening of their fourth store, Detwiler’s is on its way to meet a company goal of serving nearly three million customers over the next year.
Detwiler’s newest location, a long vacant 40,000- square-foot former grocery store, stands in stark contrast to their first produce market, a 10 by 20-foot roadside tent opened in Sarasota in 2002 by Henry Detwiler Sr. and his family. They soon gained a loyal following and remained an open-air market until 2009 when they moved into a building.
The transition to enclosed space was stressful. While the previous business had thrived, any excess cash was invested in the new location. An additional challenge was the lack of air conditioning. “Some nights I would come over and open doors to bring in cooler air to keep the produce from spoiling,” Henry said. “Then that winter, we had one of the coldest winters in many years and local produce was devastated.”
The business struggled. Paying the bills became difficult. When one of their major suppliers called and said they could no longer deliver products to them, Henry knew this could be the end for Detwiler’s Farm Market. After a lengthy conversation, the owner agreed to reconsider the termination. Later, he called to
say that he would continue to serve Detwiler’s and was sending $20,000 for Henry to pay other creditors. He shouldn’t worry about repayment and suggested that, in the future, Henry could help someone else in similar straits. This answer to the Detwiler family’s prayers became a major turning point for the business. Even though their first building was only 5,000-square-feet, the additional space allowed them to open deli and fresh seafood counters. Dephotos by Jake Smucker spite the small space and crowded parking lot, customers came, shopping elbow to elbow with little space to maneuver grocery carts. Rather than being frustrated, many customers felt the crowded conditions added charm to their shopping experience. As the business grew, it gained a reputation that’s still reflected today in the Detwiler’s slogan, “Eat Fresh for Less.” Over the next six years two more stores were opened within 25 miles of their initial Sarasota site, each larger than the previous one. Their third store gave Henry the opportunity to return to his roots — opening a
Founder Henry Detwiler Sr. and company president Sam Detwiler full-service butcher shop.
As a child he would ride about on his tricycle in his grandfather’s Franconia, PA. butcher shop. There, he saw firsthand how Grandpa Landis treated his customers with respect and kindness, ensuring they were satisfied with their purchases. Even then, Henry was a budding entrepreneur. “I believe God gave me the gift of retailing. When watching my grandfather, I used to think ‘Grandpa, why don’t you do it this way?’” Henry recalled.
That entrepreneurial spirit has been passed on to the next generation. Seven of Henry and Natalie Detwiler’s nine children are active in the business, five serving alongside their parents in leadership roles. Sam, the oldest son, has worked in the business from the beginning. Today, at age 30, he serves as president.
Engaging and articulate, Sam’s passion for serving their customers and employees is clearly evident. “I believe if we take care of our customers and employees, God will take care of us,” Sam said. “Just this morning I was reading James 5, and it’s a clear warning about how we need to treat people, and not make this business just about us. There’s more to it than that.”
With the loyal customer following, there are many requests for Detwiler’s to open stores in other locations. “We hope to continue to grow with more stores but building our own larger distribution center is a top priority,” Sam explained. “We started our own distribution center when we had only two stores and that’s been strategically important because we can buy large quantities of produce.”
Nine members of the Detwiler family work in the supermarket. Eight are pictured here. From L-R: Henry Jr., Josh, Natalie Grace, Caleb, Henry Sr., Natalie, Sam, and Vicky. Emily was not present for the photo shoot.
Detwiler’s buys local fruit and vegetables when they are available, but with today’s high demand, produce comes from throughout the Americas. Suppliers know, with their large customer base, Detwiler’s can move large quantities of overstocked inventory, often at reduced prices.
Besides the large produce selection, butcher shop and seafood counter, shoppers find a wide array of specialty items with brands not found in local grocery stores. Troyer deli meats and cheeses from Ohio, Martin chips from Pennsylvania, and items from many small companies known for their high quality and strong customer loyalty are customer favorites.
Detwiler’s is known for their generosity. Each week the company provides food for a local wilderness camp for at-risk boys. After Hurricane Harvey devastated Texas, they sent a semi-tractor load of food to Houston. When Hurricane Irma struck the Sarasota area, Detwiler’s purchased plywood and supplied labor to board up their employees’ houses, and opened their stores for employees who needed a safe place. “We have been blessed, and I’m learning to let go, stop being ‘tight,’ and be generous,” Henry explained. “I’m learning you can’t out-give God, I need so little to make me happy.”
Satisfying as business growth has been, it doesn’t come without some concern. When asked what keeps him awake at night, Henry paused a long time before answering, “That we lose our faith, walk away from God, and the business becomes more about ourselves and not serving our customers.”
When meeting Detwiler family members, it’s evident that they see their business as a Christian calling. “What really makes me tick is people thanking me for opening the new store, as well as employees telling me they enjoy working here,” Henry commented. “We hope when customers walk into our stores they can feel the love we have for the business and for them. Our goal is to mix love in everything we do, including the bread we bake.”
“Eat Fresh for Less” may be Detwiler’s popular slogan. However, love for the people they serve appears to be the winning ingredient in the Detwiler family’s success. ◆
Java Junction blends theory and practice
Goshen College students run a coffee shop for course credit
photos courtesy Goshen College
GOSHEN, IND — Michelle Horning likes to see students apply their business studies to the real world of business.
So much so that she has students operate a coffee shop on the Goshen College campus, for course credit, in a class called Java Junction management.
“Reading a book about business is completely different than running a business,” says Horning, who is an accounting professor and chair of Goshen College’s business department.
Java Junction, located between two student residences, is operated by junior and sophomore business students.
The idea for the shop was suggested by the college’s Student Life team in 2002. A new facility called the Connector which would link two residences was about to be built, and the Student Life group wondered if the business department would be interested in running a coffee shop.
The venture is open from late August until the end of May each year. Students can be involved with the business for one or two terms. Two-thirds of students will do it twice, making a class presentation at the end of the semester.
The store, remembered fondly by some Goshen alumna as much for their milkshakes as their coffee or baked goods, takes in about $55,000 a year. It clears enough profit after wages and other expenses to replace wornout blenders or freezers, Horning says.
In its first year of operation, sales totalled only $14,000. The student management team works to determine what will be popular with customers who change each semester, as some students graduate, and others arrive.
Problems with broken equipment and employees who don’t show up for their shifts are some of the issues that Java Junction’s management team may need to cope with. Management makes all decisions around accounting, marketing, purchasing, hiring, training, technology and busi-
Melissa Ma pours a drink for a Java Junction customer
ness analysis. They purchase coffee from a local roaster, working to balance cost and quality. Horning “hovers in the background” but largely takes a hands-off approach to the operation, which is open daily from 7:30 am until midnight, except between four and seven pm. (The shop closes for that three-hour period, when most students are busy with athletic or theatre practices, as well as band/ orchestra/choir rehearsals.) “I’m not in charge,” she says. “I’m not going to do any work.” Several years ago, Horning began requiring all participating students to work behind the counter at least two
to three hours a week throughout the term. Last year, she gave students the option of working more hours before hiring external help. About half of the team chose to work additional shifts.
Including their paid shift and a three-hour group meeting, participating students need to plan to set aside 10 to 12 hours a week for Java Junction. “Some years it will be less, other years, unfortunately it will be more.”
Experiencing the messiness that comes with waiting on customers and taking out the trash is part of the real world learning the course offers.
“When students become part of the management team, their friends become very good customers at Java Junction,” Horning says.
Laura Hochstetler graduated from Goshen College in May. She was involved with Java Junction for two years, one as an employee, the other as part of the management team.
“Being aware of all the hidden things that come along with owning your own business or being in charge of a certain area of the business” was a practical education that came from working at the coffee shop. “You have to make sure you are on top of inventory, and that you are in communication with the baristas, so everybody’s on the same page … customers like what you are selling – all of that.”
Keeping in communication with the team she was working with was the biggest lesson she learned from the experience. “I just really enjoyed the community, making people feel welcome and being friendly.”
Hochstetler, who now works as a baker at Goshen’s Electric Brew restaurant, would like to open her own bed and breakfast operation some day. “I want there to be some aspect
of environmental education, or education on sustainable living. I think that’s super important. Hospitality has always been something that I’ve always enjoyed.”
Other schools have expressed interest in the Java Junction project. Culver Military Academy, a prestigious college preparatory boarding school located in Culver, Ind. whose alumni includes former New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, actor Hal Holbrook and a number of politicians and professional athletes, has an entrepreneurship program. Culvert used lessons from Java Junction to open their campus coffee shop two years ago. ◆
Michelle Horning
