Growing up on a farm near Uniontown, Wash., Mark Heitstuman determined his career goal early on. Active in his FFA group at Colton High School, he envisioned working in agricultural education. After high school graduation, Heitstuman attended Washington State University (WSU) and earned his degree in ag education in 1987….
After nearly a half century of success, Washington’s vaunted natural resources leadership program, AgForestry, is taking a hard look at itself and its role going forward. AgForestry was established in 1977 and designed to develop leaders in natural resource sectors. At the time, it was based on a similar program…
Captain Jeremy Nielsen’s role in the transportation chain that takes wheat to market is mostly unseen to farmers, but without him, their grain would be dead in the water. Nielsen is a river pilot, responsible for navigating ocean-going vessels through the lower Columbia River. Using a ladder on the outside…
Down in the Tri-Cities, Kurt and Melody Beckley are confident growers will see the possibilities their new drone-based business, Altitude Agri Services, offers. “I find I’m anticipating that moment when more growers see what the drones are capable of doing, and they want to embrace them and take advantage of…
Mapping Dwaine Schettler’s 37-year career with the Farm Service Agency (FSA) is relatively straightforward; it’s the side trails that are unexpected. Schettler is a program specialist at the Washington state FSA office, focusing on geographic information systems (GIS) and compliance. He was born and raised in Waterville, Wash., and graduated…
Enthusiasm emanates from Samantha Sims. Now in her sixth year of teaching career and technical education at Ellensburg High School (EHS), Sims has already amassed an impressive record of Washington state FFA champions and top-four finishers at the national competition level. Sims was recently awarded the 2023 National New Teacher…
Like multigenerational family farms, the “family” part of Younker Bros is important, and it’s something Shane Younker hopes will continue. “We’d definitely like to keep the business in the family if we can. So far so good,” he said. Younker Bros, in Spokane, was started in 1991 when Pat Younker;…
In an occupation that is far more a way of life than just a profession, Dave Harlow has something in common with many other farmers. “I remember not particularly enjoying some of the jobs on the farm in my youth, but a few years later, my perspective had changed. Now,…
Chuck Schmidt has spent his career championing the air and water quality benefits of direct seeding, both as a business owner and as a farmer. Now he’s widening that focus to include harvest weed seed control. Schmidt, owner of North Pine Ag Equipment in Rosalia, Wash., grew up farming in…
Tom Kammerzell is a man of action who wears many hats. He approaches issues and projects by conducting thorough research and then instituting a plan to achieve specific goals. “If you aren’t playing offense, you are always going to be on defense, in a reactive mode,” he explained. Kammerzell was…
