The Delaware Farm Bureau wrapped up its 74th year with a new executive director and new state officers elected at its annual meeting Dec. 3.

Joseph Poppeti, the new executive director, is a Delaware native now living in Kennett Square, Pa., where he has been following his grandfather’s passion for mushroom growing. Most recently Poppiti has been an agricultural consultant in mushroom production, with a side business in landscaping design and implementation. He has been a volunteer for the American Mushroom Institute since 2000 and served as chairman of the board from 2010 to 2014. Poppiti and his wife, Beth, have one grown daughter, Kathryn.

Richard Wilkins, who farms in Greenwood, was unanimously elected Delaware Farm Bureau president. Former president of the American Soybean Association, Wilkins had served as president of Kent County Farm Bureau since 2017. Wilkins and his wife, Donna, purchased their first farm in 1992. He now grows soybeans, corn, wheat, barley, hay and vegetables in addition to raising beef cattle. Wilkins is also owner of a full-service machinery and equipment dealership, B & W Farm Supply.

Laura Hill of Lewes was re-elected first vice president. Hill was the first woman to be elected as a Delaware Farm Bureau officer, second vice president, in 2012. She and her husband, Roland, own and operate the 1,600-acre Deerfield Farm in Lewes along with their sons, Roland III and Jerad. Their daughter, Jamie, recently returned to the area. Hill is chair of the DFB Food Booth and Legislative Committees. She also has served on the Delaware Nutrient Management Commission since 2009.

William Powers Jr. of Townsend was elected second vice president. Powers worked on the assembly line at Chrysler from 1978 to 2006, when he was elected to New Castle County Council. All the while he has been raising beef, hogs, sheep, goats, turkeys and chickens as well as growing hay and corn to feed. He and his wife, Joan, have two children, Katie and Will.

At DFB’s annual banquet Dec. 6 in Dover, the Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award was presented by Bruce Dempsey to Kent County’s Ruthie Franczek. Franczek earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Florida and opened her own practice in Newark. She met her husband, Dr. Rich Barczewski, an associate professor at Delaware State University, in a hog pen, Dempsey said. After they married, she moved her veterinary practice to Kent County.

“Ruthie was an extremely successful large animal vet and gained clientele all throughout the state of Delaware,” Dempsey said. She was the driving force behind the Birthing Center at the Delaware State Fair.

While raising three children and maintaining her busy practice, Franczek found time to be involved in several agricultural associations. In 2017, she decided to retire in order to spend more time horseback riding and traveling.

Franczek said, “I thought I could slip into obscurity.” She noted there are good students coming up who will take good care of Delaware’s animals.

Laura Hill introduced DFB’s Farm Family of the Year, Vernon “Chip” Baker Jr. and his wife, Judy, of H & V Farms Inc. in Millsboro. Baker has been involved in agriculture almost all his life, first working at H.E. Williams & Co. feed mill in Millsboro and later taking over the family farming operation.  He currently tills 621 acres of corn and soybeans and has a 50,000 broiler operation. His farm has been no-till for 25 years and he plants blends of cover crops on all his acreage. He participates in the Conservation Stewardship Program and, because of his interest in improving soil health, became a Delaware Soil Health Champion. He received the Governor’s Conservation Award for Agriculture in 2017. A member of Delaware Farm Bureau since 1995, he has served as a Sussex County Farm Bureau director for many years.

Offering hearty congratulations, Hill said Baker “set a great standard for others to follow.”

Jacob Urian, chair of the Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee, presented the YF&R Supporter of the Year Award to Dave and Kitty Holtz. “They go above and beyond to give to our committee, and have done so for many years,” Urian said.
Urian presented the YF&R Committee Supporter of the Year award to Jonathan Moore, Kent County YF&R chair.

Women’s Committee Chair Mary Bea Gooden introduced the 2018-19 State Youth Ambassador Award recipient, Helena Kirk. Daughter of Toby and Debbie Kirk of Townsend, Helena is a senior at Middletown High School. She is active in FFA, 4-H, church, wildlife and deer management groups and the National Rifle Association. She served as 2017-2018 New Castle County Youth Ambassador. Her mother was the 1991 Delaware Farm Bureau Queen. Helena said she is excited about the opportunity to represent Delaware Farm Bureau.