Gauck, Lucas Return to Leadership Roles on Indiana’s Corn Checkoff Board
Decatur County farmer Tim Gauck has been re-elected as president of the Indiana Corn Marketing Council (ICMC), the state’s corn checkoff program. Matthew Lucas, a farmer from Jackson County has been re-elected as ICMC’s vice president.
Gauck grows corn, soybeans and wheat on his farm in rural Decatur and Rush counties. He started farming in 1972, and he was first elected to the ICMC board in 2017. Gauck is an at-large representative on the board, which means he was elected by farmers from across Indiana. He said expanding the availability of higher blends of ethanol and exporting Indiana-grown corn to new markets around the world are among ICMC’s priorities.
“I am honored to lead Indiana’s corn checkoff program again in 2025,” Gauck said. “We have a challenging agenda to tackle this year, and I think we’re ready to get started. Indiana’s ethanol industry has been a great benefit to the state’s corn growers for the past 15 years or so, and we want to protect it and expand it wherever possible. We also want to actively find opportunities to ship Indiana corn to markets around the world.”
Lucas farms in a partnership with his father, James, and he represents District 8 on the ICMC board. District 8 includes the counties of Brown, Crawford, Floyd, Harrison, Jackson, Lawrence, Monroe, Orange, Perry and Washington. A full-time farmer since 2018, Lucas grows corn and soybeans on his farm in Jackson County. His farm also finishes 24,000 hogs per year. He has a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness from Purdue University.
Susan Brocksmith, a farmer from Vincennes, Ind., was elected as the board’s secretary for 2025. She is an at-large representative on the ICMC board. Brocksmith and her husband, Mike, grow non-GMO corn and soybeans on their no-till farm in Knox County. Off the farm, she works as the Dean of Vincennes University’s College of Business and Public Service.
Ron Hensley, a farmer from Daleville, Ind., was selected as treasurer. He represents District 6, which includes Blackford, Jay, Delaware, Henry, Randolph, Wayne, Fayette and Union counties. A full-time farmer since 1975, Hensley and his wife, Teresa, grows corn and soybeans on his farm in Delaware and Madison counties. He was appointed to the board in 2022. He is retired from AT&T and has also served as member of the Delaware County Wastewater board.
Elected as Chair of the Market Development Committee was Ferdinand, Ind., farmer J.R. Roesner. ICMC’s Market Development Committee works to expand export opportunities and increase the value of Indiana’s corn crop. On the ICMC board since 2017, he was also elected to NCGA’s Corn Board in 2022. He grows corn and soybeans on his farm that touches Dubois, Pike, Spencer and Warrick counties. He represents the District 7 counties of Sullivan, Greene, Daviess, Martin, Knox, Dubois, Pike, Gibson, Warrick, Spencer, Vanderburgh and Posey. Roesner earned a degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University.
Noblesville, Ind., farmer Adam Sheller was re-elected as chair of the Sustainability and Value Creation Committee. This committee studies various production techniques that improve the environmental, social and economic sustainability of Indiana farms. Sheller grows corn and soybeans, and also raises goats, on his Hamilton County farm. A farmer since 2016, he has a degree in agricultural education from Purdue University. Sheller has an off-farm job in insurance sales, and he also works at the county level with Indiana Farm Bureau.
Cyr, Smith join checkoff board
Lucas and Janis Highley, a farmer from Warren, Ind., were re-elected to the ICMC board earlier this year. Highley was re-elected as an at-large candidate. Highley and her husband are the fifth generation to grow corn and soybeans on her farm in Huntington County. She is one of six at-large candidates on the ICMC board. Highley earned a degree in business administration and management from Huntington University. She has been involved in the National Corn Growers Association’s (NCGA) Women and Mentors Program. Highley serves as second vice president of the Indiana Farm Bureau (INFB). She also chairs the INFB Women Leadership Committee.
Lori Cyr, a farmer from Fowler, Ind., was also elected as an at-large candidate. She takes the place of Sarah Delbecq, a farmer from Auburn, Ind., who finished her third, three-year term on the board in 2024. A part-time farmer since 1998, Cyr owns and operates Evergreen Farms with her brother, Chad, in Benton County. She is also highly involved with operations in Countryview Farm, which is a multi-generational family farm that produces corn, but it used to be a dairy and grain operation. Cyr earned a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness management from Purdue University. She also works off the farm at Inari Agriculture in West Lafayette, Ind.
Scott Smith, a farmer from Windfall, Ind., was elected to represent District 5, which includes the counties of Bartholomew, Boone, Clinton, Decatur, Grant, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Howard, Johnson, Madison, Marion, Morgan, Rush, Shelby and Tipton. Smith will replace Frankfort, Ind., farmer Mike Beard, who finished his third, three-year term.
Smith is also a director and past president of the Indiana Corn Growers Association board. Along with his wife, Terri, Smith owns Triple S Smith Farms and Sharp-View Farms in Tipton, Grant, Madison and Howard counties. He has a diversified, third-generation farm that produces corn, soybeans and process tomatoes. A full-time farmer, Smith began farming in 1974.
ICMC CEO Courtney Kingery welcomed Cyr and Smith to the checkoff board, and she praised Snipes, Delbecq and Beard for their service.
“Scott Smith has already proven himself to be an excellent leader from his service on the ICGA board,” she said. “Lori Cyr will provide our board with a new perspective and fresh ideas as we move into 2025.”
Regarding Snipes, Kingery said, “Kelly was one of the first participants and leaders in ICMC’s farm blogger program, and that paved the way for our current consumer communications programs. She’s been an active leader in ICMC serving as a committee chair and on the Sustainability Action Team for the U.S. Grains Council. We appreciate her years of service.”
About Delbecq, Kingery said, “I want to thank Sarah Delbecq for her dedicated service to Indiana’s farmers on both the corn checkoff and policy boards for the past nine years. She has served in many roles over the years including being a part of the executive committee, the CEO Search Committee and Checkoff Law Task Force. She brought so much insight and leadership to the Boards during her time. Her efforts will leave a positive legacy on ICMC.”
And, finally, about Beard, Kingery said, “It’s very difficult to encapsulate Mike’s service to Indiana’s farmers in just a few words. Including his work with the pork and soybean checkoff boards, Indiana Farm Bureau and both ICMC and ICGA, Mike has been a decision-maker and friend to Indiana farmers for more than 30 years. You can never replace a board member like Mike Beard, but we all have been able to learn from his example.”
Source: Indiana Corn Marketing Council.
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