Donn Teske

President

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Donn was first elected president of Kansas Farmers Union in 2001 and was elected National Farmers Union Vice President in 2014, serving in that role until 2018. He owns and operates a farm near Wheaton in Pottawatomie County as a 5th generation farmer. Teske’s farm is approximately 2/3 grass and 1/3 crops. Prior to his time at KFU, Donn worked for the Kansas Rural Center and for Kansas State University Agricultural Economics Department as a farm financial analyst. He serves on the board of some twelve state, regional, and national boards concerning agriculture and the environment.

Matt Ubel

Vice President

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Bio coming soon

Jack Geiger

Treasurer

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Jack Geiger joined the KFU Board in 2022. He is a 6th generation northeast Kansas farmer, returning to the farm in
1993 with a B.S. in Agronomy and Natural Resource Management from KSU. With his family, he operates a 30+ year certified organic mixed grain and livestock farm. They hold a Kansas retail meat license and
direct market beef under the Geiger Beef brand. Jack currently serves on the CBB, the OCIA Board of Directors, and on the Rose Hill Cemetery Association. He mentors beginning organic farmers nationwide and maintains an educational channel, Geiger Farm on YouTube.

Herb Bartel

At-Large Director

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Herb is a fourth generation owner/operator of his family’s 500-acre organic farm in Marion County. He is transitioning the crop land to a beginning farmer in order to free up time to work on augmenting the farm’s ability to adapt to climate change. His land restoration includes increasing organic matter and improving water retention. He is returning a drainage course into pre-European settlement conditions.
Herb has served multiple terms on the KFU board and has made several trips to various states on membership drives. He has always had a passion to diversify the income sources for KFU. After serving many years as State Treasurer, Herb passed the torch in 2022, but remains on the board in an at-large position.

Rosanna Bauman

South District

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Rosanna Bauman is a farmer and serial ag entrepreneur from Garnett. Together with her parents and five siblings, Bauman has developed businesses that expand opportunities for local food production in eastern Kansas through USDA-inspected poultry and meat processing facilities and a non-GMO feed hub.

Term: 2021-2024

Jill Elmers

North District

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Jill has owned and operated Moon on the Meadow farm near Lawrence since 2003 and raises 30-40 different kinds of certified organic vegetables, small fruits, herbs and flowers on her farm’s 3 acres and the 30-acre Common Harvest Farms she owns with partners. Farm products are sold through the Community Mercantile grocery and Lawrence Farmers Market, nine restaurants, and collaborates with other farmers to provide 265 CSA shares. Jill was a founding member of the KC Food Hub and served as a chair of the Douglas County Food Policy Council. Term: 2022-2025

David Heiens

North District

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David farms organically on land in Dickinson County near Abilene that has been in the Heiens family for over 100 years. David raises hogs and cattle along with alfalfa and grains. David has served on the board for Kansas Organic Producers Cooperative and on the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA) Research and Education Committee and the OCIA Promotions committee. He currently serves as chair of the OCIA Crop Improvement Committee and serves on the OCIA KS#2 board as well as the board of his church, The Lords Chapel, in Talmage, KS. Term: 2021-2024

Donna Pearson McClish

South District

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Multi-generation urban farmer; owner, and operator of Common Ground Producers and Growers, Inc., a unique mobile food hub that serves both urban and rural families; Executive Board Member Sedgwick County K- State Research and Extension; K-State Research and Extension Professional Development Committee for Community Vitality Kansas Farmers Union board member, member, and delegate of the National Farmers Union, Farmers Aid Covid Selection Committee, member of PASA Sustainable Agriculture; president of Sedgwick County KFU charter, SARE Grant Review Committee member, appointed by Governor of Kansas as a member of the State Board of Agriculture. Term: 2022-2025

Jason Schmidt

At-Large Board Member

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Jason is a 5th generation farmer from rural Newton, moved back to his home community with his wife Carol to take over the family dairy farm. Jason has experience with a variety of farming systems having worked with organic vegetable farmers, grass-fed beef producers, and conventional grain and livestock farmers in the U.S. and abroad. Jason has a Master’s degree in Plant and Environmental Science from Clemson University researching grass-finished beef. Before moving back to the family farm, Jason worked for the Kansas Rural Center as a field organizer for the Clean Water Farms project.

Ryan Goertzen-Regier

South District

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Ryan grew up and continues to work part-time on his family's fifth generation Kansas farm in Marion County that raises row crops, hogs, and cattle. He has an undergraduate degree in social work and is working on his Masters of Horticulture and Urban Food Systems at K-State. Ryan owns a beekeeping business, Sugargrove Apiaries, and is on the Harvey County Food and Farm Council.

Term: 2023-2026

Amanda Lindahl

North District

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Amanda has been growing food and community in the Kansas City metro for more than a decade supporting community and school gardens, orchards, and urban farmers. Her passion for local food has led her to a role supporting capacity building for local food systems across the state of Kansas. Amanda is also currently transitioning efforts from urban food production back to her rural roots in Dickinson County where she is working to take over stewardship of the 5th generation family farm. As a beginning land steward, Amanda is eager to learn from others, incorporating regenerative land management practices and agroforestry techniques.

Term: 2023-2026