Farm Credit donates $25K
Farm Credit East’s Presque Isle office recently held an event to honor the lender’s 100th anniversary and as part of the celebration provided the Maine Future Farmers of America (FFA) with $25,000 to establish an endowment fund.
Contributed photo
From left, Farm Credit East’s senior loan officer Ghent Holdsworth, Branch manager Peter Hallowell and board member Daniel Corey present Maine State FFA President Dayna McCrum with a check to support the annual attendance of FFA members to Washington, D.C. McCrum is a senior at Central Aroostook High School.
Farm Credit East provided the funds jointly with CoBank, and they will be used to support the attendance of Maine FFA members on their annual trip to Washington, D.C.
“As we celebrate Farm Credit’s Centennial we look towards the future,” said Farm Credit East’s Presque Isle Branch Manager Peter Hallowell. “These young students are the future leaders for Maine’s agriculture and forest products industries. We are pleased to provide funding to support their education and leadership development.”
“CoBank is proud to partner with Farm Credit East to support FFA,” said Will Baildon, regional vice president for the firm. “Many of today’s leaders in the agriculture and forest products industries were FFA members themselves. By helping to establish this endowment, we know that we are supporting the next generation of leaders who will help to continue the tradition of success and growth in these industries for generations to come.”
The funds were presented to Maine State FFA President Dayna McCrum at Farm Credit East’s centennial event held on Friday, Aug. 5, at the Riverside Farmers’ Market Pavilion in Presque Isle.
Maine FFA has nearly 500 members, with chapters located throughout the state, from Brunswick to Caribou. Its mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. The association is led by a team of student officers including McCrum, who is a senior at Central Aroostook High School.
Farm Credit East is the largest lender to agriculture in the Northeast and specializes in serving agriculture, commercial fishing and forest products. CoBank, a cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America, provides financing to agribusiness and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50 states. It also serves as Farm Credit East’s wholesale funding bank. Both are members of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of banks and associations specifically chartered to provide dependable credit to agriculture and the U.S. rural economy.
