Gordie Cook of Massachusetts was elected president of the Holstein Association USA board of directors at the organization’s annual meeting, held June 25- 26 in St. Charles, Illinois, during the 130th National Holstein Convention. He replaced retiring President Glen E. Brown of Utah.
Boyd Schaufelberger of Illinois was elected vice president. R. Paul Buhr of Wisconsin and Patrick Maddox of California were re-elected as directors for Regions 5 and 9, respectively. John Andersen of Idaho was elected director for Region 8, while John Marshman of New York was elected at-large director. The president and vice president serve for two years, while the directors serve three-year terms. Jonathan Lamb of New York and Bill Wright of Utah retired from the board.
Delegate Actions
- There were 103 delegates who attended the National Holstein Convention. They voted to:
- Amend an Association bylaw and the constitution to remove the requirement that the Annual Meeting be held only in June or July. The amendment will not affect future Annual Meetings already scheduled.
- Amend an Association bylaw to allow one additional delegate for every 100 (formerly 150) active members in each election district. This will increase the total number of delegates beginning with the 2017 Annual Meeting.
- Amend an Association bylaw to allow appointment of an unelected nominee to an unfilled seat from another state in the same regions.
- Approve an increase in per diem allowance for the president and vice president from $150 to $450, and for the directors from $150 to $300, effective with the November 2015 board meeting.
- Approve a resolution to pursue discussions with Holstein Canada on electronic data sharing of pedigree information.
- Approve a resolution honoring former Executive Secretary Charles A. Larson, who passed away June 15, 2015.
Special Presentations and Awards
During the highlight presentation, “Holstein Genomics Today,” a panel of four distinguished genetics experts discussed how Holstein breeders can benefit from the use of genomics.
These awards were presented:
- Distinguished Young Holstein Breeder: Joel and Sara Mills, Thompsontown, Pa.
- Distinguished Leadership: M. Duane Green, Elsie, Mich.
- Elite Breeder: Conant Acres, Canton, Maine
- Star of the Breed: Pineylawn Jasper Bethany, Wisconsin
- Herds of Excellence: Ever-Green-View Farms, Wisconsin; Double D Dairy, California; Dirt-Road Holsteins, Wisconsin; and Mainstream Holsteins, Washington.
- Forty-year members of Holstein Association USA.
CEO John M. Meyer and outgoing President Glen E. Brown addressed the delegates. Watch videos of leadership addresses, genomics panel, and other presentations at www.holsteinusa.com/meetings/convention2015.html. For more information about our award winners, visit our website, wwwholsteinusa.com, and click on Awards.
The 2016 National Holstein Convention and Annual Meeting will be held June 27-July 1, 2016, in Saratoga Springs, New York.
To see more from the convention click here.
