Farm Progress

Here are the faces of some of the people who made 2016 a great year.

Ron Smith 1, Senior Content Director

December 2, 2016

21 Slides

Maybe the best part of being an agricultural editor is the opportunity to visit farmers and the folks who support them. Every year we meet new people who are committed to producing the food and fiber we rely on. We also look forward to catching up with farmers and ranchers, Extension specialists, researchers, and industry representatives we’ve known for years. 

As 2016 draws to a close, we want to thank all the farmers and other valuable sources who took time to talk to us this year and trusted us to tell their stories. We know we’ll miss a few and apologize in advance for any oversights. But to all of you who shared a bit of information or agreed to have a photo taken, thank you for your contributions, and we wish you the happiest of holidays and a New Year that’s better than the old one.

About the Author(s)

Ron Smith 1

Senior Content Director, Farm Press/Farm Progress

Ron Smith has spent more than 40 years covering Sunbelt agriculture. Ron began his career in agricultural journalism as an Experiment Station and Extension editor at Clemson University, where he earned a Masters Degree in English in 1975. He served as associate editor for Southeast Farm Press from 1978 through 1989. In 1990, Smith helped launch Southern Turf Management Magazine and served as editor. He also helped launch two other regional Turf and Landscape publications and launched and edited Florida Grove and Vegetable Management for the Farm Press Group. Within two years of launch, the turf magazines were well-respected, award-winning publications. Ron has received numerous awards for writing and photography in both agriculture and landscape journalism. He is past president of The Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association and was chosen as the first media representative to the University of Georgia College of Agriculture Advisory Board. He was named Communicator of the Year for the Metropolitan Atlanta Agricultural Communicators Association. More recently, he was awarded the Norman Borlaug Lifetime Achievement Award by the Texas Plant Protection Association. Smith also worked in public relations, specializing in media relations for agricultural companies. Ron lives with his wife Pat in Johnson City, Tenn. They have two grown children, Stacey and Nick, and three grandsons, Aaron, Hunter and Walker.

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