Midwest Division: Cody Miller of Thayer, Iowa, is a U.S. Army veteran who served more than 16 years with one deployment to Afghanistan from 2009-2010, and was raised on his grandmother’s family farm, the same one he is currently operating. Miller farmed up until the day he joined the Army and resumed once he separated from service, tending to 40 acres of row crops, raising ducks and chickens, and learning about horses. He also rents another 200 acres for raising cattle, hay and row crops, mostly soybeans, and sells his products to local co-ops and plans to sell his calves at local livestock market. Miller plans to finish his Ag Business degree, purchase his grandmother’s farm to keep it in the family, and purchase more cattle. Kubota will award Miller with a 250-hour lease on a Kubota M7 Ag tractor with a loader and baler.

Northern Division: Joshua Nelson, of Ripley, West Virginia, is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and serving as a pilot in the West Virginia Air National Guard with deployments to Kuwait flying combat missions into Iraq and Syria. Nelson is a first-generation farmer who turned a hobby farm start up in 2015 to a 300-acre owned and leased organic grass-based ranch and farm, raising poultry, cattle, pork, bees and other livestock following regenerative ranching practices. The Nelsons sell their products through a store he co-owns called Farm House Naturals as well as through direct farm sales. To help him achieve his future plans to build ponds for irrigation and water sources for his cattle, as well as develop a full line of grocery and local goods to sell at their farm store, Nelson will receive a Kubota MX mid-size tractor, with a cab and loader.

Southeast Division: Kara Rutter of Aiken, South Carolina, retired from the U.S. Army this year after more than 23 years of service. She last served as the Army Central Food Service Sergeant Major overseeing subsistence operations in the Middle East. Her husband, Matt, also retired this year as a Command Sergeant Major after 22 years of service and now serves as president of the FVC South Carolina chapter. Together, they own Project Victory Gardens, a 20-acre farm with chickens, ducks, turkeys, goats, pigs, beehives, fruit trees, berry bushes, a 1,000-foot greenhouse, raised bed and traditional vegetable gardens. Kara has plans to be fully operational in the next 12 months with an aquaponics facility and training lab and teaching kitchen. Her future goals include improving veterans’ mental health and helping them gain employment in agriculture. Kubota will award Kara with an LX Series compact tractor with a cab and loader. 

Western Division: Bodhi Anderson of Honomu, Hawaii, is a U.S. Navy veteran who served five years on active duty as a Corpsman for the Marines with deployments to the Adriatic Sea during the Bosnian War and the Middle East. Bodhi was also commissioned as a Navy Reserves MSC Officer (Physician Assistant) providing medical support to the 4th Force Recon Battalion in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. Anderson grew up on an organic vegetable farm and now he and his wife, Brittany, own Sugar Hill Farmstead, a15-acre farm that specializes in sustainably raised regenerative meats, sold direct-to-consumer for Hawaii Island families. Cattle, sheep, pigs, rabbits, and meat chickens are all processed on-farm and sold as part of a meat CSA. Anderson will be awarded a Kubota Sidekick RTV-XG850 utility vehicle. He will also receive a $10,000 grant to assist in the expansion of his pastured poultry production to reach his goal of feeding 100 families each month. 

Central Division: Andrew Edelen of Alice, Texas, served five and a half years in the U.S. Marine Corps as an aviation equipment mechanic. As a second-generation farmer, he has taken over his family’s 350-acre farm, Edelen Farms, where he produces grass-fed beef, pastured poultry, free range eggs and vegetables to sell at local farmers’ markets. Edelen has future goals, which include starting an additional farmers’ market, building new greenhouses, and expanding his products to include pork and goats. To assist in these efforts, Edelen will be awarded a Kubota L Series tractor to replace his ailing 40-year-old tractor.