The Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers has a new president: Liz Strom, farm manager and real estate broker for Murray Wise Associates, Champaign.

Strom hails from Toulon, Ill., where her family raises corn, soybeans and beef cattle. She’s the second woman to be elected president of the society in its nearly 100-year history, and is the youngest person ever elected.

Among her goals: expand their membership to a younger crowd. “We’re creating groups like the Young People’s Network to bring in young, new members and really get them involved in the organization,” she says.

The 2024 ISPFMRA board includes Strom as president; Michael Lauher, First Mid Ag Services, president-elect; Laura Enger, Farm Credit Illinois, vice president; Maria Boerngen, Illinois State University, academic vice president; Gary Schnitkey, University of Illinois, secretary-treasurer; and Russ Hiatt, Hiatt Farmland Services, past president.

NEW BOARD: The 2024 ISPFMRA board includes (front, from left) Liz Strom, Murray Wise Associates, president; and Michael Lauher, president-elect, First Mid Ag Services. In back (from left) are Laura Enger, Farm Credit Illinois, vice president; Maria Boerngen, Illinois State University, academic vice president; Gary Schnitkey, University of Illinois, secretary-treasurer; and Russ Hiatt, Hiatt Farmland Services, past president.

Strom was a 4-H and FFA member in Stark County and graduated from Iowa State University in 2016. After graduation, she spent five years working in the Quad Cities area as a farm manager, and then joined Murray Wise Associates in Champaign about three years ago.

“What I really like about farm management is that it’s a service industry,” Strom says. “We’re helping families, and we get to help the landowner with whatever goals they’re trying to achieve.”

Overall, she says she loves working with farmers.

“They’re just great people, and I grew up in the ag industry, so I really enjoy them,” she adds. “You really see a weight lifted off someone’s shoulders when they transfer the management to you to take care of, because they trust you.”

Strom’s most recent auction was for a multi-parcel auction in Douglas, Piatt and Moultrie counties that added up to 860 acres of Class A ground, selling for $14.9 million. She says that part of the job is gratifying, too.

“Sometimes we work with people who’ve inherited a farm and want to sell it but don’t know where to start,” she says. “We’re able to make the process really easy for them, and I get a lot of enjoyment out of being able to do that for people.”

What’s next? Strom expects interest rates to cause farmland sales to flatten in 2024.

“If corn prices and commodity prices stay at current levels, I think we could see just a little softening. But nothing major — there’s just too much demand for farmland,” she says. “We always have someone looking for farmland.”

SERVICE: Michael Lauher presents the ISPFMRA’s Outstanding Service to Illinois Agriculture Award to Holly Spangler, editor at Prairie Farmer.

Handing out hardware

During its recent annual meeting, the ISPFMRA also recognized several individuals with awards:

Hall of Fame. Lowell Akers, past owner of Akers Appraisal Group, Sycamore, Ill., was honored for his many years of membership and support since 1967, plus his consistent record as a mentor.

Outstanding Service to Illinois Agriculture. Holly Spangler, Prairie Farmer editor, was recognized for her work leading the magazine and providing information to farmers over the past 26 years.

Lifetime Honorary Membership. Pat Tomlinson, Ag Spectrum and AgPro LLC, does part-time real estate work. This is only the fourth time this award has been presented.