AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the addition of Kandice Mathis as a Loan Operations Specialist to our Tifton Branch staff.  A native of Worth County, Mrs. Mathis has business experience that will be beneficial to AgGeorgia members.  She is currently attending Walden University and will graduate in May with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree.

Kandice grew up on a small farm and was very active in 4-H and FFA.  She and her husband Brad and son Liam live in the Worth County area.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit has announced that dividends totaling $15,678,582 have been declared by its board of directors, with 30% of borrowers’ 2020 accrued interest being returned.  The 30% return is the highest percentage returned by the Association since 2003.  Members should anticipate receipt of their checks the first week of April.

“I am proud of this Association’s performance in 2020, not only in light of the challenges faced by our members and staff, but primarily because of the result—a record return to our members, significantly decreasing their cost of borrowing,” said CEO Rob Crain.  “It is an honor to help continue AgGeorgia’s impressive history of returning profits to its members.” 

“Our board and staff look forward to this opportunity every year,” said Dave Neff, Chairman of the AgGeorgia Farm Credit Board of Directors.  “Returning profits to our borrowers aligns perfectly with our mission to improve the lives of Georgia’s farmers, families, and rural communities, and we are happy to do so.”

This marks the 33rd consecutive year the cooperative has returned profits to its members through its Patronage Refund Program, with over $397 million in cash being paid out since 1988.  The refund, from 2020 earnings, consists of more than $4.7 million in cash and over $10.9 million in allocated surplus, with the surplus portion to be used to maintain the capital position of the cooperative and returned to members at a later date.

“This year’s Patronage Refund lowers the average member’s stated rate by 1.50%,” said AgGeorgia’s CFO Brandie Thompson.  “For every dollar of interest expense accrued by our borrowers in our general portfolio in 2020, 30 cents are being paid back to them.”

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Elizabeth M. Benefield as In-House General Counsel for the organization.  Mrs. Benefield grew up in Delaware and is a proud graduate of the University of Delaware with a bachelor’s degree in European History.  Elizabeth continued her education at the University of London, Royal Holloway, graduating with a master’s degree in Medieval and Renaissance Studies before receiving her Doctorate of Law from Widener University School of Law.  Mrs. Benefield is well acquainted with the Farm Credit System, previously being employed by AgFirst Farm Credit Bank and Carolina Farm Credit.  She has extensive experience in standards of conduct, contract law, and mortgage and consumer lending, among other areas of focus.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Dannah Frost as Loan Assistant in the Sandersville Office.  A native of Johnson County, Ms. Frost graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness with a minor in Agriculture Economics.  While at UGA, she was a member of the Dairy Science Club, Cattlemen’s Association and Sigma Alpha.  Dannah grew up on a small beef cattle operation and showed swine for 15 years and was a member of the local FFA organization, serving as an officer.  She previously worked at Parker Fish Company and Metter Livestock Market.

Ms. Frost wants to help the youth of today and future generations be able to participate in agriculture. She looks forward to using her agriculture background to service the needs of residents of Baldwin, Glascock, Hancock, Jones, Warren and Washington Counties.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Janine Elliott as Loan Assistant in the Cartersville Office.  A native of New York, Ms. Elliott spent over 20 years as a paralegal assisting in residential and commercial closings, and also worked as a Facilities Coordinator for Kaiser Permanente.  Janine moved to Georgia in 1996 and now lives in Cartersville. She has one son and two grandchildren.

Ms. Elliott looks forward to using her previous experience to service the needs of residents of Bartow, Cherokee, Cobb, Paulding, Polk, Gordon and Pickens Counties.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Mary Kaitlyn Wheeler as Credit Officer in the Dublin Office.  Miss Wheeler is a native of Houston County and a long-time resident of Laurens County.  She is a graduate of Laurens County High School where she was very active in FFA in the local chapter and on the state level.  She also graduated from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness.  Mary Kaitlyn is a beekeeper and apiary owner and is proud to be a childhood cancer survivor, being nearly 18 years cancer free.

Miss Wheeler looks forward to using her ag affiliations and knowledge to service the financing needs of residents of Laurens and the surrounding counties.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Jenny Lamb as Senior Associate Accountant and Christy Pope as Administrative Assistant in the Perry Corporate Office. 

A native of Mitchell County, Mrs. Lamb has extensive experience in accounts payable, payroll and business in addition to having owned her own business in Pelham, Georgia.  She now is a resident of Houston County, where she lives with her husband, Jeff, and has two sons, Andrew and Dylan.

Mrs. Pope grew up on a family farm in Crawford County, helping out with the farming, animals and enjoying her childhood with her grandfather and family.  She graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science in Education.  Before moving to Colorado, she acquired experience at a financial institution and during her 26 years in Colorado, she gained sales and management experience.  Christy recently moved back to Bibb County with her husband, Michael, and she has two children.  She looks forward to again having a connection to agriculture and farmers, and being involved with the residents of Houston and the surrounding counties.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Kole Clark as a Credit Officer in the Perry Office.  Mr. Clark is a native of Brantley County and graduated from Georgia Southwestern State University with a bachelor’s degree in business.  During his college career, Kole was a summer intern with a Farm Credit association where he gained an understanding of the important role of lending.  That experience, along with his rural roots, enhanced his appreciation of farmers’ impact on the communities in which they live.

Mr. Clark looks forward to using his ag knowledge to service the financing needs of residents of Houston and the surrounding counties.

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to offer to our members a $150 credit towards the cost of the Executive Farm Management program’s Bootcamp.  The Executive Farm Management Program helps family farm operations with issues such as strategic planning, financial management, and human resource management.  Their Bootcamp is being held virtually this year, Feb. 9-11, with webinars leading up to the 3 day event.   AgGeorgia members can use the discount code "AgGeorgia" at checkout. 

The Executive Farm Management program is offered by partnership from NC State University, NC State Cooperative Extension Service, Clemson Cooperative Extension, ECU College of Business and University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.  The program has been designed for large, family-owned operations across the Southeast, but the curriculum focuses on the management aspects of the operation which is adaptable for all operations of any size, scale and commodity focus.

The 2021 program features an online experience consisting of 4 webinars on key topics followed by a Bootcamp to provide foundational skills in our core areas of strategic planning, financial management and human resource management. The Bootcamp is designed to prepare a strong group of farmers for the full program in 2022, which will consist of 10-12 days of content and curriculum taught across 3 sessions in 3 states over the course of 6-weeks. EFM is designed to increase the management competencies and profitability of specialty farms across the Southeast, by utilizing a holistic operation-focused curriculum.

Course topics include; Strategic Planning, Human Resource Management, Labor Management, Financial Management, Risk Management, Family Business Issues, Assessing Markets, Supply Chain Management, Brand Management and Marketing, Assessing and Building Key Partnerships and Strengthening an Operation’s Value Proposition, among others.

Sign up for the webinars and/or the 2021 Bootcamp at: https://execfarmmgmt.ces.ncsu.edu/about-execfarmmgmt/

AgGeorgia Farm Credit is pleased to announce the hiring of Thomas Floyd as a Relationship Manager and Sharon Neidlinger as a Loan Processor in our Waynesboro office. 

A native of Florence County, South Carolina, Mr. Floyd graduated from The University of South Carolina where he received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.  He grew up with a family of row crop farmers that have taken on chicken houses in recent years.  Thomas previously interned with AgFirst Farm Credit and AgSouth Farm Credit, our parent and sister associations.

Mrs. Neidlinger has over 21 years of experience in the banking business. Originally from Burke County, Sharon and her husband Edward have two children, Jesse and Tayler, as well as a two year old granddaughter, Stella.  She enjoys Georgia football, hunting and spoiling her granddaughter.

Mr. Floyd and Mrs. Neidlinger look forward to using their combined agricultural and banking backgrounds and Farm Credit experience to service the needs of residents of Burke, Columbia, Jefferson, McDuffie and Richmond Counties.