HERSHEY, Pa. — Westmoreland County dairy farmer Richard Ebert has been elected president of the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau.
Voting delegates from 54 county Farm Bureaus selected Ebert, who has served as the farm group’s vice president over the past 10 years. He will be the state Farm Bureau’s eighth president of the state’s largest farm organization.
The vote came during the Pa. Farm Bureau’s 64th annual meeting in Hershey.
Ebert succeeds Columbia County farmer Carl T. Shaffer, who served as resident for 10 years. Shaffer did not seek re-election.
“I am looking forward to working with all of our members and the county Farm Bureaus, because when we work together, we will exceed our expectations,” said Ebert.
Blairsville dairyman
Ebert, who co-owns Will-Mar-Re Farms in Blairsville, has been involved in Pennsylvania Farm Bureau for decades, as a member of the state board of directors, state dairy committee chairman, state policy development committee chair and vice president.
Earlier in his career, Ebert and his wife Diane were selected the winners of PFB’s Young Farmer & Rancher Achievement Award.
Other leaders
The state board of directors elected Juniata County hog farmer Chris Hoffman as vice president. Hoffman, who has served as a member of the state board of directors over the past eight years, will fill out the remaining year of the vice president’s term.
Hundreds of farmers from across the state attended Pennsylvania Farm Bureau’s 64th annual meeting Nov. 17-19 at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center to set policy for the statewide organization on issues affecting farm and rural families.
Pennsylvania Farm Bureau has a membership of nearly 60,000 farm and rural families.
