Dr. Blaine has a Ph.D. in agronomy from Mississippi State University. In addition to owning and operating a timber, hay and cattle farm in central Mississippi, he is a partner/owner in Southern Ag Consulting, Inc., a crop consulting firm, and a partner/owner in Alliance Ag Risk Management. Dr. Blaine is a Certified Crop Adviser and a licensed Crop Consultant. He is a member of the Mississippi Farm Bureau, the Mississippi Forestry Association, the American Soybean Association, the Mississippi Soybean Association, the Mississippi Cattlemen’s Association, and the National Rifle Association. He and his wife, Emily, are members of Friendship Baptist Church and are the parents of four children.
Originally a Vernon, Alabama native, Mr. Davis has called Mississippi home since his early childhood. For over 40 years, he has been farming and currently farms approximately 7,200 acres of rice and soybeans with his two sons. He is a member of the Bolivar Church of Christ where he serves as an Elder. He and his wife Candy live in Shaw, Mississippi and have four children and ten grandchildren.
Ms. Becky Beard was born and raised in Sardis, Mississippi, and graduated from the University of Mississippi. She has been a partner with William, Pitts, & Beard PLLC, one of the leading CPA firms in and throughout the Hernando, Memphis and North Mississippi area. Ms. Beard served for seven years on the Mississippi Arts Commission Board and is currently a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Mississippi Society of CPAs. She currently serves as finance committee chair of Northwest Mississippi Community Foundation. Growing up, her family had a beef cattle operation, and currently her two brothers farm soybeans in Sardis, both of which have contributed to her appreciation of the rural lifestyle.
Mr. Cole has owned a crop insurance agency for more than 25 years. He is a farmer and land owner of 1,350 acres in Panola County where he farms rice and soybeans. He also has 50 head of cows. Mr. Cole is past president of The Panola Partnership and North Delta School. He is an elder of Batesville Presbyterian Church. He is currently president of Crop Insurance Professionals Association, director of National Cutting Horse Association, and he serves on the board of Indian Creek Drainage District. Mr. Cole received his BBA from the University of Mississippi. He and his wife, Karen, live in Batesville, Mississippi.
Mr. Hill has been a full-time farmer since 1970. He owns and operates a farm in Chickasaw County, consisting of beef cattle, cotton, soybeans, wheat and corn on 3,000 acres. He is a deacon of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, a director on the Farm Bureau board and a member of the ASCS County Committee. He and his wife Judy live in Woodland and have one child and four grandchildren.
Mr. McKee has lived and farmed around Friars Point, Mississippi for the majority of his life, where he and his wife Nancy currently live. John is part-owner of Circle S Irrigation/Envirosolutions, Inc., an irrigation technology business, based out of Clarksdale. He currently serves as Board Chairman and County Commissioner for Yazoo Mississippi Delta Joint Water Management District and on numerous boards including Coahoma Electric Rural Power Association, the Clarksdale/Coahoma County Airport, and the North Delta Compress and Warehouse. He also serves as Vice President of Farrell Gin Company.
Mr. Morton began farming in 1987. Keith and his wife, Beth, own and operate Morton Farms, Inc., which is comprised of 1,100 acres of cropland. Keith has served on the board of directors for the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation, the Mississippi Soybean Association, and the Mississippi Soybean Promotion Board. He has also served as the Mississippi Farm Bureau Soybean Commodity chairman and as Tippah County Farm Bureau president.
Mr. Robbins owns and operates a 4,500-acre row crop and timber farm primarily in Benton County. He raises 1,650 acres of soybeans and corn. He earned his BBA from the University of Mississippi in 1986. He is a past member of the New Albany Zoning Board, the New Albany Endowment for Education Board, and the Mississippi State Extension Advisory Committee. Mr. Robbins is also involved in various ministries through his church, the First United Methodist Church in New Albany. He and his wife, Jill, have three children and two grandchildren, and reside in New Albany.
Mr. Durham was raised in Southaven, Mississippi. He attended the University of Mississippi, where he received his Bachelor of Accountancy, Bachelor of Business Administration in Banking and Finance, and a Master of Accountancy. Mr. Durham is a Certified Public Accountant and received his Juris Doctor with a concentration in Business Law from the University of Mississippi and a Master of Law in Taxation from the University of Florida Levin College of Law. Mr. Durham is an Associate Attorney at Edmondson Sage Allen, PLLC in Oxford, Mississippi, where he practices in estate, business, and tax planning. He is a member of Young Professionals of Southaven and Oxford and is a member of the Mississippi Bar Young Lawyers Division. Mr. Durham resides in Hernando, Mississippi, where he attends Colonial Hills Church. Mr. Durham is an avid outdoorsman with a deep love for rural Mississippi, with family ties to farming in both Quitman and DeSoto Counties.