Chairman J. Scott Markham owns and operates Markham Farms, Inc., a 120-cow dairy farm, with his wife, Penny, in Constableville, N.Y. Scott has been a Farm Credit director since 1989.

Vice Chairman Abbott W. Lee operates Lee Brothers, Inc., a sixth-generation family blueberry/cranberry farm. Abbott and his brothers grow 130 acres of cranberries and manage a 1,500-acre forest and watershed system in Chatsworth, N.J. Abbott was elected to the board in 2001

Matthew W. Beaton owns and operates Sure-Cran, Inc., which manages more than 600 acres of owned and leased cranberry bogs in southeastern Massachusetts. The company also provides custom harvesting, pesticide application, integrated pest management and other specialty services to local cranberry growers. A Farm Credit member since 1992, Matt was elected to the board in 2006.

John J. Dickinson was elected to the First Pioneer Board in 1999. A Farm Credit member since 1984, John owns and operates Ideal Dairy Farms, a 500+ dairy farm in Hudson Falls, N.Y., with his wife, Denise, and his parents. They also crop more than 1,900 acres.

Christine Fesko owns Fesko Farms, Inc.; Chris Fesko Enterprises, LLC; and the On the Farm Discovery Center, Inc. in Skaneateles, N.Y. Chris is in business with her husband, oldest son and daughter. They run the farm and help Chris with Fesko Enterprises and educational tours at the Discovery Center. Chris was elected in 2003.

Benjamin J. Freund operates Freunds Farm, Inc., a 200-cow dairy farm with 650 acres of pasture and crops, a 200-acre woodlot and a methane digester in East Canaan, Conn. Ben's family corporation includes his wife, Debra; brother, Matthew; and sister-in-law, Theresa. Ben was elected to the board in 2001.

Andrew J. Gilbert operates Adon Farms, a 750-cow operation which raises all of its replacements and grows all of its own forage and corn grain in Potsdam, N.Y. Andrew operates his business in partnership with his brother Tony. Andrew was elected to the board in 2005.

Ann P. Hudson, CPA of Suffield, CT was appointed by the Board as an outside director, one of two such positions on the Board. She has had a career in public accounting starting with Price Waterhouse and progressing through two other accounting firms. She is currently an independent consultant. She also serves as a member of the Governance Board at the New England College of Optometry and is a member of their Finance/Audit Committee. Ann was appointed in 2006.

Peggy Jo Jones is an outside director. A consultant providing training and human resource services to Albertsons LLC, a major food and drug retailer, Peggy previously served chair of the board of directors for Northwest Farm Credit Services. Peggy resides in Boise, Idaho and was appointed to the Farm Credit Board in March of 2008.

John Lyman, III owns and operates The Lyman Farm, Inc., a 1,100-acre orchard in Middlefield, Conn., with family members and other key managers. Elected to the First Pioneer board in 1999, John believes that a healthy lending institution is critically important to the success of Northeast agriculture. A Farm Credit member since 1981, John has also served on the Enfield Customer Service Council.

Chuck Newman is First Pioneer's first appointed customer director on the board of directors. Chuck and his wife, Rosalie, own and operate Planters’ Choice, LLC, a full-service wholesale nursery in Newtown, Conn. The Newmans have built Planters’ Choice into Connecticut’s largest wholesale grower of nursery stock in Fairfield and Litchfield counties, with more than 120 acres.

Sandra Prokop operates Crossbrook Farm, a 250-milker and 550-acre cropland operation, in Middleburgh, N.Y. with her husband, Richard, and son, Jon. Sandra was elected to the board in 2000.

Lyle C. Wells owns Wells Homestead Acres in Riverhead, N.Y. In business with his children, Lyle raises more than 100 acres of vegetables, flowers and herbs, which he markets through retail and wholesale channels. A Farm Credit member since 1980, Lyle has been on the board since 1999.

© 1999-2008 First Pioneer Farm Credit, ACA. All rights reserved.