Association Insider - Winter 2014 Edition

Our latest issue of the Association Insider is now available on our website.  Please click here to read about:

• New Yankee Offices, Same Great Service
• Middlebury Office a Nice Fit
• Yankee Offers QuickBooks Courses
• Financially Related Services - We Work Hard to Stay Current
• Look for Yankee at the Upcoming Events
• Scholarship Winners 
• Tax Reporting Deadlines
• Employee News 
• Spring Crop Insurance
• FarmStart Initiative 

2015 Director Nominees

One of the things that makes Yankee successful is a strong board of directors. Our Nominating Committee is dedicated to providing a diverse selection of candidates for members to vote on. At our upcoming annual meetings in April there will be four positions to vote for: three 3-year terms, one in each region; and a 1-year term for Region 3. The 1-year position this year is to fill the remainder of the term of director Paul Saenger, who unfortunately passed away in October.

The Nominating Committee met yesterday to interview potential candidates for director.

The following members were nominated for the three 3-year terms:

Region 1
Rocklyn Giroux (incumbent)
Dr. Marco Turco

Region 2
Samuel Lincoln
Bradley Maxwell (incumbent)

Region 3
David Folino
Theodore Foster (subsequently removed his name from consideration)
Stephen Taylor (incumbent)

The following members were nominated for the 1-year term:

Region 3
Jane Clifford
Rene Saenger
Miles Tudhope

Below is a map of the director regions (click on the map to enlarge):

If you are interested in running for director in the future, we encourage you to contact anyone on the Nominating Committee. See page 49 of the annual report for names and contact information. Thank you to the Nominating Committee members and to the candidates for director for their time and devotion to providing an excellent slate of candidates for the membership to vote on.

Sharing Success Contribution to 4-H

Yankee Farm Credit and CoBank recently donated $5,000 each to 4-H in NY, NH and VT to help support a Tri-State Career Exploration Tour focused on Food Systems. 

CoBank’s contribution is part of their “Sharing Success” program, a $3 million matching grant program designed to benefit cooperatives and charitable groups they support throughout rural America. CoBank launched this program in 2012 to coincide with the United Nations “International Year of Cooperatives.” 

George Putnam, President and CEO, Rocky Giroux, Chairperson, Kurt Reichelt, UVM Annual Fund Officer

The tour will allow for fifty to one hundred 4-H members, in grades 7-12, to learn about careers that support the food chain––from food enterprises, marketing and promotion, lab-based research and technology, financial management and more. The overall outcome is for youth to gain an increased understanding of what careers are possible in the agricultural sector beyond farming and to learn what sort of education and skills are necessary for those careers.  Specific details about the tour are still evolving, but the contribution of $10,000 will be used to help pay for transportation, lodging and other expenses.  The planning team consists of 4-H Educators from the University of New Hampshire, Cornell University and the University of Vermont.

UPDATE 1/15/15: There is an article about 4-H in today's Burlington Free Press: "Not your grandmother's 4-H club."

UPDATE 2/17/15: Click here for a news release about this donation published in the Rutland Herald on 2/13/15.

Promotion - Jesse Taft

Please join us in congratulating Jesse Taft on his promotion to Credit Analyst for our Commercial Lending Division.  Jesse began his career at Yankee as a part-time clerical position and quickly made himself part of the team in the White River office.  After a brief time as a part timer he was hired as a full time Financial Services Assistant.  Jesse passed the 1A Assistant Tax Specialist exam and also the Payroll Specialist exam.  He jumped into writing posts for the blog and has become a valuable member of our newsletter group.  Jesse was excited about the creation of our commercial lending department and after some consideration opted to apply his analytical skills as a credit analyst.    

Jesse graduated from Wesleyan University with a B.A. in history and resides in Cornish NH with his wife Holly and their three children, Ayla, Marin and Abe.  

Career Opportunity - Office Assistant, St. Albans, VT

Yankee Farm Credit, a leading provider of credit and financial services to the agricultural community in Vermont, western NH and the Champlain Valley of NY is looking for someone who is passionate about agriculture and who wants to be involved with supporting local farm businesses to ensure their success.

The Office Assistant assists the branch credit function including the complete and timely preparation of loan documents, assisting loan officers with closing loans, and maintaining organized loan files per Association guidelines. Other duties include processing credit life insurance, tracking casualty insurance on collateral, and key-person life insurance. General office administrative support includes bank account reconciliation, GL accounting, and ordering office supplies.

The desired individual will hold an Associate's degree in accounting, business or a related field. Prior experience helpful but not required. Applicants having relevant experience will also be considered. 

For a more detailed job description, please visit our website at https://www.yankeeaca.com/en/About-Us/Career-Opportunities.aspx

To be considered for this position please send a cover letter and resume to:
Ruchel St. Hilaire, Yankee Farm Credit, P.O. Box 467 Williston, VT 05495 or reply via e-mail

Yankee Farm Credit offers a full, comprehensive benefits package.
EO/AA Employer- M/F/D/V