A Note from Michael Schmidt

A Note from michael Schmidt President, Central Illinois Ag

Another year of planting and harvest is complete and outlook says, “U.S. agricultural exports in Fiscal Year I think we are all excited to get this cold weather (FY) 2021 are projected at $140.5 billion, up $5.5 billion over with and get back in the field. This fall brought a from the revised forecast for FY 2020. This increase is bountiful harvest across the nation – it was great to see primarily driven by higher exports of soybeans and many of you in the field working sunrise to sunset. corn. Soybean exports are forecast up $4.2 billion from I am very proud of our team at Central Illinois Ag for demand from China and reduced competition from helping you maximize your time spent in the field. Brazil. Corn exports are projected up $700 million to Our dedicated service technicians and reliable service $9.0 billion on expectations of higher export volume.’’ managers continue to impress me each year but this season stands out especially. From early mornings However, as much as we plan for the future – we cannot packing up the service truck to late night service calls – predict it. One thing we can do is focus on the current they love what they do and it truly shows. situation and play the cards we are dealt in the best way.

It does not just stop there – our sales, parts, accounting, marketing, and leadership teams have really stepped up. We are all a team and understanding that we must work together and help each other out is the secret. As a business owner, I am extremely proud of our employees and the hard work they have put in this past year, a year of adapting to change but also pushing forward to support you, our Central Illinois Ag family.

We have lived through a year of unknowns, and guess what – 2021 will also be filled with unexpected events too, good and maybe not so good. However, the upcoming year has a lot to look forward to. The good news according to the USDA Outlook from August 2020, grain prices are expected to increase in 2021. The FY 2020 to $20.4 billion, largely due to expected strong As always, we enjoy getting to know you and your operation and helping you succeed in and out of the field. We look forward to hearing from you with the upcoming planting season – be sure to tag us on Instagram and Twitter at @LiveWorkGrowCIA, as well as follow us on Facebook!

Goodbye, 2020 – Hello, 2021. On behalf of all of us at Central Illinois Ag, thank you for another wonderful year. Michael Schmidt mschmidt@centralilag.com President, Central Illinois Ag @MPSchmidtAg

Women In Ag : Linda Garlisch

“When you get to do what you love every day, it does not feel like work,” says Linda Garlisch on being a woman working in the agriculture industry.

Linda grew up on her family’s grain and livestock farm in Mason City, Illinois. From a very young age, she remembers helping her father with the everyday chores around the farm and developing a passion for agriculture.

She and her siblings, Dean and Sue, were responsible for doing cattle chores each morning before school and spending each summer helping around the farm as well. Between walking beans, baling hay, and building fence, Linda learned the value of hard work from a young age. She and her siblings also showed cattle each summer and therefore, dedicated a lot of time to working with their animals before 4-H shows.

On snowy, winter days, she remembers when her dad would take them out to pick up hay bales from the field to feed the cows before dinner. He would drive his old, gray Fordson tractor and pull Linda, Dean, and Sue on a sled through the snow behind him; a fond memory that she and her siblings will never forget.

As Linda got older, she began to take on more responsibilities on the farm. She remembers the first tractor she drove: a John Deere 2020. She got the job of running it with the field cultivator in the spring, which little did she know, was just the beginning of many years of working in the field.

After school, Linda married Richard Garlisch, whom she met through showing cattle in 4-H. She then began working as a dental assistant, but continued to stay involved on her husband’s family farm. Richard farmed with his father, Louis Garlisch, when they first got married, so Linda helped them with field work part-time over the years. From running the combine to doing tillage work, Linda loved being an active part of her family’s operation.

Later on, they had their son, Scott, who Linda is grateful to have been able to raise similarly to how she and Richard were raised. Scott was always involved in the farming and livestock and went on to farm fulltime with Richard after college, keeping the family tradition alive. Photo: Linda and her grandsons Barrett (2) and Cooper (4) in her Farmall Linda decided to retire from tractor. dentistry after 33 years and was excited to have the opportunity to dedicate more time to farming with her family. Today, she is farming full-time with Richard and Scott in Forest City and is happy to be doing what she loves each day. She and Richard have also just celebrated 44 years of marriage. “I enjoy working outside and the flexibility of being your own boss,” says Linda. “But the best part is spending time with family each day.” way, which leads Linda to wonder how farming will be different when her grandsons, Cooper and Barrett, hopefully take over the operation in the future. Being a woman working in agriculture can sometimes have its Throughout her life, she has seen challenges, but Linda’s experience many changes in the agriculture over the years has been anything but industry from when she was a challenging in that way. “Guys in the child to now. GPS technology, industry have total respect for us weather radars, and improved women and treat us just the same,” communication through CBs in the says Linda. tractor are just some of the amazing advancements that she wishes her She strongly encourages more young dad were here to see today. “The women to be involved in agriculture changes that have come about from and offers one piece of advice: having unpaved roads and horses to “Things are always changing on the now having GPS and autosteer are farm, you have to be flexible and be incredible,” says Linda. able to roll with the punches, but if you have the drive to do it, do it,” she Photo: The Garlisch family It seems as though each generation says. “At the end of the day I cannot harvesting beans, Fall of 2020 on a farm sees great improvements in imagine doing anything else.” technology and machinery in some www.centralilag.com · Volume 8 Issue 1 6

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