Behind the Scenes

In this issue of Behind the Scenes, we hear from three agribusiness lenders as they speak about their role at GreenStone.

Sara Trattles VP of Agribusiness Lending 15 years of service

Describe how your role carries out the GreenStone mission of supporting rural communities and agriculture. In my role I am helping GreenStone promote the mission by working to come up with solutions for my customers that will improve their businesses and help them feed America. The most obvious is providing financing, but as I work with them to understand their financing needs, I often uncover ways to support them beyond the loan, such as other services like crop insurance, accounting, tax preparation, and life insurance. I work to understand their future needs and evaluate how each project today impacts those plans.

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In working with specialty crops it is important to learn about the industry. It helps to understand the operations...

How has being able to specialize in specific commodities allowed you to better service your customers? In working with specialty crops it is important to learn about the industry. It helps to understand the operations, their marketing opportunities and ability to move the needle. Over the past ten plus years, I have worked with several specialty crops with extensive research done on blueberries. As I completed my Masters in Agribusiness I focused my thesis on profitability of the blueberry industry in southwest Michigan. My research included looking at other parts of the country and internationally where blueberries are grown, market channels, understanding the fresh and processed side of the business and the overall industry. This thought process can be adapted to all the specialty products we raise in Michigan. I believe this helps me to better understand, question, and partner with our customers. What do you enjoy about your role? I enjoy the diversity of the role. Some days are In front of customers on the farms and businesses exploring their livelihoods, others are working at a desk taking care of customers’ needs and learning more about the industry.

Troy Click VP of Agribusiness Lending 37 years of service

Describe how your role carries out the GreenStone mission of supporting rural communities and agriculture. My role as a lender with the GreenStone dairy team allows me to work with a specialized group of GreenStone members to provide them with high-quality, competitively-priced services, and to form long-term relationships with them so that their lender can have a positive impact on their business. What is your favorite customer memory? My favorite memories are the times I’ve been able to meet with farms that had three generations at the meeting. I’ve had a few instances where I loaned money to Grandpa and Grandma, then to their kids, and then to their grandkids. It can be both challenging and rewarding as the three generations do not always agree on the future path of the farm, but it is really rewarding when a plan falls into place and the farm continues to grow and be successful.

“I’ve had a few instances where I loaned money to Grandpa and Grandma, then to their kids, and then to their grandkids.

What do you enjoy about your role? I enjoy that my role allows me to work in numerous team settings. I’m part of the GreenStone dairy team which allows me to learn and work with our other Michigan and Wisconsin agribusiness lending experts. My team includes a group of analysts that help me put loan proposals together. And best of all, I really enjoy when a farm tells me I’m part of their team.

Kyle Hurley VP of Agribusiness Lending 6 years of service

Describe how your role carries out the GreenStone mission of supporting rural communities and agriculture. It is my role as a swine specialist to work to understand the changing needs of our pork producers as we meet with them at their farms, and assist them in obtaining and optimizing loans and other financial services from GreenStone to address those needs. Part of my role is to make customers aware of the full breadth of financing and financial services that GreenStone provides and suggest ways to help customers improve their farm’s performance, save interest, save time, or help them reduce risk. What is your favorite customer memory? This past year, while delivering Patronage checks, I had the pleasure of connecting with multiple family members from one of our pork producers. In separate discussions, both expressed how grateful they were to GreenStone for how we had worked with them during the difficult times they faced in 2020 and in the years prior to it, and how that was so important to their farm’s future and to their families. They also appreciated that GreenStone had provided them some additional credit during that time which helped them to become more efficient and take advantage of new market opportunities along with optimizing their loan structure and reducing interest costs with interest rate conversions. Those discussions motivate me to keep trying to find creative ways to serve our pork producers and other customers! What do you enjoy about your role? The best part of my job is meeting with customers, particularly when it involves providing financing to help the farm to solve a significant, long-term problem or goal. The excitement that the customers have about the promise of the new opportunity or solution that is brought about in part with the financing that GreenStone provides, is something I am privileged to share in as their lender. It is very satisfying to know I play a small part in helping them succeed. GreenStone exists to serve our customers by helping their families and farm operations navigate both the challenges of farming and of transitioning ownership and management of the farm over the long term. I particularly enjoy customer meetings where multiple generations are represented in the discussions and decisions and getting to know the families better. ■

My favorite memories are the times I’ve been able to meet with farms that had three generations at the meeting.