The
New Jersey State Board of Agriculture has awarded
its highest honor for distinguished service to
the agriculture industry to five men: Richard
S. Brown, Mickleton; Fred Clucas, Oldwick; Charles
Miller, Sewell; i, Dayton; and John U. Maple,
Lawrenceville. Carl Tarabbio, Jr., Vineland,
was chosen as New Jersey's Outstanding Young Farmer
for 1999.
RICHARD
S. BROWN
A
retired dairy, grain and forage farmer in East
Greenwich Township, Gloucester County, Richard
S. Brown is an innovative and insightful leader
of the agricultural community. Born and raised on the family farm, Brown is the third generation
to own and live on the property. Begun as a dairy
farm, the land produced a variety of crops to
augment the farm's income and, during the war
years, 12,000 broilers were raised annually.
The operation became the first in Gloucester
County to install a free-stall barn, milking
parlor and bulk tanks for storage. After the
devastation of Hurricane Hazel in 1954 and a
cataclysmic fire in 1970, the 200-acre family
farm changed from a dairy farm to a hay, straw,
grain and custom work enterprise. Today the home
farm, plus 600 rented acres and 1,000 custom
acres, is managed full-time by Richard's son
Steven and grandson Daniel with the participation
of Steven's brothers, Timothy and Roy. A visionary
planner and chairman of East Greenwich Township's
planning board for the past 32 years, Brown has
seen the township's transition from a rural area
to a suburban community. He is also a member
of the Gloucester County Agriculture Development
Board which has overseen the growth of farmland
preservation within the county. He has been a
farmer-member of the New Jersey State Agriculture
Development Committee since 1991 and currently
serves as both vice chairman of the committee
and chairman of its Right to Farm Sub-Committee.
A 1995 recipient of the Gloucester County Board
of Agriculture's Distinguished Service to Agriculture
award, Brown has served on the Board of Directors
for 10 years. Brown is a member of both the American
Farm Bureau and the New Jersey Farm Bureau. He
has also been a member of the Subordinate, Pomona
and New Jersey State Grange since 1941, holding
various offices and positions. Currently, he
is a member of the New Jersey State Grange Legislative
Committee and of the National Grange. Brown also
served as director of the 4-H Fair Association
for 13 years and continues to assist with annual
fund-raising activities. Brown and his wife,
Grace, have seven children, Susan, Clinton, Loretta,
Amy, Roy, Timothy and Steven, 10 grandchildren
and one great-grandchild.
FRED
B. CLUCAS
Fred
B. Clucas has been a dedicated leader in the
Garden State's agricultural industry for many
years. Clucas, who farms more than 1,200 acres
of field crops, has been actively farming in
Hunterdon County for 42 years. He originally
began raising beef cattle before converting to
grain about 16 years ago. He currently manages
the family farm operation with two of his sons. All of Clucas's corn is produced by using minimum tillage practices
and the cropping acreage has been in the Rutgers
Cooperative Extension field crop IPM program
for the last three years. The Clucas farm has
storage capacity for 58,000 bushels of grain
and includes a grain-drying facility. The grain
is marketed directly to Lancaster, Pennsylvania,
for feed. Clucas also operates a three-trailer
custom grain hauling service. In addition, Clucas
custom farms approximately 300 acres annually.
Clucas has actively participated in Hunterdon
County Soil Conservation District programs, installing
over 7,000 feet of terraces, 3,000 feet of waterways
and many conservation tillage practices. Always
an enthusiastic supporter of Rutgers Cooperative
Extension programs, he has been a valuable resource
in the development of Rutgers' Snyder Research
and Extension Farm as well as an advocate for
the formation of the Grain and Forage Producers'
Association of New Jersey. Clucas has served
as past president of the New Jersey Hereford
Association; founding member and past president
of the Grain and Forage Producers' Association
of New Jersey. Clucas served as vice president
of the State Board of Agriculture during the
1996-1997 term and served six years on the New
Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station Board
of Managers. He currently serves on the Washington
Agway Committee; the Hunterdon County Agricultural
Development Board; the Tewksbury Township Open
Space Committee; and the Executive Committee
of the Hunterdon County Board of Agriculture
and is an active member of the New Jersey Farm
Bureau. In addition, he serves as chair of the
Hunterdon County Farm Service Agency Committee.
A founding member and past president of the Hunterdon
County Board of Agriculture, Clucas was honored
with their Distinguished Service Award and the
Flemington Fair's William J. Kinnamon Memorial
Award. Clucas holds a bachelor's degree in animal
husbandry and soils from Rutgers University College
of Agriculture. Clucas currently serves as a
lector in St. Brigid's Church in Peapack as well
as a charter member of the Pottersville Fire
Company. He and his wife Florence have four sons,
Bob, Don, Paul and Scott, and two grandsons Matthew
and Jack.
DR.
RICHARD ILNICKI
Dr.
Richard D. Ilnicki's dedication to the agricultural
community through research and teaching is reflected
in his outstanding record of achievement in support
of the industry. Ilnicki received a bachelor's degree in plant science and a master's
degree in agronomy and plant physiology from
Rutgers University and a Ph.D. in agronomy and
weed science from Ohio State University. After
serving in the United States Army as a plant
physiologist, Ilnicki was appointed as research
agronomist in weed control in the crops section
of USDA's Agricultural Research Service and assigned
to Rutgers University. In 1960, Ilnicki was hired
by Rutgers University as an associate research
specialist at the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment
Station in the Soils and Crops Department. He
was promoted to Research Professor of Weed Science
in 1963, a position he held until his retirement
in 1991. Ilnicki is the co-author of numerous
scientific research publications and was selected
by the Weed Science Society of America to serve
as part of a team of weed scientists visiting
China in 1990. A charter member of the Board
of Trustees of the New Jersey Museum of Agriculture,
Ilnicki still serves on the Board. He is also
a member of many professional and civic organizations
including the New Jersey Agricultural Society,
the Princeton Agricultural Association, the Northeastern
Weed Science Society, the Weed Science Society
of America, Mercer County Pomona Grange No. 5,
Pioneer Grange No. 1 and the New Jersey State
Grange. Ilnicki has received a variety of special
achievement awards and recognitions, including
the Outstanding Teacher Award from the Weed Science
Society of America; the Pesticide Association
of New Jersey's Distinguished Service Award;
and the Cook/CAES Distinguished Alumni Award.
He was also a charter member of the South Brunswick
Library Board of Trustees of which he is president.
An accomplished hobbyist breeder of day lilies,
Dr. Ilnicki and his wife, Helen, have three daughters,
Deanna Joy Berardi, Carolyn Beth Gebbie and Janet
Ruth Adamko. They also have two grandchildren,
Arianna Berardi and David Gebbie.
JOHN
U. MAPLE
(posthumous)
Service
to others guided the life of John U. Maple. A
caring, unassuming man, he served the agricultural
community, the Grange organization and his neighbors
with pride, dedication, and enthusiasm. A member
of the New Jersey State Grange since 1943, Maple
held a variety of leadership positions in that
organization, from Master of both his Subordinate
and Pomona Granges to Chairman of the National
Grange Executive Committee. In 1976, he became
Master of the New Jersey State Grange, overseeing
the program, legislative and industry activities
of the Grange and providing a strong voice of
advocacy for the Grange. Maple was an active
member of many agricultural organizations, including
the New Jersey Farm Bureau, the New Jersey Agricultural
Society, and the Garden State Milk Council. He
also served as a valued trustee of the New Jersey
Museum of Agriculture. Moreover, Maple served
the community where he lived in many ways. A
member of the Lawrence Township Police Department
for 27 years, he spent all but two years of his
career in its juvenile department, retiring as
a detective. His numerous civic activities included
his life membership in the Lawrence Fire Company,
of which he was past president and chief. He
was also a charter member of the Lawrence Township
First Aid Squad and a member of American Legion
Post 76, Masons Lodge 38, and the Fraternal Order
of Police of Ewing Township, Lodge 83. He was
active in Lawrence Township's Little League,
Babe Ruth and Senior Babe Ruth baseball teams.
In addition, he was an attendance officer at
West Windsor-Plainsboro High School. An ordained
deacon of the Lawrenceville Presbyterian Church,
Maple was a devoted husband to Peg and father
to Thomas, Alan and Heather. The State Board
of Agriculture is deeply saddened by the death
of John Maple and the entire agriculture community
mourns the loss of a dedicated advocate.
CHARLES
M. MILLER
Charles
M. Miller has been an advocate for New Jersey
agriculture for most of his life. Born in Camden
in 1921, Miller chose a career as a dairy farmer,
a career he followed in Warren County for more
than 40 years Miller has been a leader and innovator in the dairy industry,
numbering among his accomplishments the New Jersey
Dairy Open House Program, which he developed
with fellow dairyman Bill Pettit. Miller also
worked on the national campaign that led to the "Real
Seal" program and helped to make New Jersey the
first state to include all milk processors in
the project. A former member of the American
Farm Bureau Federation's Dairy Advisory Committee
and chairman of the board of the Metropolitan
Dairy Council in New York, Miller initiated the
annual meeting between the New Jersey Farm Bureau's
Dairy Committee and the processing industry.
Miller's dedication to agriculture has earned
him numerous awards including the New Jersey
Agricultural Society's Williard H. Allen Award;
the Warren County Distinguished Service Award;
the Cook College Appreciation Award; the American
Dairy Association/Dairy Council's Dedicated Service
Award and Outstanding Dairyman Award; and the
New Jersey Farm Bureau's Distinguished Service
Award. In 1978 he was inducted into New York
State's "Who's Who" in recognition of his outstanding
work to improve agriculture in the Northeast.
Among his many agricultural affiliations, Miller
has served as Master of the Hurffville Grange
#115 and has been a member of the Gloucester
County Pomona Grange and the New Jersey State
Grange; president and vice-president of the Warren
County Board of Agriculture and a member of the
boards of agriculture in both Gloucester and
Hunterdon Counties; and a 4-H Club leader. Miller
currently works as the Dairy/Livestock Associate
for the New Jersey Farm Bureau. A member of the
executive committee of both the Cook College
Board of Managers and the American Dairy Association/Dairy
Council, he has also chaired the Warren County
Agriculture Development Board and served as a
director of New Jersey Farm Bureau. Miller and
his wife Carolyn recently celebrated 57 years
of marriage. Their son Charles Jr. and his wife
Sandra have two children, Brian and Todd.
CARL
TARABBIO, JR.
Carl
Tarabbio, Jr., of Vineland is a third generation
New Jersey vegetable farmer. Tarabbio's agricultural
roots date back to 1935 when his grandparents,
Aristide and Albina Tarabbio, began farming a
five-acre tract of land. In 1954, Carl Sr. began
running the farm, expanding the operation over
the years to cover 60 acres. As a young child,
Carl Jr. began working on the farm under the
watchful eye and guidance of his father. A graduate of Vineland High School, Tarabbio continued his education
at Delaware Valley College of Science and Agriculture,
later transferring to the University of Delaware
where he graduated with honors with a degree
in agricultural engineering technology. While
at the University, he was recognized as a member
of the Panel of Scholars and as a Senior Scholar
at Honors Day. Tarabbio has augmented his education
by taking real estate courses at Cumberland County
College. In addition, Tarabbio is a graduate
of the inaugural class of the New Jersey Agricultural
Leadership Development Program, a two-year program
designed to create the agriculture industry's
next generation of community leaders and industry
representatives. In 1991, while working for his
father, Tarabbio purchased a 15-acre farm and
some equipment. Since then, Tarabbio has continued
to grow in his role as farm manager, taking on
more of the managerial and policy-making responsibilities.
With this strong foundation, Tarabbio assumed
control of the farm in December 1997 following
his father's retirement. Tarabbio Farms was incorporated
in January 1998. In response to the potential
loss of agricultural chemicals important to the
specialty crops grown by Tarabbio Farms, Tarabbio
has moved to banded application methods as well
as integrated crop and pest management programs
to allow beneficial insects to control harmful
pests. Modifications to equipment and emerging
technology allow Tarabbio to enter the vegetable
market earlier and extend his production season.
A porous floating row cover on vegetable crops
permits early harvest and extends the growing
season into late fall. Through good soil management
and farm conservation practices, Tarabbio is
able to double- and triple-crop the farm's 18
main crops. In addition, the farm's irrigation
system was designed and installed in order to
conserve water, maintain water quality and control
runoff. Tarabbio Farms is located in a residential
area, situated between a national home improvement
chain and a mall. These sensitive receptors dictate
that a "good neighbor" policy must be maintained
by the farm. In order to reduce the potential
for soil erosion, noise and odors which may create
a nuisance to neighbors, vegetative windrows
and hedgerows were planted. Computerization of
the farm records has played an important role
in the operation of the farm since 1989. Included
in the computerized record-keeping are accounts
payable and receivable, general ledger and balance
sheets, sales analysis, chemical records, Spanish/English
documents essential for communicating with the
farm's migrant laborers, weather reports and
seeding records for timing varieties and results.
In 1997 Tarabbio organized and funded a co-operative
marketing seminar entitled "Innovate or Evaporate," featuring
international co-operative experts, for the 200-member
Vineland Co-operative Produce Auction Association.
The seminar inspired co-op members to make significant
changes of benefit to all grower members. Over
the years, Tarabbio has held offices in numerous
organizations, including the Vineland Co-operative
Produce Auction Association, Cumberland County
Board of Agriculture, Cumberland County Agriculture
Development Board, Greater Vineland Chamber of
Commerce, Cooperative Marketing Association of
New Jersey, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives,
and the Cumberland County College Horticultural
Board. He is the recipient of the Greater Vineland
Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Agribusiness
Award, Southern New Jersey Development Council
Agriculture Award, and the Vegetable Growers'
Association of New Jersey Grower of the Year
Award. Tarabbio credits his parents with providing
him with the "gift of opportunity" that has enabled
him to own and operate a successful business
and to continue a proud family tradition.
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