Fond Farewell From a True Florida Agriculture Advocate
December 7, 2020 
Working with local media comes with the territory of being a voice for the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association. It’ll be one of the jobs I miss.
Photo courtesy of FFVA
When I took the job of Public Affairs Director at the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association (FFVA) in 2006, it felt like I was coming full circle. I grew up in Apopka, then a small farming community of just a few thousand people in Orange County. If you didn’t own an orange grove, plant nursery, or a farm on the muck around Lake Apopka, you worked for somebody who did. My dad was a nurseryman, and I spent three summers as a teenager working in the greenhouses. My father-in-law also was in agriculture, selling crop-protection chemicals to farmers in the mid-South. After 21 years as an editor at “The Orlando Sentinel” and seven years helping to run a public relations firm in Orlando, I knew that FFVA was the perfect place for me to close out my career.
I’ve always told people that I have the best job in the world. I get to come to work every day, do what I love and know how to do, and I get paid for it. What’s more, I work for farmers, and there are no better people on the planet than the men and women who grow our food.
I have been so privileged to work for an association that is nationally known and respected. And that goes for the staff, too. For the past 14 years, I have had the enviable position of working with a team of experts who are known statewide and nationally as being the best in the business. Most of all, though, we are a family. We know each other, and we care for each other.
The issues over the years have been difficult and challenging: The need for immigration reform and access to a stable, agricultural workforce. Foodborne illness outbreaks that sicken consumers. Unfair Mexican trade practices that have destroyed our markets for two decades. Federal farm bills that invest important resources in specialty crop agriculture. Hurricanes and freezes that devastate crops. Citrus greening, which has decimated Florida’s iconic citrus industry. The ongoing loss of chemicals that can protect crops from threatening plant pests and diseases. An ever-changing media landscape that sometimes is tough to navigate. A consuming public that knows little about where its food comes from. A pandemic that shuttered markets this spring and caused millions in losses to specialty crop growers. And the list goes on.
The good news for FFVA members is that they have access to experts — people with passion and commitment — who can navigate these issues and advocate for effective solutions. When these big issues are at stake, FFVA is always at the table.
The best part of my job has been spending time with our members on their farms and in their packinghouses. I’ve gotten to know so many, and I consider them friends. I’ve appreciated the time they have graciously spent with me and our videography team as we have worked to tell their stories. They have always been agreeable when I ask them to speak to reporters who have questions and to go on camera for interviews when it’s necessary. They are the lifeblood of FFVA, and I am grateful for their leadership. My successor, Christina Morton, who takes over on Dec. 2, will be just as fortunate as I’ve been to work directly with our members.
If I’m counting correctly, this is my 146th — and final — column for Florida Grower. It feels odd leaving a job I love. I will miss the work, my colleagues, and our members. However, I’m also looking forward to spending more time with my husband, Mick, and our grandchildren (9-year-old Ethan, 2-year-old Emma, and 9-year-old twins Kelsey and Connor). I can’t wait for pool time, movies, tea parties, and mani-pedis. Even so, I will always have a special place in my heart for Florida’s farmers.