Airing on the Side of Agriculture

Dustin Hoffmann, supervising editor and senior farm broadcaster for Iowa Agribusiness Radio Network, has built model railroads since childhood.

“I have been working on model railroads since 1990 when I was 10,” Hoffmann said. “I got my first train set for Christmas that year, and my dad and I built a small layout in my bedroom. I’ve been improving and upgrading ever since.”

Hoffmann’s parents curated his love of railroad modeling as he grew up.

Corryn La Rue joined American Ag Network as a farm broadcaster and content specialist on Sep. 30.

Born and raised on the Central Coast of California, La Rue grew up surrounded by agriculture.

“My grandma was raised on a citrus orchard, and my family comes from cattle production,” La Rue said. “I showed various livestock species and was active in 4-H and FFA.”

Susan Moriarty, head of communications and events for Mahindra Ag North America (MAgNA), assisted with planning and executing MAgNA’s 30^th anniversary celebration.

Eric Pfeiffer became president of Hoosier Ag Today (HAT) on Jan. 1, 2025.

Pfeiffer started his broadcasting career as a teenager in high school.

“I started doing radio in 2003, but I went full-time in 2005 after I graduated from high school,” Pfeiffer said. “I was the youngest news director in the history of WSAL and WLHM in Logansport, Indiana.”

STATE FARM BUREAU AWARDS DORENKAMP – Mark Dorenkamp, Ag News anchor/reporter or Brownfield Ag News, was named 2024 Minnesota Farm Bureau Ag Communicator of the Year.

Dorenkamp received the award during the organization’s 106th Annual Meeting on Nov. 22 in Minnetonka.

SIDENSTRICKER TRAVELS TO AFRICA – Kevin Stridenstricker, agriculture news director for KKOW, traveled to Africa for vacation in September 2024.

Sidenstricker and his mother took this once-in-a-lifetime trip to fulfill a lifelong dream.

KREIFELS STARTS SMALL BUSINESS – Madison Kreifels, a senior at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, owns InfoFilm, a communications business she started in college.

Kreifels is a student member of NAFB, and she was a recipient of a NAFB Foundation scholarship in 2023. She grew up in the agricultural industry.

ELLIS REJOINS WCIA STAFF – Stu Ellis, farm broadcaster, rejoined the staff at WCIA after a two-year gap.

Ellis grew up watching Channel 3 in central Illinois, but no farm broadcaster was on staff. He started out doing a short farm program each morning.

ANDERSON RETIRES FROM NATIONAL FFA OFFICE – Morgan Anderson, a junior at Ohio University, retired from serving as the National FFA Eastern Region Vice President in October 2024.

She grew up in a rural town, where she saw food waste and hunger coexist.