Joseph Doll has been a farmer for 60 years and is still loving it. He is also a farm broadcaster for WGEL Radio 101.7 FM (Greenville, Illinois).
“I’m a third-generation farmer. Farming with my dad and grandpa was a pleasure. We milked cows until 1998. Corn, soybeans, and wheat were our main crops. My grandpa planted an apple orchard in 1921. We are now in the fourth generation in the orchard business. I joined Illinois Farm Bureau in 1971 as a young farmer, and served on the board for 22 years, 16 years as president. I’ve attended 49 farm bureau annual meetings so far,” Doll said.
“The station farm reporter was going to retire and asked if I would be interested in doing the job. That was on a Friday. I asked if I could think about it over the weekend and came back on Monday. They said they had too many people interested, and they had more computer experience. I said they could stop with the first person who walked by having more computer experience. They gave me a try. They gave me a news story to read. I don’t read well. My first report took two hours to complete. They soon got easier after that. I like to talk about current conditions in agriculture and especially Bond County and the surrounding area.
“After joining the NAFB and attending my first meeting in Kansas City, I was proud to say I belonged. Anytime I need help in broadcasting, I know I can count on NAFB to be there with the proper help. Getting the correct information about agriculture out to the public — yesterday, today, and tomorrow — is very important. I look forward to being a farm broadcaster for many more years. One of the great things about the job is learning from the people we meet and interview. Once you make that first contact you have a person you can count on for more current happenings in agriculture. You may be a stranger the first time you meet, but hopefully you will develop a contact and a good friend,” Doll concluded.
