This award is presented to an Allied Industry Council or Management & Sales Council member who has demonstrated exemplary and committed service to NAFB. The award was renamed in 2006 to honor longtime member, leader and historian Dix Harper. It was first presented in 1957 to Charlie Karr. Karr was a sales promotion manger for Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. During Karr’s 35 years in the farm machinery business he spent more than $5,000,000 on farm radio and television advertising, according to the December 1957 eChats.
2024 Recipient
Augie Aga
Northern Ag Network
Billings, MT
2024 Augie Aga – Northern Ag Network, Billings, MT
2023 Gardner Hatch – Woodruff, Cottage Grove, MN
2022 Tim Marshall – KRVN Rural Radio Network, Lexington, NE
2021 Brenda Curtis – USDA Radio (retired), Silver Spring, MD
2020 Bill Holst – WNAX Radio, Yankton, SD
2019 Russ Parker – J.L. Farmakis, Lovilia, IA
2018 Mary Kay Thatcher – Syngenta, Washington, DC
2017 Lance Knudson – American Ag Network, Grand Forks, ND
2016 Sara Wyant – Agri-Pulse Communications, Camdenton, MO
2015 Mike Perrine - MP Ag Radio, Troy, IL
2014 Bill Farmakis - J.L. Farmakis, Inc., Wilton,CT
2013 Lynn Henderson – Agri Marketing, Adel, IA
2012 Mike Hansen - RFD-TV, Omaha, NE
2011 John Vasichek - Red River Farm Network, Grand Forks, ND
2010 Roger Olson - National 4-H, Hudson, WI and Denny Waddle - KRVN/Rural Radio Network, Lexington, NE
2009 Ron Claussen - Ag Media Research, Sioux Falls, SD
2008 Mark Vail - Eagle Communications, Inc., Parkville, MO
2007 Vic McGill - Clear Channel/KATZ Advantage, Chicago, IL
2006 Lyle Orwig - Charleston|Orwig, Hartland, Wisconsin
2005 Barry Nelson - John Deere, Lenexa, Kansas
2004 Gary Crawford - USDA, Washington, D.C.
2003 Hugh Whaley - Osborn & Barr Communications, St. Louis, Missouri
2002 Gene Hemphill - New Holland North America, New Holland, Pennsylvania
2001 Cindy Cunningham - National Pork Board, Des Moines, Iowa
2000 John Block - Food Distributors International, Falls Church, Virginia
1999 Larry Quinn - USDA Office of Communications, Washington, D.C.
1998 Anna Pfrang - Retired Former NAFB Staff Member, Topeka, Kansas
1997 Ted Haller - Katz Radio Group, Minneapolis, Minnesota
1996 Jim Evans - Retired, University of Illinois, Philo, Illinois
1995 Donna French Dunn - U.S. Feed Grains Council, Washington, D.C.
1994 Vic Powell - United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Communications, Washington, D.C.
1993 John Harvey - John Harvey Communications, Wilmington, Delaware
1992 Skip Ragland - Ciba-Geigy, Greensboro, North Carolina
1991 Charles Harness - National Pork Producers Council, Des Moines, Iowa
1990 Gene Millard - KFEQ, St. Joseph, Missouri
1989 Wava Pippert - Chair of NAFB Spouses Program; wife of Paul Pippert, WIBW, Topeka, Kansas
1988 Charles Might - NAFB Sales/Marketing, Racine, Wisconsin
1987 Tom Hoy - National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Washington, D.C.
1986 Jim Johnson - Chief, Radio and TV, U.S. Department of Agriculture
1985 George Logan - WIBW-TV, Topeka, Kansas and Executive Secretary, NAFB National Office
1984 Herb Plambeck - Living History Farms, Des Moines, Iowa
1983 Glenn Kummerow - Katz Radio Group, Chicago, Illinois
1982 Fred Masterson - Elanco Products Company, Indianapolis, Indiana
1981 Ray Kremer - NAFB Sales/Marketing, Mt. Dora, Florida
1980 Layne Beaty - Chief, Radio and TV, U.S. Department of Agriculture
1979 Dr. F. L. Whan - KWFT, Wichita Falls, Texas
1978 Ray C. Senate - WIBW, Topeka, Kansas
1977 Leo B. Olson - DeKalb Ag Research, Inc., DeKalb, Illinois
1976 Lee Bullis - Allen & Dorward, San Francisco, California
1975 Jim Mills - National Agricultural Chemicals Association
1974 Bill Alford - WMT, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
1973 Ben Ludy - KWFT, Wichita Falls, Texas
1972 Charles Dana Bennett - Foundation for American Agriculture, Washington, D.C.
1971 Jack Towers - U.S. Department of Agriculture
1970 Ward L. Quaal - WGN, Chicago, Illinois
1969 Larry Haeg - WCCO, Minneapolis, Minnesota
1968 Emmett Barker - American Feed Manufacturers Association
1967 Jack Timmons - KWKH, Shreveport, Louisiana
1966 Stan Torgerson - WMC, Memphis, Tennessee
1965 George Biggar - WLBK, DeKalb, Illinois
1964 Wallace Kadderly - Retired Oregon Farm Broadcaster and Chief, Radio & TV, U.S. Department of Agriculture
1963 Phil Alampi - New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture
1962 Milt Bliss - Soil Conservation Service, Hartford, Wisconsin
1961 Roy Battles - The National Grange, Washington, D.C.
1960 Frank Mullen and Bill Drips - NBC
1959 Dix Harper - Aubrey, Finlay, Marley & Hodgson, Inc., Chicago, Illinois
1958 Louis H. Wilson - National Plant Food Institute, Washington, D.C.
1957 Charlie Karr - Allis Chalmers Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin