jmaxwell@farmactionfund.us
Joe Maxwell is President of Farm Action Fund and a nationally recognized advocate for fair markets, rural economic independence, and a stronger American food system.
A fourth-generation Missouri farmer raising hogs, sheep, and grain, Joe brings firsthand experience to the challenges facing farmers and rural communities today.
He served 10 years in the Missouri legislature—four in the House and six in the State Senate—before being elected Missouri’s 45th Lieutenant Governor, where he worked to strengthen rural healthcare, protect consumers, and expand economic opportunity.
Today, Joe leads Farm Action Fund’s efforts to restore fair markets, take on corporate concentration in agriculture, and build political momentum for a more resilient, healthy food system. Through the Rural Independence Initiative, he is bringing together farmers, families, and leaders across party lines to address the challenges facing rural America.
Joe is a retired First Sergeant in the Missouri National Guard and holds degrees in agricultural economics and law from the University of Missouri.
wdavis@farmactionfund.us
Webster Davis owns Triple D Produce, located just west of Auxvasse, Missouri. He partners with local FFA groups to provide vegetable starts and inspire young people to pursue careers in food production. Webster has also mentored students through Lincoln University’s Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences (MANRRS) program, hosted an intern, and served on planning committees for the Minority and Limited Resource Farmers and Ranchers Conferences. A proud Ambassador for the Missouri AgrAbility Program, Webster helps farmers and ranchers return to their livelihoods after injury or illness.
A veteran, Webster enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps at age 18 and went on to serve nearly 23 years in the Marine Corps Reserve and Missouri Army National Guard. He is a member of the Farmer Veteran Coalition and the founder and chairman of the Missouri NAACP Agriculture Committee, which works to raise awareness of agricultural issues and opportunities.
Webster serves as treasurer of his local union at the Callaway Nuclear Plant and secretary of the Missouri State Conference of the NAACP, where he helps ensure records and institutional knowledge are preserved for future generations.
Speechwriter, debate coach, marketing and advertising strategist, Jay Townsend has worked in four U.S. Presidential campaigns, scores of U.S. Senate, Gubernatorial and Congressional races. He is the author of 3 books, So You Want to Run for Public Office, The Worst Mistakes Candidates Make and Timeless Lessons from the 2016 Election. Townsend has received several national awards for his work, including the nation’s best television commercial aired in a Gubernatorial race, the best persuasion mail piece produced for a Presidential campaign, and the nation’s best newspaper ad for a political candidate. A member of the National Speakers Association, Townsend has lectured on politics and political warfare at the United States Military Academy, the Marketing Research Association, the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, the Coro and Luce Foundations, numerous colleges and universities. He has appeared on NBC, NY1, Time Warner’s Capitol Tonight, FOX News, Canadian TV and is a former Sr. Global Advisor to the James Luce Foundation.
Irene Lin serves as Deputy Director of Campaigns for Farm Action Fund. She has managed campaigns for U.S. Senate, Governor and House of Representatives. She previously served as Policy Director for the National Family Farm Coalition and as Senior Advisor for USDA Rural Development and Rural Housing Service. Her Capitol Hill experience includes handling appropriations for Rep. Betty McCollum and working for the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee. A graduate of Amherst College, Irene did agricultural economics work at Johns Hopkins University where she obtained a Masters in Public Policy.
Wes Shoemyer is a family farmer in Northeast Missouri where he operates a diversified farm with his son and wife. Wes is a former member of the Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri State Senate. He has served on the board of the National Farmers Organization and Missouri’s Food for America. Wes is also a founding member of the Institute for Rural America.
Adam Shriver is the Iowa Political Director for the Farm Action Fund. Prior to working at FAF, he was the Director of Wellness and Nutrition at the Harkin Institute for Public Policy, where he organized four Harkin on Wellness Symposiums, a conference on Industrial Farm Animal Production, the Environment, and Public Health, and the first presentation of the Central Iowa Source Water Research Assessment, co-launched the Cancer and Environmental Risk Factors in Iowa Project together with the Iowa Environmental Council, and co-authored several reports. He grew up in Iowa and is an alum of Iowa State University. He has a PhD from Washington University in St. Louis and has conducted academic research related to food systems in positions at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of British Columbia, and Oxford University.
Speechwriter, debate coach, marketing and advertising strategist, Jay Townsend has worked in four U.S. Presidential campaigns, scores of U.S. Senate, Gubernatorial and Congressional races. He is the author of 3 books, So You Want to Run for Public Office, The Worst Mistakes Candidates Make and Timeless Lessons from the 2016 Election. Townsend has received several national awards for his work, including the nation’s best television commercial aired in a Gubernatorial race, the best persuasion mail piece produced for a Presidential campaign, and the nation’s best newspaper ad for a political candidate. A member of the National Speakers Association, Townsend has lectured on politics and political warfare at the United States Military Academy, the Marketing Research Association, the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, the Coro and Luce Foundations, numerous colleges and universities. He has appeared on NBC, NY1, Time Warner’s Capitol Tonight, FOX News, Canadian TV and is a former Sr. Global Advisor to the James Luce Foundation.
Dedicated to building a fair, transparent, and sustainable food system for all producers and consumers.
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