SALINAS – Four individuals have been honored with the 2013 Ag Leadership Awards by the California Agricultural Leadership Foundation (CALF) and the Ag Leadership Alumni Council. The awards were presented on Oct. 17 at Fresno State.
Stephen Patricio and Ron Macedo received the 2013 Profiles in Leadership Award, which recognizes Ag Leadership Program alumni for their leadership actions resulting in the betterment of industry, community, business, government, education and/or the environment.
Patricio is president and CEO of Westside Produce and a Class 19 alumnus. He is regarded as a passionate and visionary leader in the produce industry who has been an active and important voice for food safety for the past 20 years. Macedo is the owner and manager of R.A.M. Farms, Inc. and a Class 32 alumnus. He has made a powerful impact in the agriculture industry and in his community through leadership roles, volunteer and outreach efforts, and his businesses.
David Wehner and Rob Yraceburu received the 2013 Honorary Fellow Award, which recognizes individuals who have demonstrated consistent commitment and uncommon excellence in the furtherance of education and leadership in California agriculture. Recipients are also dedicated and longtime supporters of the California Agricultural Leadership Program.
Wehner is interim vice president of strategic initiatives at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and former dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. In his role as a CALF partner university dean for 11 years, he provided valuable expertise, insight and support to Ag Leadership. Yraceburu is the executive vice president and division manager of Wells Fargo’s National Food & Agribusiness Division. He has brought his business perspective and breadth of experiences to the CALF board since 2009. Both have also participated on Ag Leadership candidate screening committees.
“We are extremely pleased to recognize these four distinguished individuals,” said CALF President and CEO Bob Gray. “They are all exemplary leaders and role models who have made a difference in countless ways, and we are proud that they are affiliated with Ag Leadership.”
CALF operates the Ag Leadership Program, which is considered to be one of the premier leadership development experiences in the United States. Since it was first delivered in 1970, more than 1,200 men and women have participated in the program and have become influential leaders and active volunteers in agriculture, government, communities, business and education.
Stephen Patricio, Class 19
Stephen Patricio is president and CEO of Firebaugh-based Westside Produce, a major grower/packer/shipper of cantaloupe and honeydew melons that he co-founded in 1993. A CPA by profession, he entered the produce industry 38 years ago. For the past 20 years, Patricio has been a visionary leader in the produce industry. He has been an active and important voice for food safety – and frequent media contact – during multiple outbreaks. In 2006, while chair of Western Growers Association (WGA), Patricio assisted leafy greens growers in establishing California and Arizona LGMAs after an E. Coli outbreak. Following a 2011 listeria outbreak in Colorado and 2012 salmonella outbreak in Indiana, he worked with California melon handlers to form the state’s first mandatory food safety program. He has assisted various groups and university researchers in developing guidelines and best practices for the cantaloupe industry. Patricio serves on the Center for Produce Safety board (chair), WGA board, PMA board, California Melon Research Board, California Cantaloupe Advisory Board and Monsanto's Agricultural Strategic Planning Board. He has been a board member and advisor to closely held family businesses and chair of Monrovia Nursery. He has also volunteered for schools, his church and the Ken Anderson Cancer Foundation. Recently, Patricio helped to establish the New Bethany Foundation to care for seniors afflicted with Alzheimer’s or dementia.
Ron Macedo, Class 32
Lifelong farmer Ron Macedo is the owner and manager of R.A.M. Farms, Inc., a custom farming and farm management business in Turlock. Over the past 30 years he has grown oats, almonds, alfalfa, silage corn, watermelons, pumpkins and sweet potatoes. Through leadership roles, volunteer and outreach efforts, and his businesses, Macedo has made a powerful impact in the agriculture industry and in his community. Several years ago, Macedo and his wife, Karen, created a pumpkin patch and 20-acre corn maze that has become a popular local destination for family outings, school field trips and parties. Macedo has also served his community through the Kiwanis of Greater Turlock, the Stanislaus County Fair board and the Turlock Rural Fire Department. In the agriculture industry, Macedo has been actively involved with Farm Bureau for more than 20 years at the state and local level. He was formerly a state director for the California Farm Bureau Federation and past president of the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau. He has also been involved with many Ag Leadership alumni activities. In 2009, Macedo was elected to the Turlock Irrigation District, and he will run again in November 2013. The Turlock Chamber of Commerce recognized him as its 2013 Agricultural Leader of the Year.
Dr. David Wehner
David Wehner is interim vice president for strategic initiatives at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. From April 2002 until June 2013, he was the dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences (CAFES). He had previously served as associate dean and assistant dean. Wehner joined the Cal Poly faculty in 1994 as head of the Environmental Horticultural Science Department and professor of turfgrass science. Under his leadership as dean, CAFES led all of Cal Poly’s colleges in the amount of money raised over the past few years, enabling it to significantly expand and strengthen its curriculum. Wehner developed the idea of the Agriculture Technology Center and was instrumental in securing an $8 million lead gift that will help establish the center. He was closely involved in the development of the Leprino Foods Company partnership that is enabling Cal Poly to expand its dairy science program, as well as the California Strawberry Commission partnership to create the Strawberry Sustainability Research and Education Center on campus. Beyond Cal Poly, Wehner served on the California State Board of Food and Agriculture, on the CALF board of directors, and on CALP candidate screening committees.
Rob C. Yraceburu
Rob Yraceburu is the executive vice president and division manager of Wells Fargo’s National Food & Agribusiness Division. Previously, he led the Wells Fargo Commercial Banking operations in Southern California. From 1999 to 2008, Yraceburu was regional manager in Bakersfield. In all, he has worked more than 25 years in several finance positions for the company in the Central Valley. Yraceburu is a fourth-generation family farmer. His great grandfather emigrated from Spain at the start of the 20th century and began dry-land farming 160 acres of grain on the Westside. His grandfather purchased a Central Valley grape and raisin operation in the late 1950s. Today, his father farms grapes, raisins and almonds. Yraceburu and his wife, Gayle, purchased their first farming operation in 1987. He has served on numerous industry and community organizations, including the Kern Economic Development Corporation, California State University, Bakersfield advisory board, Kern Agricultural Foundation, the Association for Retarded Citizens, and the Kern Community Foundation. Yraceburu has served on the CALF board of directors since 2009 and on CALP candidate screening committees.
Source: California Agricultural Leadership Foundation
