Carolina Farm Credit Board Elects New Chairman and Vice Chairman

Statesville, NC (PRWEB) October 30, 2013

On October 23, the Carolina Farm Credit board of directors held an organizational meeting at which board members elected Mark A. Bray of Lawsonville as chairman and L. Kim Starnes of Salisbury as vice-chairman.

Mark A. Bray is the owner/operator of Ridgecrest Farm in Lawsonville, a beef cattle, stocker/feeder calf, and chicken breeder house operation. He is also co-owner of Bray Family Farms, a dairy operation. Bray has served on the Carolina Farm Credit board since 2003 and also serves on the Carolina Farm Credit board Governance, Executive, and Compensation Committees. Bray is also a member of the NC Cattlemen’s Association, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Northwest Junior Livestock Show and Sale, and Peter’s Creek Baptist Church.

L. Kim Starnes is the owner/operator of Four S Farms in Salisbury, a row crop, beef cattle, and pullet house operation. He has served on the Carolina Farm Credit board since 2007 and also serves on the Carolina Farm Credit board Audit Committee. Starnes serves as chairman of the Rowan County Ag Advisory Board, vice-president of the Rowan County Cattlemen’s Association, and secretary/treasurer of the Miller Ferry Volunteer Fire Department. He is also a member of the NC Cattlemen’s Association, NC Farm Bureau, Gideon’s International, and is a deacon and Sunday school director at Trading Ford Baptist Church.

Carolina Farm Credit is a stockholder-owned cooperative providing short, intermediate, and long-term financing to full and part-time farmers and agricultural-related businesses and also provides financing for the construction and purchase of homes in 54 counties through 36 service centers. Other financial services available are credit life insurance, crop insurance, appraisal services, leasing programs and financial planning.    

Carolina Farm Credit serves over 9,000 members with loans outstanding totaling more than $1.3 billion. The association’s territory covers the western half of North Carolina, with service centers located in Albemarle, Asheboro, Asheville, Boone, Browns Summit, Burnsville, Carthage, Concord, Ellerbe, Graham, Hendersonville, Hillsborough, Jefferson, Lenoir, Lexington, Lincolnton, Marshall, Mocksville, Monroe, Murphy, Newton, Pilot Mountain, Roxboro, Rural Hall, Salisbury, Shelby, Siler City, Sparta, Spindale, Statesville, Taylorsville, Wadesboro, Waynesville, Wilkesboro, Yadkinville, and Yanceyville.

Carolina Farm Credit was recognized as a 2013 Best Employer in North Carolina. The list of the Best Employers in North Carolina was created by Business North Carolina, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) – NC State Council and Best Companies Group. Carolina Farm Credit is the 5th Best Employer in North Carolina in the small to medium-sized company category.

Directors for Carolina Farm Credit are; Mark A. Bray, Chairman, Lawsonville; L. Kim Starnes, Vice-Chairman, Salisbury; John M. Barnard, Statesville; E. Bernard Beck, Seagrove; W. Rex Bell, Statesville; David M. Coltrane, Pleasant Garden; Susie J. Gambill, Sparta; Joseph A. Lail, Shelby; W. Steve Love, Graham; Bobby J. “Bud” Matthews, East Bend; Clark M. Newlin, Haw River; Thomas E. Porter, Jr., Concord; Tony L. Ragan, Sanford; D. Kaleb Rathbone, Waynesville; Lewis E. Smith, Lincolnton; Vickie N. Smitherman, East Bend; Dr. Alton Thompson, Summerfield.

Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/10/prweb11281880.htm

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