Maupins named Tennessee Young Farmers of the Year

A number of persons gather to congratulate Eric and Jo Ann Maupin on being selected as the Tennessee Young Farmer of the Year. They're standing in front of a Case IH Magnum 245 tractor the Maupins may use for a year. The tractor, which was presented Tuesday, is one of several prizes they received. Participating in the tractor presentation are: (from left) Melissa Lowery, chairman of the Dyer County Young Farmers and Ranchers; James Hendrix, president of Tri-County Farm Equipment in Newbern; Randy Brooks of the Dyer County Farm Bureau; Jeff Panel, regional agency manager for Farm Bureau Insurance; Tim Mills of Case IH; Jo Ann Maupin, who is holding her 7-week-old daughter, Cara Maupin; Eric Maupin; Lacy Upchurch, Tennessee Farm Bureau president; Eric's mother, Joan Maupin; Charles Curtis, director of special programs for the Tennessee Farm Bureau; Eric's father, Larry Maupin; and Eric's brother, Stefan Maupin, assistant director of public affairs for the Tennessee Farm Bureau.

The new Case IH Magnum 245 tractor is theirs to use for a year - for free. It is one of the prizes the Dyer County couple received after being selected the Tennessee Young Farmers of the Year by the Tennessee Farm Bureau.

They also received a $16,000 Kubota all-terrain vehicle, about $1,500 cash, an insurance policy on the tractor and a trip to the American Farm Bureau national convention Jan. 10-13 in Seattle, Wash. While they're in Seattle, the Maupins will compete for the national Young Farmers of the Year title ... and a new $36,000 Dodge truck.

The tractor was presented Tuesday by Tennessee Farm Bureau officials and representatives of Case IH and Tri-County Farm Equipment in Newbern. A small crowd of family, friends and well-wishers gathered in the warm autumn sun to watch.

Eric Maupin, a 34-year-old known for his sense of humor and antics, endured a bit of roasting.

His friend, John Butler of Dyersburg, said he observed several traits that convinced him Maupin was going to be successful. Butler recalled the house that Maupin shared with Matt Fennell when he returned from college. The house was so dilapidated that the ground could be seen through the floor.

"I knew it didn't take much for the boy to live on, you know what I'm saying," Butler said. "I was excited about that for him. I knew he would probably be a success there because he really didn't care where he lived."

Maupin and Fennell fixed up the house and turned it into a "pretty nice place" to live, Butler said. "I knew he had the ability to kinda start from the beginning and work his way to something. He had vision. ..."

And, when Butler came home from work in the evenings, he often found Maupin and Fennell there. Butler said his grill was cranked up, his steaks had been cooked and a single steak would be waiting for him. "What it showed me," Butler said, "was that Eric had the ability to think about what had to be done. He was smart enough not to eat the last one.

"All joking aside, Eric is a great individual. He has a passion for agriculture that really no one else has. Really, I mean that."

Butler, who was named the Tennessee Young Farmer of the Year in 2003 and the American Young Farmer of the Year in 2004, wished Maupin well in the national competition.

Maupin won second place in the state competition last year. The man who won first place, Donald Blankenship of Rutherford, also won the national title.

Candidates file a lengthy application and an interview to assess not only their agricultural acumen but also their leadership skills and community involvement. They must submit four years of financial statements, including the first year of farming and the three most recent years. Agricultural accomplishments account for about 60 percent of the candidates' scores with 20 percent for Farm Bureau leadership and the final 20 percent for community involvement and leadership.

Maupin represented Dyer County Farm Bureau in the state contest and competed against 24 or 25 farmers from other counties. In Seattle, he will compete with farmers from 40 to 45 states, said Charles Curtis, director of special programs for the Tennessee Farm Bureau.

Tennessee Farm Bureau President Lacy Upchurch said Tennessee has "a lot of really top young farmers in the state. What separated Eric is the leadership."

Maupin served as chairman of the state Young Farmers and Ranchers about three years ago and is currently president of the Tennessee Soybean Association. He serves on the Dyer County Farm Bureau board of directors, the Dyer County Fair board of directors and the Tennessee Farm Bureau state resolutions committee.

Maupin graduated from Dyer County High School in 1993 and from The University of Tennessee at Martin in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in agricultural business and a minor in communications. He was elected vice president of the Tennessee FFA during his senior year of high school. He also spent the summer of 1996 studying agriculture at Kings College in London, England, and touring six European countries to learn about raising beef cattle. In Europe, he said, farmers used ultrasound to measure the cows' muscles.

Today, Maupin raises corn, soybeans, wheat and hay on about 1,700 acres and has an additional 30 acres for his commercial beef cattle operation. He has 120 head of cattle.

Maupin has also been known to try less traditional crops. He grew pumpkins for several years. This year, he tried sunflowers.

Maupin said he's part of the 25 Farmer Network, which is based out of Memphis. The program started with a state grant designed to find new profitable biomass products and alternative crops for Tennessee. The program has targeted sunflowers, canola, switchgrass and even cane sorghum.

Maupin also became an auctioneer in 1999, working with local fund-raisers in the beginning and now working with Fisher Realty and Auction in Dyersburg.

"The Farm Bureau has been a big part of my life," Maupin said while accepting the tractor. He attributed his community involvement to the examples set by his parents, Larry and Joan Maupin.

His desire to win the Young Farmer of the Year title, though, was inspired by someone else. Maupin said that he was impressed when Butler won the state and national awards. He said he told himself that day that he wanted to be just like Butler.

Now that a portion of his dream has come true, he said he's realized one thing: "It's a humbling experience."

Maupin's wife listened to the banter and offered her words in true seriousness. "I'm excited to be a part of Young Farmers, and Eric is a big part of me being involved," Jo Ann Maupin said. "I'm thrilled."

The littlest member of the family - 7-week-old Cara Maupin - wasn't sure what all the fuss was about. She slept through most of it.