40 Years of Giving and Growing

By Terri Mork Speirs

When PFI cofounder Dick Thompson concluded 40 years ago that “diversity is the only solution,” we know he was referring to farm sustainability. 

However, the need for diversity is also key to PFI’s fiscal health. To maintain viability as an organization, throughout the decades PFI has cultivated a broad base of financial support. Our supporters are a fertile blend of public and private sources including individuals, businesses, foundations, congregations, organizations and government entities.

Last year, the PFI community provided more than $310,000 in funding ($179,933 in membership income and $130,877 in donation income) to further grow the mission of farm and community resilience. Thank you! We are extremely grateful for this demonstrated trust in PFI’s stewardship of monetary resources.

These unrestricted dollars are vital because they are flexible. The freedom to use this money how we need to lets us tend to program needs not covered by grants and contracts, such as technology, support for beginning farmers, on-farm research, field days and annual conference sessions, including the member favorite: Storytelling. Flexible income also enables PFI’s executive director to make critical decisions about PFI’s most urgent needs to meet the mission.

We are also extremely grateful for the $14 million granted last year through public and additional private sources. These robust funding streams support equally robust staff work and end products that help farmers learn, connect and reach their goals, such as cost-share programs for cover crops and small grains.

PFI’s flexible income (memberships and donations) and our targeted income from grants and contracts together help farmers reach their goals while increasing profits. Thanks to PFI members and donors, we accomplished a lot in fiscal year 2024.

• Our programs helped farmers plant 839,484 acres of cover crops
• We held 66 field days attended by 2,725 people
• Farmers completed 100 on-farm research trials
• We helped 54 land seekers find land that matches their farming needs
• We organized 75 annual conference sessions led by farmers and other experts

Dick Thompson’s guidance to diversify has proven to be a valuable guiding principle for PFI – for both our agricultural landscapes and financial security. Thank you for your partnership, and for your collectively creative ways to sustain PFI’s financial resources.

Diane Horn: Care and Curiosity – Today, Tomorrow and Always

Gifted with a clear-thinking mind, Diane Horn first worked in the field of cancer research. Gifted also with a crisp-speaking voice, she transitioned into the business of broadcasting.

PFI donor Diane Horn lives in Seattle, but her connection to Iowa and sustainability runs deep. This photo of her near her home in Washington shows a view of Puget Sound and the iconic
Space Needle.

Blending her talents of inquiry and communication, she produced and hosted the “Sustainability Segment” of the weekly radio talk show “Mind Over Matters.” This half-hour-long show aired on a popular Seattle music station, KEXP-FM, for over 20 years. Diane interviewed hundreds of leaders on a variety of environmental, social and economic issues.

While life had taken Diane to Seattle, she was born and spent her early years in Iowa. Thus, one of her interviews felt more personal. On Jan. 4, 2010, Diane’s guest was Teresa Opheim, former executive director of PFI. The conversation about farmer-led initiatives to promote sustainable agriculture in the heartland of Diane’s youth sparked an alignment of deeply held values.

Plus, Diane had recently inherited her family farm that had been in the family for three generations. Diane decided to become an annual financial supporter. Ultimately, she chose to include Practical Farmers in her estate planning, including the gift of her farm.

During her tenure as a radio talk show host – delivering over 400 episodes of the “Sustainability Segment” – Diane gained a wealth of personal knowledge. Her interviews are available to all on the American Archive of Public Broadcasting (find them at americanarchive.org/special_collections/kexp-mind-over-matters).

“I was inspired by interviewing so many people who are working enthusiastically and creatively to make the world a better place,” Diane says. “Contributing to Practical Farmers of Iowa is a way to acknowledge my Iowa roots and my care for the planet.“

Diane approaches her partnership with Practical Farmers of Iowa with the same present and long-term focus she applied when producing her show. Her annual financial donations to PFI help create a broad base of undesignated income, critical to PFI’s program planning. Her estate plan is set to increase agricultural sustainability well into the future.

One Mission, Multiple Methods, Infinite Gratitude

PFI supporters gave in many different ways last year, all adding up to abundance.

Each donation, great or small, is valued at PFI. Every gift joins together to grow PFI’s mission. Whether $25 or $25,000, by check or credit card, through gifts of grain or donor-advised fund – PFI supporters gave generously last year using multifaceted approaches. This tremendous generosity was critical in helping our network of farmers achieve their goals.

Larry Kallem – Giving Annually

Larry Kallem, PFI cofounder, chooses to support PFI with an annual gift.

Forty years ago, Practical Farmers cofounder Larry Kallen led the effort to create PFI’s bylaws and set up the organization as a nonprofit. Today, he continues to grow the mission through an annual gift.

Larry says: “It is gratifying to see the continued growth of PFI’s mission, one that we all care about so deeply. Even though I’ve been retired for 20 years, it is important to my wife and me to offer our cash donation on an annual basis so that PFI can plan for yearly programming.

“I believe that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts – in cooperatives and in financial contributions.”

Sustained, annual gifts form a reliable financial base that PFI can count on to assist with budget projections and year-long planning. While some donors prefer to give their annual gift in one lump sum, others prefer to break up their annual gift into 12 smaller monthly gifts through an automated online setting that can be changed at any time by the donor.

Paul Hoffman – Giving Gifts of Grain

Paul Hoffman, organic farmer from Earlville, Illinois, chose to support PFI through a gift of grain in fiscal year 2024.

Paul Hoffman is a lifetime member. In fiscal year 2024, he also gave a gift of grain to further support PFI’s mission of resilience.

“I am a PFI lifetime member and a financial supporter because I believe in the work of welcoming everyone and creating a culture of mutual respect,” Paul says. “As a young farmer raising a family, my financial resources are limited. But I would like to donate what funds I do have available. The gift of grain charitable donation process is one that works for our family.”

Gifting grain directly to Practical Farmers (rather than selling the grain and making a gift from the proceeds) may provide farm operators with more significant tax savings. Contributing grain allows farmers to avoid the sale of the commodity as income, while the production costs may still be deductible. Reducing taxable income may provide advantages such as minimizing or eliminating your self-employment tax and reducing your adjusted gross income.

Tom and Irene Frantzen – Giving in Tribute to Others

Tom and Irene Frantzen chose to give last year by honoring their friend and role model, Vic Madsen. Respecting friends through gifts to PFI has been a meaningful tradition for Tom and Irene. Throughout the years, they have given in honor of many who have been a part of their lives for decades – friends who have inspired and mentored them, and served as role models. Many years, they’ve also given gifts in memory of PFI cofounders Dick and Sharon Thompson.

Tom and Irene Frantzen find meaning in giving to PFI in honor of friends and in memory of those who have inspired them, including PFI cofounders Dick and Sharon Thompson.

Irene says: “We’ve chosen to give to PFI in honor and memory of Dick and Sharon Thompson because if it weren’t for them, none of us would be a part of this wonderful organization. Their inquisitive minds and determination to network with other farmers led them to organize PFI to start with.

“Little did they know at the time that it would evolve into the organization it is today. Honoring them annually is our way of remembering their friendship, their knowledge and leadership, their love of the land and its people, and the impact they made on our lives personally. We will forever hold them dear to our hearts. We have been blessed and very fortunate to be a part of the PFI family, thanks to Dick and Sharon.”

Your Legacy, Your Values

To celebrate 40 years of Practical Farmers of Iowa, can we get 40 more estate gift intentions?

Including PFI in your estate planning is a bold way to ensure your values live far into the future. When you include Practical Farmers in your estate plan, your generosity will continue to raise PFI’s mission of resilient farms and vibrant communities for generations to come.

Would you like more information about PFI’s Legacy Society? Have you already included PFI in your will or estate planning?

Do you intend to include PFI in your planning?

Please let us know! All you need to do is call or email PFI’s development director, Terri Speirs, at (515) 232-5661 or
terri.speirs@practicalfarmers.org. All inquiries are confidential.