A Bright Future: Farewell with Darrell Curtis
Big things are on the horizon for Farm Credit. Effective July 1, AgChoice will merge with MidAtlantic Farm Credit to form Horizon Farm Credit. Together, we’ll be lending support to agriculture and our local communities across Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. With the merger upon us, we’re taking a summer break from our podcast, so this will be the final episode for a few months. For all of the podcast lovers out there - don’t worry! We’ll let you know when we start podcasting again so you can tune into the great content and interviews you’ve come to enjoy. It seems only fitting to have Darrell Curtis, AgChoice Farm Credit’s president and CEO, join us for a final episode. He was our first podcast interview back in March 2020 and here we are 121 episodes later.
This is an exciting time for Farm Credit customers, staff and our local communities. What do you see as some of the greatest advantages to forming Horizon Farm Credit?
Larger association will allow us to have an enhanced focus on the customer through increased specialization of staff and resources for the industries we serve, and to devote to important programs such as for young, beginning, and small farmers and for customer education. Greater diversification of our loan portfolio and more robust risk management abilities. Both organizations are financially strong but coming together will allow for efficiencies gained through operational synergies and economies of scale. With the merger Horizon will serve: 100 counties across five states, more than 20,000 members, and $5.9 billion in loan assets.
Throughout your Farm Credit career, you’ve been part of several mergers. What makes the Horizon Farm Credit merger similar or different to past mergers?
The merger forming AgChoice in 1999 allowed us to make significant operating efficiency gains while devoting more staff to the specific needs of our customers. We grew rapidly and are now about 5 ½ times larger than the AgChoice of 23+ years ago. The Horizon merger will produce notable operating efficiency advantages. Where we expect to see major gains is our ability to specialize and build our staff, technologies, and programs. This will improve in all aspects the way we serve our customers, making our services easier and most valuable for them.
The July 1 merger date is rapidly approaching. Will customers see any changes in their service or day-to-day interactions with Farm Credit?
The short answer is no. The merger won’t result in any changes to branch office locations or staff, and customers can expect to receive the same high level of service they have come to expect from our qualified staff. With that said, we are merging our systems the first weekend of July, and our offices will be closed to visitors on July 1 and the 4th of July holiday. We’ll be back up and fully functional on Tuesday, July 5, ready to serve customers across the five-state territory.
The merger brings changes for you and your 34-year Farm Credit career as you move into retirement. Tell our listeners a bit more about your roles over the years. And what have you enjoyed the most about your time with Farm Credit?
I started out at the since-merged Baltimore FC Bank. I quickly determined two things: First, the quality of the people working for FC, and the quality of the people we serve, was second to none. Secondly, the best place for me was to be at an association, where we can work directly with farm and rural America customers.
A year and a half later I came to the Lewisburg PA-based Northeastern FC as CFO, and then later as AgChoice’s COO, and finally the President and CEO in 2013.
I have tremendously enjoyed the people we work with and the people we serve. I’m convinced that nowhere will you find more dedicated, passionate, and high character people than in ag and with Farm Credit. It’s easy to be inspired to do your very best job every day when you know it makes a difference for American farmers and rural residents.
With those 34 years comes a lot of memories. What is one of your fondest Farm Credit memories?
When I reflect on all the great times with Farm Credit, the recurring vision is simply the many times I have seen the delight our staff and customers experienced as our customers reached their dreams including expanding their farm, purchasing new equipment or facilities to make the farm more profitable, building a new home in the country, or creating a transition plan for the next generation to farm. The fondest memories are about working with customers to make a positive difference for themselves and generations to come.
As we wrap up, share any final thoughts with our listeners.
Working for farmers with Farm Credit has been a dream come true for me – I couldn’t have written a script any better! To our customers I say thank you for the honor of working with you and for you for all these years. I look forward to the next adventure of service God has in store for me and my family. The future of agriculture is bright. The world’s need for more food is unquestionably growing, and the farmers in our 5-state area are well-positioned to rise to meet this need. Horizon Farm Credit will be strong, innovative, and committed to help you grow and realize your dreams. Many great days are yet to come!