NY Farm Bureau elects new president

Staff Reports Posted 9 December 2016 at 9:16 am

Dean Norton of Elba led the organization the past 8 years

ALBANY — During the New York Farm Bureau State Annual Meeting in Albany this week, voting delegates elected David Fisher, a dairy farmer from St. Lawrence County, as the new president of the organization.

David Fisher

David Fisher

Fisher will replace Dean Norton, a dairy farmer from Elba. Norton led the organization the past eight years. He was seeking another two-year term as the organization’s leader.

Norton posted a Facebook message, thanking the many friends he has made in the past 8 years as Farm Bureau president. He also thanked his wife Melanie, an Albion native, for her support.

“They say for every door that closes another opens. I will be looking for that door,” Norton said. “It has been a wonderful journey and one that we are both grateful to have taken.”

Fisher and his family have operated Mapleview Dairy in Madrid for four generations. He has served on the New York Farm Bureau Board of Directors for the past five years and previously was president of St. Lawrence County Farm Bureau. A graduate of Cornell University, Fisher earned a degree in Animal Science.

“I am humbled that the farmer members of New York Farm Bureau have placed their confidence in me to lead this great organization,” Fisher said. “My family has a long history with Farm Bureau, and I am excited to work on behalf of our diverse membership to increase the value and visibility of New York agriculture. I would also like to thank Dean Norton for his service and commitment to New York Farm Bureau.”

Vice President Eric Ooms, a dairy farmer from Columbia County, was re-elected to his position.

In addition, representatives to the State Board of Directors were elected, too. This concluded the annual two-day long meeting where resolutions were discussed and voted on to set NYFB’s 2017 public policy agenda.

Pat McCormick, a dairy farmer from Wyoming County, was re-elected as director of District 2, which includes Orleans County.

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