Brownfield

Lunch with our founder

The Brownfield team has gathered in Jefferson City, Missouri for the Annual Retreat.  We take this time together to retool, bond, learn some new skills - and eat.  Today, Clyde Lear hosted a lunch for our team at the Jefferson City Country Club.  We posed for a quick picture before heading back to Learfield World Headquarters for our afternoon sessions.

Clyde started this company 35 years ago.  One of the group's favorite parts of the annual get-together is the opportunity to spend time with Clyde.

Pictured left to right:  Dave Russell, Kari McKinney, Tom Steever, Mike Cady, John Perkins, Bob Meyer, Jerry Passer, Julie Harker, Cyndi Young and Clyde Lear.

35 years and going strong

It was 35 years ago today that Clyde Lear and Derry Brownfield offered this company's first broadcast to affiliate radio stations.  Clyde wrote about that first broadcast on his blog this morning. 

The Brownfield Ag News team has grown, but the mission has not changed as much as one might think.  We continue to provide relevant information to grassroots agricultural and rural communities.

Thanks Clyde and Derry for giving the rest of the us the opportunity!

Helpdesk

As a subscriber to Brownfield's Agriculture Today e-newsletter, viewer of the Brownfield Ag News website, or listener to Brownfield's radio network, you know that Brownfield ag news specialists Tom Steever, Julie Harker, Bob Meyer, Peter Shinn, Jerry Passer, John Perkins, Andrew McCrea, Dave Russell and I, Cyndi Young, spend time on the road, covering stories and events relevant to agriculture.  Reporting from the field requires a different type of equipment and a bit more technology than it once did.  Eric Ambrosius, a PC support specialist from our company Information Technology Department recently installed upgraded programs on our laptop computers making our remote broadcast not only sound better, but easier to produce.  Eric is part of "Helpdesk" - one of those behind-the-scenes elements of our news product that readers, viewers and listeners rarely see.

Eric gave Julie and Tom a "how-to" demonstration with the new programs. 

Triple crown winning town

While Tom Steever and Taryn Dameron have been busy covering youth activities held prior to the Illinois State Fair and Jerry Passer has been keeping us up to date on happenings at Iowa State Fair, Bob Meyer has been covering Wisconsin State Fair activities and Dave Russell has been covering activities at Indiana State Fair.  Julie Harker, Taryn and I are all off to Sedalia for the Missouri State Fair tomorrow.  Despite all of the really great stories that have been and will be generated during these major events, my favorite so far comes from Bob Meyer:

The southwestern Wisconsin community of Mineral Point may try to wrestle the “Titletown” moniker away from Green Bay.  The   town of 2,400 is home to the Grand Champion steer, barrow and market lamb at the Wisconsin State Fair this year.  The steer was exhibited by Brock May, the barrow by Jordan Tibbits and the lamb by Jacob Johnson.  Tibbits also had the champion Yorkshire breed barrow.

I wonder if that has ever happened before? 

60 years of great radio in West Plains, Missouri

There will be a huge celebration on June 15th in West Plains, Missouri, when Brownfield affiliate KWPM celebrates its 60th anniversary.  Cash and prize give-aways, an open house at the studios, a mayoral ribbon-cutting and ceremony and presentations by numerous local and area dignitaries are all planned.

Derry Brownfield, who is the namesake of our network, and the host of a daily 3-minute commentary on the Brownfield Network, is also the host of his own talk show. Bob Eckman, VP of Operations for Ozark Regional news Talk Radio was a guest on Derry's talk show a couple of weeks ago and talked about the station's history and about the upcoming celebration. [Audio: Part 1, Part 2]

KWPM, by the way, stands for "Keep West Plains Moving."  Another piece of triva, Porter Wagoner got his start when he and his band performed at KWPM back in the late 1940's and early 1950's.  Along with KWPM in West Plains, Ozark Regional News Talk Radio includes stations KALM in Thayer AND KUKU in Willow Springs.

Office chairs

We have been "cellar dwellers" here at Learfield for over a year now, while the newsroom remodeling process has been underway.  It won't be long and we can say "so long" to cinder block studios and "hello" to the latest in technology.  The date is set and we'll make our move back upstairs to our updated digs on June 4, 2007. 

The office chairs were "unboxed" late last week. 

Oh, the memories of moving are coming back to me now.

Learfield fun

I've heard from several people inside Learfield and several of my friends who work for other companies that are interested in hearing more about the recent Learfield Life Skills week-end.  Clyde posted a video to his blog that might help you understand some of what we did.  (If you do not have high speed internet access, do not try to download this at home.)

Part of the comradery of the event included a bibbed overall-clad Leonard (Mike Ashburn) engaging company owners in some "fun" on stage.  I took this shot of  (from left to rigth) Learfield News President Stan Koenigsfeld;  Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Learfield Sports, Andy Rawlings;  and Learfield CEO and Chairman of the Board, Clyde Lear on stage Friday evening.

Bold and courageous

It was a beautiful week-end to be in St. Louis where we toured Anheiser-Busch brewery and the group of Learfielders I was with enjoyed lunch on the patio at Norton's Cafe in Soulard. 

One of the highlights of the week-end was a private reception and dinner at the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which most of us refer to simply as "The Arch."  Many of the 211 of us there piled into elevators to make the trip to the top where we took in a panoramic view.  To the east is the "Big Muddy" and to the west, Busch Stadium.

I could see barge traffic on the river from my hotel room window.

My favorite part of the week-end wasn't the great thought-provoking discussion sessions or the amazing and entertaining speakers.  It was not the wonderful setting or the tours or even the great food.  My favorite part of the week-end was the opportunity to connect at a more personal level with other company employees that in the past I only knew as a face in a picture and a name.  Because Learfield has gone from one farm network to four state news network, 2 farm networks, and the handling of mulitmedia and marketing for 32 of the top college and university sports programs in the country, we are still a small company at heart but a very large company in employees and works.

During Life Skills week-end, I had the opportunity to get to know many more of my fellow Learfielders and their spouses from many of the 50 cities in which we have offices today. 

Life Skills

The "closed" sign is hanging on the door to my office this afternoon.  I am in St. Louis, Missouri for the first ever "Learfield Life Skills" week-end event.  Company founder and Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer Clyde Lear along with a diverse committee of fellow Learfielders planned the week-end. 

Not everyone will be able to attend because our lives are all busy and we have other committments.  For those of us here, hopefully we will be able to share some of what we learn and do with those who could not make it.

Another Learfield "Farm" property

There's a great post on Clyde's blog about the newest Learfield Sports property.  Here's a peak:

In 1876 former California governor and US Senator, Leland Stanford, bought the first part of a stock farm for his trotting horses that grew to over 8,000 acres, at Palo Alto near San Francisco. His beloved son, Leland, worked on the sprawling farm, but at 16 died of typhoid fever.  Leland Sr. and his wife, Jane were devastated. On the morning of his son’s death, he told his wife: “The children of California shall be our children.” And they gave the land and initial endowment to found Stanford University. In doing so he observed: “The imagination needs to be cultivated and developed to assure success in life. A man will never construct anything he cannot conceive."