b'Joe was born in central Illinois and raised on a grain and dairy farm, says his wife, Donna Funk. He was in charge of milking cows until he went away to college.Joe was the first member of his family to go to col-legehe attended the University of Illinois and gradu-ated in 1966 with a degree in agronomy. After graduation, Joes employment spanned vastly different specialties in agriculture. He worked for the USDA in the Stabilization and Conservation Service for about seven years before shifting to work as a farm manager where he supervised farmers who were working for absentee landowners. In the early 80s, after a lot of travel for his farm management job, he decided to switch careers again. He was traveling a lot, but Joe didnt want to keep traveling because we were getting ready to start a family, Donna says. At that time, he took a job with a soybean seed company to sell soybean seeds.And while Joe is able to wear many hats, Donna notes that selling wasnt his area of expertise.After a couple of years, it turns out that Joe isnt a great salesman, she jokes. Hes much better at many other things. By that time, we had a daughter, and he was traveling so much again. His commitment really became wanting to be there for the kids.At that point, Joe decided to return home to stay with the kids. It was here, staying at home with the kids, where Joes writing career blossomed in earnest.As he heads for retirement, Joes big plans are to travel the world with his wife, Donna. An Early Writing CareerWhile Joe didnt study news writing per se, hismagazine. He started making one international trip a early employment allowed him to dip his pen in theyear that featured a foreign seed operation.journalism ink. The first trip he ever took? Argentina. When Joe worked for the USDA, he had dabbledHe loved it, Donna says. He came home from in writing, Donna says. He wrote a few newspaperthose trips so stoked up about what was happening in columns, and then he started doingdesktop publish- the seed industry and what great potential there was, ing himselfimagine that, in the 80s, without theand what a great industry it was.technology we have today. He had started develop- In particular, Joe always loved the industry because ing his writing skills a few years prior, and what gotof its family atmosphere. Joe basically him really into writing was a meeting a publisher atIn spite of the competition, all the people involved in Toastmasters. it are very down to earth, Donna said. Theyre service-encompasses It came up that Joe was a writer, and had a bitand family-oriented, and he loved the work he did.the seed of a publishing background, Donna says. But that was how he got startedhe had a trial writing someAn Industry Point of View industry pieces, before he finally branched out into his mostNot only did Joe love the industry and all the people in known feature: product reviews. it, but Joe became a person known in the industrya. Hes just For most issues, Joe would write somewherebeloved one at that.someone between 10 to 15 product reviews, outlining newI started coming to the ASTA show in Chicago in products ranging from seed products to productionthe 2000s, says Amanda Patin, key account managerwho was products coming out in the industry.of seed at SGS North America. Joe has always beenapproachable Once he became editor of Seed Today, his area ofthereI dont even have a recollection of actually expertise expanded tenfold.meeting Joe. He was one of those people you met, and. Joe did a lot of site visits for businesses, Donnait felt like you already knew him.Amanda Patinsays. He realized after a few years, it might be ben- Others saw Joe as a giant in the industry, though eficial to start adding an international scope to theJoe would be too humble to accept that title.14/ SEEDWORLD.COMJUNE 2021'