When Osceola (WI) native Tim Stelter and his brother decided to stop milking and sell their cows in 1995, Stelter found himself with a little down time. Federated Co-ops needed extra workers that spring, so he decided to “help out” for the season.

Twenty-three years later Stelter is still “helping out,” and since 1997 he’s been the manager of the Osceola agronomy location. He started out spraying fields and, he mused, except for driving a Federated fuel truck, he’s probably done just about every job at Federated at one time or another. 

From delivering fertilizer to general agronomy services, Stelter is firmly focused on how he can better serve growers and help them succeed. He referred to the old saying attributed to Teddy Roosevelt: “No one cares how much you know until they know how much you care.”

Stelter wants growers to know how much he cares about their success. He said the best part of his job is “dealing with the farmers; it’s the most fun and the most challenging, seeing things from both sides.” (He still wears both the “Federated hat and the farmer hat” with what he calls some “garden patch” corn and soybeans.)

“One of my favorite things is to help [growers] get a little bit better than they were the year before – better production, better ROI – and also help Federated get a little better than we were the year before, too – better procedures, processes, training, etc.,” he said.

Stelter’s goal is to find a way to benefit both the business and the grower. Especially in the spring, he strives to “make everything work in the short time we have . . . the spring is more condensed than it used to be and the logistics are challenging,” he said.

With Stelter’s more than 20 years at Federated, the growers in the Osceola service area are more than just acquaintances; they’re friends. “The line between business and friendship is pretty thin, and it’s a small community we work with,” he said, adding that the growers’ business “means a lot to [Federated] and we mean a lot to them. [Farming] is their livelihood, and it’s ours too.”

Stelter is good at looking at things from both sides, even as he and his wife of six years blend together their “Brady Bunch” family with kids, stepkids, and a few grandkids, too. And whether at home, out on the farm, or on location at Federated’s Osceola ag center, Stelter looks out for the growers and helps Federated provide the best agronomy services in town!