Cullen M. Kovac has been a co-owner/operator in Kovac Cattle, Inc., a family-owned cow-calf and stocker operation, since 2008. He is a managing partner in both Kovac Inc. and Kovac Land, LLC, which are agricultural land acquisition and holding corporations. Mr. Kovac is vice president of the Fiske Union Water System, and he also serves as a director of the West Carroll Parish Farm Bureau, the West Carroll Soil and Water Conservation District Board. Mr. Kovac is a graduate of LSU with a B.S. in animal science and a minor in agronomy. He is a member of Beulah Baptist Church and is a Gideon in the Oak Grove Camp. Mr. Kovac and his wife, Sarah, have three children.

William Benjamin “Ben” Guthrie is the General Manager/Secretary-Treasurer for Panola Company, LTD and the Managing Partner for Balmoral Farming Partnership, farming and land-holding partnership that produce corn, cotton, and soybeans on 8,000 acres in the Louisiana Delta. He currently serves on the boards of Panola Company, LTD, the Louisiana Boll Weevil Eradication Commission and the LAC-Self Insured Fund. He is a member of the National Cotton Council, Past President of the Louisiana Cotton and Grain Association, past Chairman of the Cotton Foundation and the Cotton Committee Chairman for the Louisiana Farm Bureau. Mr. Guthrie is a graduate of Louisiana State University and completed the LSU Ag Leadership Program.

Mary Saporito is the Chief Audit Executive, Vice President of Audit, Risk & Privacy for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana. Ms. Saporito joined Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana in 2006. In her role, she is responsible for the audit functions at Blue Cross, which include Operational Audit, IT Audit, Financial Audit as well as Enterprise Risk Management, Business Continuity and Financial Investigations. She is also responsible for the Privacy function and serves as the company’s Privacy Officer. Prior to joining Blue Cross, Ms. Saporito was the Director of Internal Audit for General Health System. She has additionally held the positions of Corporate Compliance Officer and Security Officer. Ms. Saporito is a CIA, CISA, CPA, CITP, CRMA, CRISC and CGMA. She is a member of various professional and civic organizations.

Henry A. Capdeboscq, Jr. has been a self-employed dairy and beef cattle operator for over 40 years. He is also owner of Capdeboscq Farms Trucking, LLC. Mr. Capdeboscq serves on the board of the Tangipahoa Parish Cattlemen’s Association, Florida Parishes Farm Services Cooperative, the Dairy Advisory Committee and is a board member on the Louisiana Livestock Brand Commission. Mr. Capdeboscq is also a member of the Tangipahoa Parish Farm Bureau, Tangipahoa Parish Planning Commission, Tangipahoa Parish Forestry Association and Louisiana Cattlemen’s Association.

John F. Earles is a retired farmer whose operation previously produced soybeans, cattle, rice, crawfish, and sugar cane. He is a co-owner of Cenla Fuels LLC, Bunkie Flying Service Inc., Tri-Rock Aggregates and Gold Dust Investment Company. He is also an owner/partner in Rigolette Farms and Bayou DeSots, family land holding companies.

John McLain is a lifelong native of Abbeville, Louisiana, who grew up on a farm producing rice and crawfish. He is a graduate of Vermilion Catholic High School and McNeese State University in Lake Charles, LA, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree with a concentration in Agricultural Business. Following graduation, John returned to the family farm and planted his first rice crop along with his father and two brothers. Since then, he has grown his own rice and crawfish operation into a full-time career. John serves the Vermilion Parish Farm Bureau as a Board member, a member of their Young Famer and Rancher Committee and Chair of their Nominating Committee. He is also a member of Louisiana Farm Bureau Rice Committee, and he serves as Treasurer of the Vermilion Parish Rice Growers Association. John recently graduated from the USA Rice Leadership Program. He is a member of St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church. John and his wife, Leah, have two daughters.

Gertrude Hawkins is a partner of GNL Farm, LLC, and GNG Farm Partnership. She farms cotton, corn, soybeans, sugarcane and wheat with her brother. Mrs. Hawkins manages the Edgar LaCour Land Company, LLC, which is a family-owned business consisting of timber and row crops. She also manages LaCour & Blake, LLC, and Blue Lake Farms, LLC. Mrs. Hawkins is a board member of the Pointe Coupee Parish Farm Bureau, Edgar LaCour Land Company, LLC, LaCour & Blake, LLC, Blue Lake Farms, LLC, Bessie Land Company and the American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists. She serves as the secretary for Schwab Farms, Inc., Bouanchaud Farms, Inc., Gilmer Farms, Inc., and G&M Farms, Inc. Mrs. Hawkins is a member of the American Sugar Cane League, Louisiana Sugar Growers and Tri Parish Gin. Mrs. Hawkins is a member of the Sugarcane Variety Development Committee, and she currently serves as District 6 director on the Louisiana Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee. In October 2019 Mrs. Hawkins retired after 27 years of service as a research associate for the LSU AgCenter Sugar Research Station.

Robert James “Bobby” Soileau. PhD, directs Ag Leadership programs for the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center. He coordinates the Agricultural Leadership Development Program. This is a privately funded program for people in production agriculture, forestry and agribusiness. In addition, he help coordinate the Management Development Institute for LSU AgCenter and College of Agriculture faculty.

John L. Van Mol, Jr. is a life-long resident of Rapides Parish currently living in Alexandria, Louisiana. He has been farming for over 40 years. Mr. Van Mol is the owner of Leverton Farms, LLC, a 3,200-acre operation producing 1,700 acres of sugar cane and 1500 acres of soybeans in central Louisiana. He also serves as director for Central Cane Producers, Inc. (LASUCA), and is on the board of managers of Lagniappe Cotton Gin in Hamburg, Louisiana. He has previously served as chairman of the USDA Farm Services Agency County Committee and Advisory Board for Rapides Parish. He is a member of the Louisiana Farm Bureau and Rapides Parish Farm Bureau where he has served in various officer roles and on various committees.