2/26/2015
AAS Elects New Officers, Approves New Trial Sites And Judges
Jennifer Zurko
While meeting during the Flower and Vegetable Seed Conference in Tampa, Florida, hosted by the American Seed Trade Association, All-America Selections elected the following new officers for a two-year term:
- President: Angus Mellish from Veseys Seeds, York, Prince Edward Island
- Vice President: Connie Dam-Byl from William Dam Seeds, Dundas, Ontario
- Past-President: Ron Cramer, Xiant Technologies, Windsor, Colorado
- Patty Buskirk, Seeds By Design, Maxwell, California, continues a three-year term as Treasurer
To support the message of “Tested Nationally & Proven Locally,” the AAS Board of Directors added the following new judges during 2014:
- Mark Amiya from Sakata Seed, new judge, Edibles Trial
- Eugene Blythe from South MS Branch Exp. Station, established judge, added Ornamental Vegetative Trial
- James Bourgeois from Norseco, new judge, Ornamental Vegetative Trial
- Natalie Bumgarner from University of Tennessee, new judge, Edibles Trial
- Jessica Cloninger from Boerner Botanical Garden, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Venelin Dimitrov from W. Atlee Burpee, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Victoria Goddard-Fischer from Callaway Gardens, new judge, Edibles Trial
- Travis Higginbotham, Battlefield Farms, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Doug Holden from Ernst Benary of America, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Sim McMurry from Metrolina Greenhouses, established judge, added Edibles Trial
- Scott Mozingo from Ball Horticultural Company, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- James Newburn from University of Tennessee, new judge, Ornamental Vegetative Trial
- Penelope Merritt-Price from Young’s Plant Farm, new judge, Ornamental Seed and Ornamental Vegetative Trial
- Robin Dremsa Ruether from Kansas State University, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Janelle Schweinfurth from Callaway Gardens, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Laura Smith from Sakata Seed, new judge, Ornamental Seed Trial
- Jerry Trageser from Nature’s Best Nursery, new judge, Ornamental Seed and Ornamental Vegetative Trial
- Bill Watson from Grimes Horticulture, established judge, added Ornamental Vegetative Trial
- Aaron Whaley from AP Whaley Seed, new judge, Edibles Trial
A complete list of all current Trial Sites and respective judges can be found on the AAS website at
www.all-americanselection.org. For more information, contact Diane Blazek at
dblazek@aas-ngb.org.
GT