Tyson and Emily Mullen of Ulysses, Kansas are among the Huck Boyd Leaders of the Year for 2018. | Download this photo.
Huck Boyd Institute recognizes entrepreneurs and community leaders
Leaders of the Year selected by entrepreneurship students in K-State’s College of Business
February 22, 2018
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Helping communities, farmers, businesses, and other rural people succeed. That goal seems to be a common thread among the entrepreneurs and rural community advocates recognized by Kansas State University’s Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development as Leaders of the Year for 2018.
“These Kansans should be commended for their innovative ideas and service to rural communities,” said Dan Caffrey of Marysville, chair of the board of directors of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development.
This year’s award categories and winners are:
Agriculture – Kathy Youngquist, Farmers Markets of Kaw Valley, Perry;
Business Development – Russell Disberger, Aspen Business Group, Wamego;
Community Service - Joy and Brian Miller, New Horizon Ranch, Rantoul;
Entrepreneurship – Earl Roemer and Rachel Klataske, Nu Life Market, Scott City;
Retail Development – Tyson and Emily Mullen, Grant County Drug and Next Door, Ulysses; and
Tourism – Marci Penner and WenDee Rowe, Kansas Guidebook 2, Inman.
The winners will receive their awards at a luncheon in Manhattan on Feb. 28, 2018.
Agriculture: The Perry-Lecompton Farmers Market was established in 2006 as a grassroots effort involving Kathy and Eric Youngquist and others to support local foods and local growers. In 2017, with help from the K-State Research and Extension – Douglas County office, leaders of farmers markets in the Douglas County area came to realize that there would be benefits to working together. That led to the creation of Farmers Markets of Kaw Valley, a joint effort that includes a website which supports and promotes six farmers markets in the region. Attendance at some of the markets has nearly doubled. For more information, see www.perrylecomptonfarmersmarket.com and www.fmkawvalley.org.
Business Development: While growing up and working on the family’s custom wheat harvesting business, Russell Disberger learned the importance of two factors: Hard work and taking care of the customer. This led him to a career in entrepreneurship and business development. In 1998, he founded Aspen Business Group, a private sector management consulting company in Colorado. He now leads his company from his home office near Wamego and continues to consult with clients from New York to Los Angeles. For more information, see www.aspenbusinessgroup.com.
Community Service: As a youth who was active in her church, Joy Miller thought she would go into international missions someday. As a young woman, she came to feel that her calling wasn’t overseas, it was local. When she and her husband Brian Miller learned about the benefits of therapeutic horseback riding for those with disabilities, they decided to apply it on their rural property near Rantoul in Franklin County. New Horizon Ranch was founded as a non-profit therapeutic riding organization in 2006. The program now offers various kinds of life-changing therapeutic riding, equine assisted psychotherapy, and summer camp programs to individuals of all ages with physical, cognitive, social, emotional and learning disabilities. For more information, see www.newhorizonranch.org.
Entrepreneurship: When someone with a food allergy or gluten intolerance finds a tasty food that is good for them, it can feel like new life. Earl Roemer discovered that grain sorghum could provide such a healthy, gluten-free food alternative. In 2007, he founded Nu Life Market in Scott City to market and develop such products. According to Nu Life business development manager Rachel Klataske, sorghum is now utilized in more than 1,000 products represented by 80 brand names. Nu Life is shipping its products coast to coast and beyond. For more information, see www.nulifemarket.com.
Retail Development: Tyson Mullen’s great-grandfather opened the first drug store in Wichita County. Decades later, he followed his ancestor’s lead and attended pharmacy school. In 2013, Tyson and his wife Emily bought Grant County Drug in Ulysses. Their goal is to use cutting-edge technology while providing top quality service with a personal touch. In 2015, they bought a building next door which they converted to a boutique gift shop. Shoppers can buy quality gifts or browse while awaiting a prescription. For more information, see www.grantcountydrug.com.
Tourism: In 2012, the Kansas Sampler Foundation’s Marci Penner and WenDee Rowe began an incredible journey. Their goal was to visit every one of the 626 incorporated towns in Kansas, while doing research to update the Kansas Guidebook for Explorers. In 2017, after hundreds of miles and lots of chicken-fried steaks, the work was complete. The Kansas Guidebook 2 for Explorers includes 4,500 attractions, 843 eateries, and more than 1,600 pictures from across Kansas. For more information, see www.kansassampler.org.
The 2018 Huck Boyd Leaders of the Year winners were selected by entrepreneurship students in K-State’s College of Business. Each year the Huck Boyd Institute selects its leaders of the year from among those featured on its weekly Kansas Profile radio program and column during the previous 12 months. Kansas Profile is distributed by the K-State Radio Network and K-State Research and Extension News Media Services to radio stations and newspapers state-wide.
The Huck Boyd Institute is a public/private partnership between K-State Research and Extension and the Huck Boyd Foundation. The foundation office is at the Huck Boyd Community Center in Phillipsburg. The institute office is at Kansas State University in Manhattan.
