Midwest Dairy Elects New Officers to Lead 2026 Board

Midwest Dairy New Officers 2026

Midwest Dairy Welcomes Returning Members and New Leadership to Board

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Elections for the Midwest Dairy Corporate and Division boards were held during the organization’s annual meeting in Kansas City, Missouri, early last week.

Elections for the 2026 Corporate board officer team are as follows: Charles Krause from Minnesota division, was re-elected as chair of Midwest Dairy; Tom Walsh from South Dakota division, was elected as first vice chair, Margaret Johnson from Minnesota division, was elected as second vice chair, Jonna Schutte from Iowa division, was elected as secretary, and Matt Schelling from Iowa division was re-elected as treasurer.

New members elected by their divisions to the Midwest Dairy Corporate board include:
  • Rita Vander Kooi – Minnesota
  • Denise Rohweder – North Dakota

Illinois Division

  • Chair – Brent Mueller, Garden Prairie
  • Vice chair – Bill Deutsch, Sycamore
  • Secretary – Amy Hildebrandt, South Beloit
  • Treasurer – Megan Holland-Zito, Apple River
  • Bob Dietzel was seated as a new board member of the Illinois board.

Iowa Division

  • Chair – Jonna Schutte, Monona
  • Vice chair – Lee Maaseen, Maurice
  • Secretary – Patrick Jones, Spencer
  • Treasurer – Matt Simon, Epworth
  • Colleen Krogmeier, Marv Schelling, and Michael Nettinga were seated as new board members of the Iowa board.

Minnesota Division

  • Chair – Kristine Spadgenske, Menahga
  • Vice chair – Sarah Kuechle, Eden Valley
  • Secretary – Mindi Arendt, Mazeppa
  • Treasurer – Eric Sonnek, Foreston
  • Elle Tibor and Rita Vander Koii were seated as new board members of the Minnesota board.

Mo-Kan Division

  • Chair – Steve Ohlde, Linn, Kansas
  • Vice chair – Orville Miller, Hutchinson, Kansas
  • Secretary – Heidi Wells, Milton, Kansas
  • Treasurer – Lynda Foster, Fort Scott, Kansas
  • Jessica Wohler was seated as a new board member of the Mo-Kan Division board.

Nebraska Division

  • Chair – Joyce Racicky, Mason City
  • Vice chair – Larry Schuster, Pickrell
  • Secretary/Treasurer – Jodi Cast, Beaver Crossing

North Dakota Division

  • Chair – Denise Rohweder, Wishek
  • Vice chair – Jon Qual, Lisbon
  • Secretary – Jennifer Holle, Mandan
  • Treasurer – Lilah Krebs, Gladstone
  • Jon Qual was seated as a new board member of the North Dakota Division board.

Ozarks Division

  • Chair – Marilyn Calvin, Mt. Vernon, Missouri
  • Vice chair – Jack Dill, Conway, Missouri
  • Secretary – Carrie Rantz, Spokane, Missouri
  • Treasurer – Bill Haak, Gentry, Arkansas
  • Tim Crawley, Clay Hempel, and Aaron Stewart were seated as new members of the Ozark Division board.

South Dakota Division

  • Chair – Kevin Van Winkle, Canistota
  • Vice chair – Kevin Pearson, Flandreau
  • Secretary – Rebecka Butz, Dolton
  • Treasurer – Jogchum Andrenga, Brandt
  • Steve Landman was seated as a new member of the South Dakota Division board.
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Midwest Dairy® represents 3,600 dairy farm families and works on their behalf to build dairy demand by inspiring

consumer confidence in our products and production practices. We are committed to Bringing Dairy to Life! by giving

Consumers an Excellent Dairy Experience and are funded by farmers across a 10-state region, including Minnesota,

North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. For more

information, visit MidwestDairy.com, and follow us on Facebook and YouTube.