• Absentee voting must be completed by 11/29.
• To vote your entity must be a Allied or Grower Member (Research Members are not eligible to vote).
• Each entity gets one Vote only.
• Voters should vote for (up to) 1 Allied Members and 4 Grower Member. 
• Please identify your choice for President out of the votes you submit. Votes for anyone else for President have to be considered invalid.
• Email your choice to [email protected]

Growers (4 Open Seat)

Morris Kilpatrick (Grower) 

My name is Morris Kilpatrick. I have been living in Lithia, FL since 2014. I and my wife Vanetta have been growing bamboo since 2020. We have a 5 acre grove and had our first partial harvest of shoots in 2024. We plan to expand our operation on the remaining 14 acres and develop other revenue markets for bamboo and byproducts. As a hands-on grower, I understand the demands and needs required to maintain and scale our operations. As a current member, this is why I have submitted my nomination to Florida Bamboo Growers Association Board of Directors as a grower. My focus as a member of the FBGA, Board of Directors will be as follows:

• Advance the sustainability of bamboo industry through outreach to find additional markets for bamboo.
• Increase innovation with on-farm operation by working to identify efficiencies in the harvesting process, reducing harvesting costs, improving soil health and seeking programs, grants and other organizations assistance to foster industry growth.
• Represent the growers by ensuring transparency and encourage member engagement to address industry issues.

I hold a BS in Economics from the University of South Florida. I currently have over 30 years of information technology experience which I bring to the table in dealing with continuous changes and challenges requiring proper analysis and implementation. With this being said, I ask for your support and vote to represent you as a member of the FBGA BoD.

Jerry Mixon (Grower) 

Currently, I am a grower of Citrus and Bamboo. I am very involved with growing grapefruit in the CUPS growing system, having 100A under screen. In Jan 2024, I purchased a 50A 3-year-old (Sept ’24) Bamboo farm. Before the Citrus and Bamboo, my family and I grew, packaged, marketed and sold blueberries, blackberries raspberries and strawberries, across the globe and had operations in Fl, GA, NC and in Mexico and South America. From my short time in the bamboo industry in Florida, it seems it has been a rough start. However, with the work being done and data being gathered by the Florida Bamboo Growers Association and the folks they have asked to lend a hand Don Rockwood, University of Florida and others, I believe the industry has a chance to be something special. If we as an industry and growers can produce something special in the marketplace, an item of distinction if you will-particularly on the food side, then the future could be very bright. I look forward to learning in the days ahead.

Andrew Morson (Grower) 

Andrew’s professional background is as a Psychiatrist in New Orleans helping people with mental health issues. He owns a Year 3 farm at the Sweetwater 100 managed farm.

Chris Ingram (Grower) 

Chris is blueberry farmer. He owns a 20-acre bamboo farm, planted is 2020, in Lake Wales with his brother Donnie. He provides all of the farm’s care and management.

Donnie Ingram (Grower) 

I’m a life long resident of Polk County. I’ve owned several businesses over the years. However, my principal occupation was a financial advisor. I owned Ingram Financial Group and Ingram Advisory Services for over 40 years prior to selling them and retiring. My agricultural exposure is, obviously, bamboo and citrus. Donnie is a founding member and Director of the FBGA.

David Mckay (Grower) 

David has a career as an engineer in the power industry. He and several family members own a legacy farm, MFA, of 10-acres, a Year 5 farm, in Lake Placid.

Wayne Thompson (Grower) 

Wayne is a sales engineer at Eaton Electrical and resides in Winter Haven. He has a Year 2 farm in the Sorrells 100 managed farm.

Marc Shollenberger (Grower) 

Marc Shollenberger’s passion for agriculture runs deep, beginning with his upbringing working on his family farm and in a citrus grove. These early experiences shaped his dedication to sustainable farming and his appreciation for the agricultural community. In 2019, Marc joined the bamboo industry as a farmer, where he gained valuable firsthand knowledge of bamboo cultivation and the challenges growers face. Since then, he has supported farmers across multiple states, offering expertise in field management, deferment reduction programs, and market development to help growers succeed. As a manager of OnlyMoso USA Corp, Oonlymoso Harvest, and other bamboo-related companies, Marc combines his farming background with a strong commitment to research and industry advancement. His passion for innovation has driven efforts to explore new methods and opportunities in bamboo cultivation, paving the way for sustainable growth in the industry. A speaker at events hosted by the American Bamboo Society, Marc shares his insights and collaborates with fellow industry leaders to promote the development of bamboo farming practices. His dedication to education and advocacy positions him as a trusted ally for Florida’s bamboo growers and a forward-thinking leader in the industry.

Tommy Weclew (Grower) 

I am a 20 year real estate broker. My niche was teaching families why and how to buy rental homes for long term income. I managed 1600+ rental homes for families and sold over 3,000 homes. I sold the company last year but still sit on the advisory team. I started researching different avenues within agriculture and found bamboo to be the most promising. My wife, Teresa, and I bought 30 acres initially and then another 53 a couple years later. I feel confident I can assist the board with research and building relationships just as I did building my real estate company from the ground up to become one of the largest privately owned property managers in central Florida. I have many clients asking me about our bamboo endeavors and once income starts coming in I am certain I will have friends and clients want to follow my path.

Allied (1 Open Seats)

Greg Brown (Allied)

Almost 40 year career in the Financial Services industry in Florida, the past 5+ years as a Commercial AG Lender with Farm Credit of Florida. Grew up on a small farm in upstate NY. Resides in Vero Beach. B.S. in Finance from Penn State, M.B.A. from Palm Beach Atlantic University.

Alex Marks (Allied)

Alex is the VP, Director of Operations and Agriculture, at Veransa. Veransa is the Member of the FBGA and has developed clean compost to enable farmers to improve the quality of their farm’s soil.

Dalton Farr (Allied)

Dalton works with Trademark Nitrogen, a manufacturer and distributor of Nitrogen based fertilizer products, an Allied Member of the FBGA.

Wes Grainger (Allied)

Wes comes from a farming family and has worked in various farm management and consulting positions. His company is G6 Ag Solutions, LLC. Wes helps manage the OnlyMoso Harvest packinghouse. He is a Director of the FBGA.