For Rick, growing cotton isn’t just a profession, it’s a tradition. His family has been in the cotton business since 1853 – his father having cleared much of the ground he farms today near Lonoke. As a farmer, Rick understands the many challenges you must endure to be successful in the ag industry and has relied heavily on his faith. Do what you think God wants you to, he says, and he will straighten it out.

In his time, Rick has seen a lot of promising harvests ruined by untimely rains. Experiences like that have given him an appreciation of what it means to plan for Mother Nature’s mischief. In many ways, he says that is what the Arkansas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation is doing to help farmers protect their crops from damaging insects. According to Rick, the Foundation is proof of the improvement that can be achieved economically and environmentally when people work together.