Value on education
Although the culture in which Earl was reared did not place high value on education, his father supported every possible educational effort for his son. Earl earned the Bachelors and Masters in Agriculture Sciences at the University of Arkansas, and then the Ph.D. in Plant Histology with study on microscopic reproduction of Vaccinium corymbosum from Rutgers University in New Jersey. To this day, Dr. Earl cultivates blueberries in his Vancouver backyard because the grandkids get such pleasure eating them fresh from the bush!
During Dr. Earl’s 30 year professional experience at CSU Fresno, he became Professor Emeritus of Plant Science. Prior to that, he was Associate Dean of the College of Agriculture at Texas A&M and on the agriculture faculty.
A heart for community service
Love of family
Earl and his wife Karen have been married for over 44 years. They have four grown children, and grandchildren are integral to their everyday lives. They enjoy travel, particularly the backroads of the U.S., including (especially?) Alaska, in their 5th wheel. When it comes to restaurants, they see it all because Earl enjoys barbeque dives while Karen prefers European pastries. Earl describes a great day with family as watching football and eating seafood dip that Karen prepared. One reason Earl seeks to serve his community is for his grandchildren to thrive here in education, work and play. With the blending of ages, family is all about giving love and support and receiving them in return.
Appreciation of hard work
Earl grew up in southern Arkansas on a dairy farm where he learned the value of hard work from an early age. At 4 a.m. childhood chores were to milk the cows and help Dad transport heavy milkcans for processing. His life has followed this early path – both in terms of agriculture and hard work. He ultimately became the Founder and President of ProduceOne, Inc., importing agricultural products and providing community service for the fresh produce industry. To this day, he offers a free comprehensive website on daily market shipping points and terminal prices internationally for 250 commodities for his profession.
Passion for his district
