Brian Wanzenried | Director EHS | Gavilon Grain LLC | Omaha, NE | In industry since 1998
“My mother, Kelly Wanzenried, Ed.D., was my first mentor. She raised me as a single mom and taught me hard work, perseverance, professionalism, empathy, and dealing with adversity. She consistently demonstrated these qualities day in and day out throughout my childhood.
“I have had the privilege to work with a lot of other people whom I have learned from and consider my mentors. I would hate to leave out any of them, so I thought I would discuss different kinds of mentors, such as those who have opposed me. I have learned that if you can take opposition constructively, you can learn and get more buy-in for your initiatives.
“For example, we purchased another large grain company, and their employees had significantly different ideas of how to do business. It seemed like they opposed everything I did. It was difficult not to take things personally, but eventually I was able to better understand the reasons for their opinions. It had nothing to do with me; it was just based on their experiences and backgrounds. Even though I didn’t always agree with their opinions, I learned that seeking other points of view and understanding different perspectives resulted in more informed decisions.
“I consider my mistakes to be my third mentor. I joke that if I could learn from my mistakes, I’d be a genius. Unfortunately, that is not the case. It is easy to beat yourself up over a mistake, and I have been guilty of this. In the environmental health and safety field, we have learned not to blame people after they make mistakes and instead seek to identify root causes to prevent similar mistakes in the future. I’ve discovered that using this same approach for my own mistakes is a better process.”
Ricky Creed | EHS Manager | Zen Noh Grain Corporation | Convent, LA | In industry since 1976
“My father, J.B. Creed, was my first mentor. He was a Korean War naval veteran, an ‘Honest Abe’ type. He raised me and my two younger brothers to be honest, truthful, and trustworthy. He used to say, ‘You never learn anything with your mouth open.’ He taught us not to be afraid to ask questions and learn how to do things. He also said, ‘Anything worth having is worth working for.’
“He was a maintenance mechanic with DuPont in Louisiana, and DuPont was one of the first companies to really focus on safety. The company told its employees they were safer at work than at home. Dad died from a heart attack at age 39 when I was a freshman in high school. He taught us the first thing we knew about safety. Dad left a number of lessons on the table, but he left us a good safety foundation.
Warren was probably the best grain export operations person I’ve worked with. He was a great teacher and was always very instructive. -Ricky Creed, Zen-Noh Grain Corp.
“Warren Duffy was the first plant manager when Zen-Noh Grain Corporation began operations in 1982. Warren was probably the best grain export operations person I’ve worked with. He was a great teacher and was always very instructive. He wanted to coach me so that I would keep learning and growing. He said, ‘Always be prepared to succeed because the opportunity will be there,’ and ‘You’re only limited by yourself.’ He also stressed production at a high level. We had a friendly competition with the other shifts.
“My third mentor was Gary Wunch, former president of Zen-Noh Grain Corporation. He was an employee person. He knew your name and family and often asked about them. He was a big asset as a young safety professional. He was always interested and supportive and wanted to know how to improve the company.
“He always asked good questions that would lead you to an outcome. You thought you came up with a good idea, but he led you there. He seemed to know everyone in the business and was a great resource.”
Butch Hendrix | Safety Director | Kokomo Grain Co. Inc. | Kokomo, IN | In industry since 1984
“My father, Dale Hendrix, was my first mentor. He, along with my grandfather, drove my work ethic. They preached that if I wanted anything in life, I had to work for it. I worked with my dad in a roofing business when I was a teenager and learned other life lessons, such as treating people with respect.
“Police Chief Norm Mosely was a co-worker when I worked a number of years as a part-time police officer. He taught me a lot about investigations, criminal conduct, and how to interview people. The skills I developed working with Norm have carried over to investigating incidents at our facility.
“Tom Flynn was my boss when I worked at Cargill. He taught me a lot about business from the corporate level all the way to the plant level.
“I’m currently a corporate safety director, and I really feel like he prepared me well for this role. We used to perform audits, and some looked bad. He’d guide and direct us on how to handle things. You often see defensive posturing from people when it looks like someone could be guilty or at fault, but he always helped us navigate these situations without confrontation.
John Lee | Director-Safety, Health & Environmental Services | Grain & Feed Association of Illinois | Springfield, IL | In industry since 1993
“My first mentor was my grandfather, Paul Lee. He was born in 1906 and had only an 8th grade education, but he was known for his honesty, and no one ever said a bad word about him. He lived 20 miles from town, but he would drive back to give someone the 28 cents they incorrectly gave him in change. He lived comfortably yet modestly and was an all-round great man. He volunteered to serve in the Army Air Corps in World War II even though he was a farmer and had kids, so he wasn’t required to serve. He’d help anyone.
Rich was a walking font of knowledge and served on a number of boards. He was an amateur economist, well respected, hard-working, religious, and ethical. -John Lee, Grain & Feed Association of Illinois
“Larry Jackson was a co-worker at an insurance company where we held the same position. Larry had worked for a number of grain companies. His knowledge, humor, and willingness to talk made him a great mentor. Despite being 20 years older, he didn’t talk down to me but treated me as an equal. Larry taught me how to speak professionally.
“Rich Sauder was my client as a GFAI member and manager of Tremont Coop. Rich was a walking font of knowledge and served on a number of boards. He was an amateur economist, well respected, hard-working, religious, and ethical. If you were in the same room with him and he was talking, you wanted to listen. Rich hired good people and trusted them to do a good job. He competed in a very tough area of the economy and did very well.”