Jackson-Lee-Pearson Inc., Flora Two individuals and an agribusiness were inducted into the Carroll County Agriculture Hall of Fame at the Carroll County Agriculture Association banquet and annual meeting Monday night at the 4-H Building.

The honorees are Janet Ayres, Dean Scott, and Jackson-Lee- Pearson Inc.

The Hall of Fame selection committee is composed of previous inductees who meet once a year to make the current year’s selection. This year, they voted to create a new category of honoree to recognize agribusiness. JLP became the first honoree.

The Hall of Fame in the 4-H Building in Flora has been reworked in order to make more room on the walls. There will be a book in the building with the photos and biographies of all inductees, rather than have shortened biographies on plaques next to the pictures.

All photos and full biographies of the Hall of Fame members, since the Inaugural Class in 1994, are now posted on the ag association website, www.carrollcountyag.com.

Ayres Profiles of this year’s class follow.

Janet Ayres

Ayres was born and raised on a dairy farm near Cutler. After graduating from Carroll High School in 1969, she went on to receive her B.A. from Purdue in 1973 and a Master’s in Planning from Cornell University in 1975. After working a few years as a private consultant in land use planning, she joined the Agricultural Economics staff at Purdue and received her Ph.D. in sociology in 1983. She was one of the first women faculty members in the department and moved through the ranks to become a full professor. She served six years as Assistant Director of Purdue Extension, and Community Development Program Leader, during which time she developed the Purdue Land Use Team.

Her work is focused on her passion - rural communities. She has worked in over 200 rural communities in Indiana to help rural people develop their leadership skills to deal with change and conflict. She has developed over a dozen state-wide programs such as the Indiana Ag Leadership Institute, the Indiana Natural Resources Leadership Institute, Take Charge, Barn Again! In Indiana, a leadership program for SWCD Supervisors, and several national-level programs with Extension and USDA Rural Development.

Scott Ayres has traveled to over 50 countries and has conducted leadership programs in Poland, Hungary and Russia. She was one of the first faculty members to introduce the academic importance of leadership. She teaches an undergraduate leadership course and co- developed the College of Agriculture’s Leadership Development Certificate Program for undergraduate students.

Ayres and her husband, Dr. Lynn Corson, chose to make Carroll County their home in 1986 and restored a historic farm at the edge of Delphi.

Ayres led the Carroll County at the Crossroads efforts in 2004 and 2009, and co-created Carroll County Focus on the Future, Leadership Carroll County, and the Heritage Tourism group.

She served on the Community Foundation board and is a member of the Land Use and Zoning Committee, Wabash & Erie Canal Association, County Historical Society, Delphi Preservation Society, County Chamber of Commerce, and County Ag Association. She volunteers her time to facilitate many community organizational retreats.

Dean Scott

Scott was born in Logansport and grew up with two sisters on the family farm northwest of Burlington. A 10-year 4-H member, he graduated from Carroll High School in 1978 and from Purdue Agriculture Short Course in 1979.

He started out his farming career by doing custom farming while still in high school and began full-time farming after that.

He married Tamara in September 1983, and they have two children, Jordan and Hannah.

Scott served on the Carroll County Pork Producers Board in the early 1980s. He was elected to the Carroll County Co-op board in 1985 and then went on to become the president of Excel Co-op from 2001 to 2007.

He served on the FSA County Committee in 1994 for one term and was re-elected in 2006. He is currently serving as chairman of the committee.

Scott has assisted in coaching soccer and was Carroll High School’s first interim varsity soccer coach with a record of 2- 0.

He is a graduate of the 2009 Class of Leadership Carroll County and is currently serving as president of the Carroll County Agriculture Association.

He attends Faith Church of Christ in Burlington, and his hobbies include raising 4-H show pigs, watching high school sports, computers and golfing.

Jackson-Lee-Pearson Inc.

In 1946, L.M. Chittick and son, John, opened a John Deere dealership on West Columbia Street, Flora. In 1962, Matthew E “Pete” Jackson, a farm owner and Deere salesperson from Monticello, purchased an interest and became salesman and general manager of Chittick-Jackson Inc.

W.H. “Bill” Lee closed his Deere dealership in Delphi in 1963 and purchased the interest held by L.M. Chittick, and the business became Chittick-Jackson- Lee Inc. In 1965, John Chittick sold his interest to the other two partners and it became Jackson-Lee, Inc. In 1966 they built a new building on six acres at Clark Street and State Road 75.

Then in 1972, William J. “Bill” Pearson, a Carroll County farmer, purchased an interest, resulting in Jackson-Lee-Pearson Inc. as it remains today.

Lee retired in 1979 and sold to Jackson and Pearson. In 1989, Jackson sold to Pearson, making him the sole owner. In 1991, Bill Pearson acquired the Deere dealership in Frankfort, which is also operated under the name of Jackson-Lee- Pearson Inc. Pearson’s son, Jason, joined the business two years later and became manager of the Frankfort location.

Over the years the size of implements has increased dramatically, which led in 2001 to the purchase of the Allegiance Wire building just to the east of the original site, remodeling it into administrative offices and service area for tractors, combines and lawn and garden equipment. The original building houses sales office, parts sales, and lawn and garden showroom. Other improvements allowed the original parts showroom to carry John Deere toys and merchandise.

In 2007 Jason Pearson began the purchase of Jackson Lee-Pearson from sole owner Bill Pearson.

In the 1950s, there were 10 major farm equipment manufacturers represented in Carroll County. Due to mergers and takeovers, the original 10 manufactures are now down to six. Of these, only John Deere maintains its original identity and Jackson-Lee- Pearson is the only major full-line implement dealer in Carroll County.