NGFA Staff
RANDALL C. GORDON
President
TODD E. KEMP
Vice President of Marketing and Treasurer
CHARLES M. DELACRUZ
Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
DAVID A. FAIRFIELD
Vice President of Feed Services
BETH ELLIOTT
Director of Legislative Affaiirs
JESS MCCLUER
Director of Safety and Regulatory Affairs
HEATHER McELRATH
Director of Communications
TAMELA S. ELLIOTT
Financial Administrator/Desktop Publisher
REBECCA GRUBBS
Manager, Meetings and Event Marketing
SHANNON GOMBOS
Manager of Arbitration/Mediation Services
FAITH J. SILVERS
Manager, Member Services
JACQUELINE CONGRESS
Mailroom/Supplies Manager
Randy joined the NGFA's staff in 1978, and was elected vice president in July 1987. He is responsible for providing NGFA members with timely, accurate information on developments affecting the industry. He authors and edits the NGFA Newsletter and other publications, and works with the print and broadcast media to convey the NGFA's views on issues and public policies affecting the industry. He is staff liaison to the Country Elevator Committee and Country Elevator Council, and the Feed Industry Committee and Feed Industry Council. He also provides communications support to other NGFA program areas, and manages the content of the NGFA's web site. A Nebraska native, he received a B.A. degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in journalism, history and political science. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, Sigma Delta Chi and the National Association of Farm Broadcasters.
Todd E. Kemp
Vice President of Marketing/Treasurer
Todd was promoted to director of marketing in May 1997. He is responsible for the overall management and direction of the NGFA's membership recruitment, development and retention programs. He also spearheads the marketing of NGFA products, services and conferences. He serves as staff liaision to the Membership and Marketing Committee and to the Risk Management Committee, which has primary responsibility for NGFA positions on futures market-related issues; and he is co-staff liaison to the Biofuels Committee. Todd joined the NGFA's staff in 1991 as director of legislative affairs. Before that, he worked for the Agency for International Development, as a budget analyst at USDA and as legislative assistant for then-Sen. Nancy Landon Kassebaum-Baker, R-Kan. A Kansas native, he is a graduate of Kansas State University, with a Bachelors degree in agricultural economics and a Masters in business administration.
Charles M. Delacruz
Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
Mr. Delacruz joined the NGFA in 2002 as counsel for public affairs and corporate secretary. In this capacity, he serves as NGFA's in-house legal counsel and the administrator of the NGFA Arbitration System. He also is a staff liason to the Trade Management Committee, Arbitration Appeals Panel, Rail Arbitration Rules Committee, Risk Management Committee, and Rail Shipper-Receiver Committee. Mr. Delacruz has an extensive background in business law and private legal practice serving clients in the food industry. After law school, he practiced law with a major international law firm for over 10 years, advising and representing corporate clients on business, contractual and litigation matters. Prior to joining NGFA's staff, Mr. Delacruz was an attorney with a Washington-based consulting firm that provided services for Fortune 500 food industry clients on regulatory, import-export, safety and quality, and business and litigation issues. A Virginia native, Mr. Delacruz is a magna cum laude
graduate of James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va., with degrees in history and political science. He received his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville, Va., where among other things he was an editor of the Virginia Journal of International Law.
David A. Fairfield
Vice President of Feed Services
Fairfield joined the staff in June 2001. He serves as staff liaison to the NGFA's Feed Industry Committee addressing a wide range of legislative and regulatory issues affecting feed manufacturers. He also serves as a liaison with Gordon and members of the NGFA Feed Industry Committee to various committees of the Association of American Feed Control Officials. Fairfield also serves as the principal NGFA staff contact to provide assistance as needed by affiliated State and Regional Grain and Feed Associations in addressing feed-related issues at the state level. And he assumes responsibility for managing the NGFA's respected Feed Quality Assurance Program for Feed Mills, and related educational and training initiatives. Fairfield also works with NGFA's Director of Technical Services in addressing safety, health and environmental issues affecting the feed industry, and will work with NGFA's Director of Marketing in recruiting new members among the feed sector. Prior to joining the
NGFA, Fairfield has had 20 years of experience in feed mill management and operations, and has received numerous personal recognitions for outstanding achievement. He was plant manager for Hubbard Feeds Inc.'s Iowa feed mills in Atlantic and Sioux City.
Fairfield is a magna cum laude graduate in feed science and management from Kansas State University, and was recognized as a Kansas scholar. He also has been a contributing author for Feed Manufacturing Technology IV published by Kansas State University and AFIA, and has been a speaker at AFIA's Regional Production School on preventive maintenance programs for feed mills.
Beth Elliott
Director of Legislative Affairs
Beth works closely with NGFA Manager of Public Policy Relations on the NGFA's legislative, trade and political grassroots efforts. Elliott will be assigned principal staff liaison responsibilities for working with the NGFA's International Trade and Agricultural Policy Committee.
Beth joins the NGFA's staff after working for seven years on Capitol Hill, most recently for former Rep. Tom Perriello, D-Va., for whom she served as acting chief of staff and legislative director. During her tenure, she managed the congressman's legislative team and Capitol Hill office staff, and provided staff support for his duties as a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. She also handled appropriations, energy, water and dairy policy issues for Perriello. Prior to that, she served as legislative assistant for Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., during which she provided staff support on agriculture, trade, energy, environmental, water and tax policy. From 2005-08, she worked as legislative assistant for Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Calif., where she focused on transportation, appropriation, education, labor and telecommunications policy. She began her work on Capitol Hill in 2003 as an intern for then-Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.
Elliott is a native of southern Virginia, growing up on her family's dairy farm. She received her undergraduate degree in government and international politics from George Mason University, Fairfax, Va., and her masters in political management from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Jess McCluer
Director of Safety and Regulatory Affairs
Jess McCluer, Director of Safety and Regulatory Affairs with the National Grain and Feed Association is responsible for directing and managing the NGFA's wide-ranging operations programs for grain elevators, feed mills and grain processing plants. He also oversees the NGFA's activities regarding employee safety and industrial health, environmental issues, grain-handling facility design and equipment, grain inspection and weighing issues, grain and feed quality and biotechnology related issues.
Prior to joining NGFA in 2007, Mr. McCluer was a program analyst at OSHA's Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
He received his undergraduate degree from Texas A&M University, and his MA from the George Washington University.
Tamela S. Elliott
Financial Administrator/Desktop Publisher
Tammy maintains the Association's accounting functions and records. She analyzes financial and statistical information, prepares financial reports, monitors investments, and processes invoices and requisitions. Tammy joined the NGFA's staff in 1998 after serving for seven years as an administrative specialist and technical support representative for a private contractor for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Her responsibilities included preparing documents and graphics for reports, conferences and seminars; managing the firm's web site; and serving as office manager. Prior to that, she worked as a summer intern for the General Services Administration's Inspector General's Office. She attended Frostburg (Md.) State University, where her course work focused on accounting.
Rebecca Grubbs
Manager of Meetings and Event Marketing
Rebecca is responsible for planning, executing, and managing arrangements and logistics for NGFA conferences and events, including the annual convention and business meeting; Board and committee meetings; annual Country Elevator Conference; annual Feed/Pet Food Conference and other conferences and seminars. She also provides marketing support for NGFA conferences and meetings to the NGFA Director of Marketing.
Prior to joining the NGFA's staff in 2010, Grubbs was catering sales and conference services manager for the Melrose Hotel in Washington. Prior to that, she was sales and event manager for two other Washington-based catering firms during the period of 2003-08.
She received an undergraduate degree in English and political science from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pa. She is a certified professional catering executive, and a member of the National Association of Catering Executives.
Faith Silvers
Manager, Database/Member Services
Faith manages the NGFA's membership database and assists the director of marketing/treasurer in membership- recruitment and retention programs. She also serves as registrar for NGFA conventions, conferences and seminars, and assists in coordinating the NGFA Trade Show conducted in conjunction with the annual December Country Elevator/Feed Industry Conference.
Prior to joining NGFA, Faith spent 10 years as membership coordinator and database manager for the National Consumers League, where she also was involved in membership recruitment, database management, sponsorships and fund-raising initiatives. Prior to that, Ms. Silvers served nine years with the Computer and Communications Industry Association, the last four of which were spent as its manager of event planning and information services. She attended the College of Charleston, Charleston, S.C., and the Northern Virginia Community College.
Jacqueline Congress
Mailroom/Supplies Manager
Jackie is responsible for the overall operation of the Association's mail room. She processes and distributes incoming correspondence, and mails the NGFA Newsletter, publications, and committee correspondence and materials. She also fills publication and audio/visual orders. She also assists as NGFA's telephone operator. Prior to joining the NGFA's staff in 1988, she worked as a stenographer for a reporting service and for an insurance company in records processing and mail operations.