Meet CCI members Tommie
& Katherine Stoner
 Tommie
& Katherine are CCI members who farm near Arispe in Union County.
They have been farming for more than 50 years and currently has
a cow calf operation and 320 acres of corn, soybeans and hay. They
have also been married for over 50 years. In addition to wood working
and metal working, both are accomplished Toastmasters and have used
their public speaking skills on many occasions to share their story
and speak out on important issues.
Tommie and
Katherine have been active members of CCI since 2002. Since 2003,
Tommie has traveled with other CCI members to Washington D.C. to
take part in the National People’s Action conference. “I
like the way CCI tackles issues in Iowa and how we can also take
our issues to a national level too."
How did
you get involved with CCI?
In 2002, I heard about a CCI meeting in Greenfield where members
were trying to stop Gary Weihs from building a hog factory in their
community. Having lived by two hog factory sites for several years,
I decided to attend and ended up standing up and sharing my story.
And, well, I haven’t stopped speaking up about it since.
What has
kept you involved with CCI?
CCI is like a great big family. Everyone is dedicated to getting
things done. Staff and members work hard and put in long hours much
like you do on a farm. The key to CCI’s success is never giving
up and sticking with it.
Is CCI’s
diversity strength?
CCI mixes it up in terms of types of members involved. Each person
has something to offer the organization – that’s where
our strength comes from. It’s important to pay attention to
the different issues - rural or urban - because we need to work
together to survive.
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