Photo: State Representative Gil Isbel, Gadsden Rotary Club President-elect Jessie Battles, State Representative Craig Lipscomb, Alabama Agriculture Commissioner Rick Pate, State Senator Andrew Jones, Gadsden Rotary Club President Jonathan Roland.
Alabama Agriculture Commissioner Rick Pate was the featured speaker at the Gadsden Rotary Club weekly lunch meeting at the Gadsden Country Club. Pate was elected Commissioner of Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries in 2018 out of four in Republican primary. He was re-elected in 2022 without Republican or Democratic party opposition.
During the luncheon, Pate shared the 2023 Alabama Agriculture Review, while discussed in detail different programs currently underway, including Sweet Grown Alabama, Industrial Hemp, Waste Pesticide Collection, Local Food Procurement agreement and Operation Grow.
Pate has been a member of the Montgomery Rotary Club since 1987 and served as its president in 2011-2012. He also served as President of the Alabama Associated General Contractors (AGC) in 2015 and was appointed “Life Governor” of AGC of America. In 2022, Pate was inducted in the Alabama Construction Hall of Fame. In 2023, he was inducted into the Alabama Livestock Hall of Fame. Pate served as president of the Montgomery Auburn Alumni Club and is a lifetime member of the Auburn Alumni Association. He endowed a scholarship at Auburn University for Lowndes County Residents who attend the university.
Pate has been married to the former Julie Dismukes since 1989. The couple has two grown sons, Richard and James.
Submitted by Jonathan Roland.