The NMHA wants to THANK New Mexico State University for their ongoing support each year!

Mike Downey, Manager of Succession Planning, UnCommon Farm

“The Common Traits of Highly Successful Farm Transitions”

Mike Downey is the Manager of Succession Planning at UnCommon Farms – a farmer-based organization who assists farms to manage important aspects of their business including the people (HR), financials, and succession planning to name a few. He is also a partner in Next Gen Ag Advocates which has a unique program with non-family transitions and matching young and aspiring farmers to retiring farmers or operations who don’t have a successor. In working with over 500 family farms, he brings a unique perspective to help guide other farms through their own unique succession planning journey. Mike and his family own and operate a small farm in eastern Iowa where he enjoys exposing his kids to agriculture, 4-H, and the rural way of life. Mike writes a blog called ‘More than Dirt’ for Farm Futures/Farm Progress on anything related to family farm and farmland transitions.

It is estimated that less than 5% of farms and family businesses successfully transition to 3 and 4 generations. At this session, you’ll learn what the common traits and characteristics are for multigenerational farms.  Come prepared by giving thought to the key events that have occurred which led you to where you are today, which will help you prioritize your top succession planning goals for the future. Mike will be offering free consultations at this event, so take advantage of his expertise in a one-on-one session.

Sam Barncastle, Executive Director, Family Farm Alliance

“Water Issues in the West and Policy Impacts”

Samantha “Sam” Barncastle is the new Executive Director of the Family Farm Alliance. Sam is an attorney from New Mexico with over 17 years of experience in the field of complex litigation and policy making regarding water and natural resources on both the state and federal level. She is a 2007 graduate of New Mexico State University, where she graduated with dual degrees, a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Government (Pre-Law), with Honors. In 2010, Sam received her law degree, magna cum laude, from the University of New Mexico School of Law. After clerking for the New Mexico Court of Appeals, then working for two prominent water law firms in Las Cruces, NM, she started her own practice in 2014 and is the managing attorney at Barncastle Law Firm. Mrs. Barncastle is a mother to two children and the wife of a farmer who actively farms in the beautiful Mesilla Valley in New Mexico. The Family Farm Alliance is a powerful advocate for family farmers, ranchers, irrigation districts, and allied industries in seventeen Western states.