By Bill Berry, December 15, 2021
Jeff Lyon will be joining the Ralph K. Morris Foundation board of directors beginning on January 1, 2022. His nomination to a three-year term was unanimously approved by the board in a December 2021 meeting.
Lyon has an extensive background on agriculture and rural issues. He is general manager of FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative, based in Madison. Prior to joining FarmFirst, he was Deputy Secretary at the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection for nearly eight years, under Secretary Ben Brancel. He has also held positions with the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and worked on the Washington, D.C., staff of former Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Steve Gunderson. He began his career as a writer for The Country Today newspaper after graduation from UW-River Falls with a degree in Broad Area Agriculture and Journalism.
He is the son of Barbara and the late Tom Lyon. Tom Lyon was a founding member of the Ralph K. Morris Foundation. The foundation’s annual Tom Lyon Family Leadership Symposium honors Tom’s legacy as a state and national cooperative leader.
Jeff Lyon serves on the board of directors for Cooperative Network, World Dairy Expo and Easter Seals Wisconsin. He also serves as president of the Federated Youth Foundation board of directors. He lives in Middleton with his wife, Karen. They have two adult children.
In addition to the addition of Lyon to the board, directors also unanimously approved new three-year terms for William Nelson and Christopher Morris. Both are founding board members. Nelson serves as board president.
A full list of the Board of Directors of the Ralph K. Morris Foundation can be found at https://www.ralphkmorrisfoundation.org/about