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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to recognize Mark and Karen DeDecker and
4family on the occasion of being named the 2023 Family of the
5Year by the Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA); and
 
6    WHEREAS, Mark DeDecker and his wife, Karen, are the proud
7owners of the DeDecker Pork Farm in Cambridge, where they
8currently farm 2,500 acres of corn and soybeans and market
97,000 hogs annually with their son, Lance; and
 
10    WHEREAS, The DeDecker family history in Henry County goes
11back over 75 years and spans over three generations, beginning
12in 1936 when Mark DeDecker's grandparents, Eli and Lucy
13DeDecker, purchased 160 acres for his 21-year-old father,
14Marvin; shortly after the purchase, Marvin married Mark's
15mother, Betty, and they lived and worked on the farm; at the
16time, as it was not uncommon for a farm to be very diversified,
17the couple raised cows, chicken, and pigs and grew corn,
18soybeans, and oat and hay on rotation; and
 
19    WHEREAS, In the 1970s, the DeDecker family farm was one of
20the first farms to begin farrowing inside at a time when
21livestock was primarily raised outdoors and many of their
22neighbors continued to raise 5,000 to 10,000 head on pasture;

 

 

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1their first indoor hog barn was originally a chicken house
2that once homed 12,000 laying hens; later, their chicken house
3was disassembled, moved from its original location, and
4converted into a 40 x 214-foot farrow-to-finish production
5line building; their original barn and crib used for livestock
6still stands on the DeDecker Pork Farm today; and
 
7    WHEREAS, From an early age, Mark DeDecker had a passion
8for livestock; he participated in 4-H, winning first at the
9state level and fourth at the national level for 4-H Livestock
10Judging; he later attended the University of Illinois at
11Urbana-Champaign, where he was chosen as one of the top five
12outstanding seniors in the College of Agriculture; and
 
13    WHEREAS, After receiving his Bachelor of Science and
14Master of Swine Production, Mark DeDecker's interest in the
15pork industry became a career when he started farming
16full-time in 1973; while completing his master's degree, he
17married Karen DeSmith, who was also born and raised in Henry
18County; the couple initially resided in Champaign until he
19finished his master's degree; they then moved back to
20Cambridge, where he partnered with his father, farming 640
21acres and raising 1,000 hogs in a farrow-to-finish operation;
22while he and his father tended to the farm, Karen was employed
23at Deere & Company; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Mark and Karen DeDecker started their family and
2had three children, Jacob, Lance, and Ashley; he became
3involved in the organizational side of the industry and began
4serving on the Henry County Pork Producers Board; throughout
5his career, he has served as a director on the board for over
650 years; during that time, he has held the position of
7president and scholarship chair, with the latter role giving
8him the opportunity to award several hundred thousand dollars
9to deserving students interested in pursuing a career in
10agriculture; and
 
11    WHEREAS, When the children were little, Karen DeDecker
12served as the secretary on the Henry County Fair Board; later,
13she was a bookkeeper for the Henry and Rock Island County Farm
14Bureau offices, splitting her time between both; she
15eventually worked full-time at the Rock Island Farm Bureau,
16retiring after 16 years of service; while raising the children
17and working full-time, she continued doing a number of tasks
18on the farm, including driving the grain cart, loading and
19moving hogs, and running for parts; and
 
20    WHEREAS, The entire DeDecker family has remained very
21active in agriculture, with all of Mark and Karen's children
22pursuing an agriculture-related career; their son, Jacob, was
23named the Illinois Pork State Ambassador in 1998; later, he
24received his Ph.D. and spent 15 years at the Michigan State

 

 

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1University Extension, where he served as a presenter and
2leader to visiting scholars and partnered with countries
3around the world; he is currently the director of the
4extension program and associate dean for Engagement at the
5University of Nevada in Reno; his wife, Kristina, homeschools
6their four children, Hayven, Isaiah, Zander, and Elijah; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Mark and Karen DeDecker's daughter, Ashley, also
8earned her Ph.D. and currently works as the director of
9Production Research for Smithfield Foods, Inc.; throughout her
10career, she has served on several national committees and
11speaks at livestock meetings in the U.S. and around the world;
12her husband, Ashley Weaver, is an Alcohol Law Enforcement
13Special Agent; they reside in North Carolina with their two
14children, Conley and Blair; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Mark and Karen DeDecker's other son, Lance,
16finished his studies at Black Hawk College East Campus and
17returned to the farm in 2001, where he partnered with his
18parents; today, he and his wife, Lindsey, live on part of the
19farm a mile away with their two children, Colt and Chance; and
 
20    WHEREAS, In addition to Mark DeDecker's leadership role on
21the Henry County Pork Producers Board, he also served as a
22district director for the IPPA for nine years; during his
23tenure as a board member, he served on the youth and research

 

 

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1committees; he also served as chairman of the Illinois Pork
2Expo when the show made the transition to Springfield after
3being hosted in Peoria for several decades; after stepping
4down as a district director, he has continued to remain active
5at the county level; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Mark and Karen DeDecker were named Prairie Farmer
7Master Farmers in 2016, a prestigious honor that is the
8longest running recognition for farmers in the country; and
 
9    WHEREAS, The DeDecker family has been active in several
10community organizations over the years, with Mark serving on
11the Henry County Soil & Water Conservation District for 25
12years, the Henry County FSA Board and the Cambridge Library
13Board for nine years, and the Edwards River Board for 10 years;
14the family also belongs to St. John Vianney Catholic Church;
15and
 
16    WHEREAS, The DeDecker family continues to make a lasting
17impression on their community and the pork industry; Mark and
18Karen have striven to adapt to changes and grow their business
19while remaining good stewards of the land and caring for their
20animals; their involvement in local and state activities has
21not only led to their success but has also been the foundation
22for their children's success in agriculture; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
2HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
3we recognize Mark and Karen DeDecker and family on being named
4the 2023 Family of the Year by the Illinois Pork Producers
5Association (IPPA), and we thank the family for their hard
6work and dedication to their community and the pork industry;
7and be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
9presented to the Mark and Karen DeDecker as an expression of
10our esteem and respect.