4-H motivated Jack Odle to work hard, be dedicated and aspire to achieve. He continues that commitment as publisher of The Progressive Farmer and by his philanthropic endeavors with the Alabama 4-H Club Foundation, the American Baseball Foundation and organizations promoting farm safety. Odle joined The Progressive Farmer in 1976. As editor in the early 1990′, Odle and his staff began a crusade to reduce accidental deaths and injuries of farm and ranch children. They launched the Progressive Farmer Farm Safety Day Camp – now the Progressive Agriculture Safety Day. “To know we have done something to help save the life of a child or prevent a child from being injured is a priceless gift,” he said.
From 1995-2004, Odle was president of the Progressive Agriculture Foundation. Due to his passion and dedication, farm safety days grew from 19 to an estimated 380 in 2008 in the U.S. and Canada. The program has reached more than 656,000 children and adults since 1995. Odle is a member of the American Baseball Foundation and the Farm Foundation, and a former board member of the Alabama Agribusiness Council, the Advisory Board for the Clemson (University) Agricultural Research Center and the Conservation Technology Information Center. He is former president and board member of the American Agricultural Editor’s Association. He has served on USDA honor awards evaluation committees.
