Our Agents

Aaron Kravig joined the AgRisk Advisors team as an Agent in the summer of 2018. The Kravig family name is well-known in southeastern Colorado, as his family ancestors were some of the first to settle the area and founded the small town where he and his family still reside.

Aaron, now a fifth-generation rancher, along with his wife their four children, and his parents own and operate Kravig Red Angus where they raise and sell registered seedstock cattle. Prior to his time at Ag Risk Advisors he was the Agriculture Education Teacher and FFA advisor for 7 years at the local school and has served and still does serve on numerous agricultural industry boards both at both the state and national level.

Aaron’s career in Ag production Risk Management began on his family ranch in eastern Oregon. His experience working cattle, while pursuing a Finance degree, gave him a unique understanding of the financial risk facing livestock operations. His designation as a Certified Financial Planner gave him further insight in the importance of an effective Risk Management plan for long-term success and legacy planning.

Today, Aaron, his wife, Traci, and a talented group of agents and support staff make up AgRisk Advisors. AgRisk is dedicated to providing Risk Management solutions to all types of Ag-production operations across the western US.

Alex Anaya, Customer Relations Manager, recently joined the AgRisk Advisors team. Born and raised in Pueblo, Colorado, Alex is no stranger to the farm and ranch community. He raised horses and cattle with his family, acknowledging that the long days made him who he is today. He feels his granddad made the greatest impression on him, teaching him about the value of hard work and the importance of family.

Fun fact, Alex used to be a competitive bull rider but, after a few bad falls, realized he prefers working with people. A graduate of Colorado State University, Alex brings a positive attitude to everything he does and loves working with our customers.

Andrea grew up in Southeastern Ohio in a small Ohio River town in Meigs County surrounded by vegetable crop operations.  She attended The Ohio State  University, graduating in 1996, with a degree in Agri Business.  Andrea worked for ADM in the Grain division for five years before joining Cargill in 2001.  During her Cargill career she worked eight years in positions focused on grain marketing and risk management and seven years as a Crop Insurance Agent.  Andrea is versed in all areas of risk management which is a natural fit for her current occupation as an insurance agent with Silveus Insurance Group.

Andrea joined Silveus Insurance Group in January 2016 after SIG purchased Cargill’s crop insurance business.  She currently serves Ohio, Indiana and Michigan with hopes of expanding into new states and meeting some new faces.  Andrea resides on the family farm in Botkins, Ohio with her husband Jeff and their three children Bryce, Brant and Jana.  She is very active in her children’s activities including 4H, soccer, basketball, baseball and softball.  Her family attends St. Jacobs Lutheran Church in Jackson Center, OH.

Get to know Andrea in her Meet The Team feature!   

Get to know Blake in his Meet The Team feature!   

Blake earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture from Texas Tech University. Being from Lubbock he specializes in Multi-Peril insurance for cotton farmers. He also sells PRF, rainfall index insurance in states throughout the southern region of the country. Blake acquired a property casualty license to better assist farmers in mitigating risks. He lives in Acuff, Texas with his wife Raelye, and his twin girls Kylie and Kenna. They are expecting a third child in August.

Get to know Blake in his Meet The Team feature!   

Brad grew up in a family with long history in large-scale greenhouse production. Although originally from Kalamazoo, Michigan, he moved to Florida for college, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science from Palm Beach Atlantic University in 2006. It was there that he met Erin Silveus, who later became his wife. They got married soon after and put roots down close to Erin’s family in Warsaw, Indiana. They have two children, Emmett and Gwendolyn.

In 2011, after multiple years working in Information Technology and Analysis, Brad was approached by Scott, Cam, and Tyler Silveus about joining the family business. The first few years that he spent with Silveus Insurance Group were actually being part of the team that designed, coded, and built much of the software that all Silveus agents use for their risk management decisions. After demonstrating a deep understanding of strengths and weaknesses of the wide spectrum of risk management policies and products, he transitioned into an agent role and have been in that position since.

Brad is licensed in multiples states from Nebraska to Ohio. Because his approach and tool set are more analytical than most, it has proven to be effective for producers of wide ranging commodities and area. However, he is fundamentally people-first and understands that it is the producer’s goals and concerns for their operation that must drive our risk strategy. Brad is excited by the opportunity to work with growers that are new to Silveus Insurance Group because the company is uniquely positioned at the forefront of what is possible with protecting farm interests. Brad also believes that Silveus, as a company, will continue to forge ahead in the upcoming years to hold fast to that position. His goal is that the farmers and ranchers he works with have clarity on their current protection and risk while remaining at the front of the pack and informed on new opportunities.

Get to know Brad in his Meet The Team feature!   

Brad joined the Silveus team after serving 22 years in the U.S. Air Force. As an Air Force recruiter, he learned the value of asking his customers the right questions in order to uncover their needs. He applies the same thought process when it comes to crop insurance. Brad values loyalty, integrity, and building long-term relationships with his customers. He has been married to his wife, Jamie, for 20 years, and they have two daughters, Sydney (18) and Kennedy (14). In his free time, he enjoys bow hunting, building custom archery arrows, and spending time with his family.

Brent Clark has had a 20 yr career in farming and ag related businesses. He graduated from Lubbock Christian University with a B.S. Accounting in 1983. He worked for several years in Lubbock for an account firm. Since returning to Dumas, Brent has farmed and been Marketing Director of a grain elevator. Brent is married to Johnette, and they have two daughters.

Get to know Brent in his Meet The Team feature!   

Brett Anthony grew up in central Florida and graduated from Haines City High School in 1990. Upon graduation, he earned a full-ride Division 1 basketball scholarship to Liberty University. During his years at Liberty, he played 4 years of basketball as well as 2 years of baseball. After graduating college with a degree in Sport Management and Secondary Education, he went on to teach high school for 2 years in northern Florida.

After 2 years of teaching, Brett and his wife welcomed his first son, Matthew, and decided on a career change that took him to St. Louis, MO for chiropractic school. Then after chiropractic school, Brett ran two successful chiropractic clinics from 2002-2022.

Brett Anthony began selling crop insurance in 2017 but on a limited basis until 2022 when he made the transition to being a full-time Silveus agent.

Brett and his wife Kara have 3 children: Matthew, Mia, and Grant. When Brett isn’t working, he is pursuing elk, whitetail, and turkeys; and during college football season, he is busy watching his Georgia Bulldogs play.

Farmers and ranchers look to Bret for risk management advice because of the experience and knowledge in finding solutions tailored to their operation. From working with some of the biggest producers in Colorado, the top wheat growers in Kansas, ranchers just getting started in Oklahoma, to diverse operations in South Dakota, Bret has seen many aspects of American agriculture. Having grown up on a farm and ranch, Bret has experienced firsthand the many challenges producers face. These unique experiences have allowed Bret to offer different solutions when producers thought there was only one way. The exclusive software Bret utilizes enables him to take a closer look at the history of your operation and offer better solutions moving forward. Bret’s goal is to help farms and ranches improve profitability in the long term.

Brian has been married to Diane since 1989.  They have four children; one son and three daughters.  He graduated from Ball State University in 1989 with a degree in Psychology, Sociology, and Interpersonal Relations.  Brian has been a member of Winona Lake Grace Brethren Church for over a decade and currently serves on the Care Commission there.  In addition, he teaches and is heavily involved in children’s ministries at the Church.  Brian has served on several boards and is currently the President of the board of Kosciusko County Right to Life.

Get to know Brian in his Meet The Team feature!   

Prior to joining the Silveus team, Brian was an agent with PHI, a division of Pioneer Hi-breds International. Brian has had farming in his background for as long as he can remember and still farms part-time as a way to fully understand what farmers deal with on a daily basis.

Brian graduated from Iowa State University with a Bachelor in Ag Studies/Farm Operation and a minor in Agronomy. He is a certified Agronomist with the American Society of Agronomy, and also a member of the National Corn Growers Association and the FFA Alumni Association in Milton, Wis.

In addition to being a crop insurance agent, Brian sells seed for Pioneer Hi-Breds as well as other seeds for the Delong Co. Inc.

When he’s not out advising farmers on protecting their crop, Brian enjoys spending time with his family and making them delicious dishes with produce from his own farm.  An avid fisher and all around sports guy, Brian enjoys following the Iowa State athletics as well as the Green Bay Packers and the Milwaukee Brewers.

Get to know Brian in his Meet The Team feature!   

Brian was born and raised in Warsaw, Indiana and graduated from Warsaw High School in 1993. After graduation, he attended the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. At the Academy, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps in 1998. He attended flight school in Pensacola, Florida and earned his wings in 2000 as a CH-46E helicopter pilot. Brian spent the majority of his military career in Miramar, California, serving two tours in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

After 8 ½ years serving our country he chose to leave the service as a Captain and move back home to Warsaw to join his father, Randy Swanson, and the rest of the Silveus folks. Brian has clients in Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Iowa, and Missouri. He and his wife, Kristina, have three children, Gracie and Jack and Gabby. In his free-time Brian enjoys reading, playing basketball and golf, and spending time with his family.

Chris McCray graduated from High School in 1997. He attended Pensacola Junior College in Florida for two years before moving back to Indiana in 1999 to attend Grace College. In 2000 Chris decided to join his “Uncle Steve” at the Silveus Insurance Group. Since joining SIG, Chris has established himself as an extremely valuable member of the SIG team. In 2003, Chris played an instrumental role in developing the equation that led to the harvest revenue option (HRO) being added to GRIP. GRIP-HRO is now the newest and fastest growing form of federally subsidized crop insurance.

Chris’s ability to meet and exceed client expectation along with his intimate knowledge of the federal crop insurance program has enabled him to become one of the largest individual crop insurance agents in the country. Chris is licensed to sell insurance in 19 states from North Dakota to Florida and currently works with customers in 15 of those states. Chris and his wife Sarah have two daughters, Claudia and Kendall, and a son, Cohen. In his spare time Chris enjoys hunting, fishing and watching his Father-in-Law coach the Grace College Men’s Basketball team.

Get to know Chris in his Meet The Team feature!   

Christian Ochsendorf, agent, joined the Silveus Insurance Group team when the company acquired Cargill Inc.  While at Cargill, Christian won the “Top Cargill Northwest Region Crop Insurance Agent” award in 2013 and again in 2014. Christian works on his family’s Angus cow/calf operation and believes this hands-on experience helps him better understand the needs of farmers. He serves clients in Minnesota, North and South Dakota.

Ochsendorf earned a master’s degree in special education from St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

Get to know Christian in his Meet The Team feature!   

Dale McCray graduated in 2001 with a degree in Business from Pensacola Junior College . Dale excelled at a number of sales jobs from 1998 to 2001 as he was working his way toward his degree in business. In 2001 Dale’s Entrepreneurial side continued to show as he and a partner opened and managed a small retail business in Pensacola , Florida .

After many discussions with his brother, Chris McCray and Dale’s uncle, Steve Silveus, he decided in 2002 to move to Indiana and joined the Silveus Insurance Group. Dale’s engaging personality and ability to connect with his clients has enabled him to become one of the fastest growing agents with Silveus Insurance Group. Dale is licensed to sell Insurance in 5 states and currently manages a book of over 90 clients throughout the mid-west. Dale lives in Warsaw with his wife, Bach. They attend Warsaw Community Church and enjoy teaching a Sunday School Class of 2nd Grade boys. In his free time Dale enjoys fishing, mountain biking and all shooting sports.

Get to know Dale in his Meet The Team feature!   

Growing up on a dairy farm in Northern Indiana, Dale learned what it means to put in a hard days work. He carried this work ethic to Taylor University where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in business administration and All American honors while starting all four years for the men’s basketball program.

Upon completion of his degree he directed the Marketing and Human Resource department for a machine and tool manufacturer which supplied equipment to form fluid transfer lines of FORD, GM, Chrysler, John Deere and Caterpillar. Dale is the author of a chapter about tube-end forming and grooving found in a book which details the “Tube cold forming process.” Dale has served on many educational and chamber of commerce boards. Dales specializes in whole farm and crop insurance markets. Dale (or the “mule”) as he is affectionately referred to around the office because of his tireless work ethic) began his career with Silveus in 2002 and services over 180 customers in Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.

Dale lives in a farming community with his wife, Jolie and their two children Pam and Sam… in his free-time Dale enjoys all forms of fishing and continues to play competitive basketball throughout the summer.

Gordon has had a 20 year career in farming and ag related businesses. He received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Lubbock Christian University in 1985. He then received an MBA from Texas Tech University in 1987. After a short stint with GTE in Seattle, Washington, Gordon and his wife Cheryl moved back to the family farming business in the Texas Panhandle. Gordon and Cheryl have one son. He joined the Silveus Group in 2004. In addition to selling insurance on their own farms, Gordon has customers in the Panhandle as well as four other states.

Get to know Gordon in his Meet The Team feature!   

Silveus agent Grant Frye joined the company after Silveus Insurance Group acquired Cargill Insurance agency.

Prior to joining the team, Grant served as an Ag Risk Advisor at Water Street Solutions—an ag company helping farmers with the challenges they face in growing and improving their farming operations. Grant also provided industry insights to customers as a way to better prepare for the growing season and beyond.

Grant earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California. He received a Master of Arts in Art History from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Grant is a Series 3 certified commodity broker, and is a licensed insurance agent for property, casualty, life, and health.

Get to know Grant in his Meet The Team feature!   

Been in the farming and ranching part of agriculture my entire life.  Graduated from South Plains College with a degree in Science in 1989 and later graduated with a BSLA from Texas Tech University in 1992.  Still active in ranching and the cattle feeding industry in the Texas Panhandle.   Currently running the Silveus Insurance Group and Silveus Rangeland Offices in Muleshoe, Texas.

Get to know Guy in his Meet The Team feature!   

Hayden Patterson graduated from the University of Central Arkansas with a degree in Marketing and Management. After graduating he joined Silveus Insurance Group. Hayden comes from a family of Farmers and Agri Businessmen—Hayden’s father, Teddy Patterson, worked for the Arkansas Farm Bureau prior to his death; his grandfather, Billy Patterson, farmed near Biscoe and retired from Riceland Foods; and his uncle, Tony Patterson, works for Greenway in DesArc. Hayden used to spend his summers working for his uncle, Willie Oxner, and cousin, William Oxner. He enjoyed growing up hunting and fishing at Little Hill Arkansas and still enjoys those activities in areas of Monroe and Prairie counties.

Jared Clark was born in Lubbock, Texas, but was raised mostly in San Antonio. He spent time in Dumas as often as he could with his cousins, Brent and Gordon Clark.  As luck would have it, they put him to work on the farm where he gained a lot of experience. Unbeknown to Jared, that steered him in the direction of his eventual love and passion for what would become the basis of his career.

Jared went to Texas Tech University, graduating with a degree in Agriculture and Applied Economics. While in college, he worked for many area farmers and ranchers and with the Texas Tech Rodeo Team. Through these different jobs, Jared gained experience and knowledge in farm and ranch management.

When he graduated in 2008, Jared began farming with Brent, and he did that for four years. This position helped Jared gain knowledge in day-to-day farm operations and management, as well as the importance of utilizing marketing and insurance. In 2009, Jared and his wife started a cow/calf operation that they still run today. During the winter of 2011, Jared became an agent with Silveus Insurance Group. In 2013, he joined the Silveus Financial team, and in 2018, he became the CEO.

Today, Jared works with agriculture producers in 15 states, helping them manage their risk so they can spend time caring for their livestock and farms rather than worrying about their business operations.

Get to know Jared in his Meet The Team feature!   

Jarrod Barnhart was born in Rockford, Illinois and spent his very early years in Beloit, Wisconsin. Most of his years growing up were spent on the family farm in Indiana. Jarrod joined Silveus in 2008. He holds multiple state licenses, and works with customers in meeting their home, auto, farm, and business insurance needs. Jarrod’s energy and service orientation serve him well in solving the insurance needs of his clients, while his background in agriculture helps meet the needs of local and regional farm clients.

Jarrod and his wife Rachel live in Warsaw with their two sons and daughter, Shannon, Joaquin and Avery. His family responsibilities keep him busy; however when free time comes his way he enjoys golf, tinkering in the garage, and watching movies.

Jarrod can be reached on his cell at (574) 377-0097 or toll-free (800) 531-9909, or send Jarrod an email jarrod.barnhart@cropins.net

Born and raised in Cedar City, UT, Jason works closely with his dad and brother operating an Angus seed stock operation in Southern Utah.  He enjoys watching his daughter, nephews, and niece grow up on the same farm that he grew up on, learning all the same lessons that he learned on the family farm. Knowing that ranching was going to be his hobby, Jason graduated from Southern Utah University with his Master’s degree in Accounting.  Jason has made a career in the Agriculture Industry helping producers with their risk management strategies.

Jason Conley is a 1989 Warsaw High School graduate who went on to earn his Associates degree at Michigan Christian College, where he was also the captain of the Basketball team. Before coming to Silveus Insurance Group he worked 11 years in the orthopedic industry at Paragon Medical, while also continuing his studies and graduating from Indiana University with his bachelor’s degree. Jason then graduated with his Masters in Business Administration from Indiana Tech. University in 2007. A full-time agent licensed in multiple states for both Property & Casualty, Jason specializes in Crop, Farm Owner, Auto, and Homeowner lines of insurance.

Jason lives in Leesburg and enjoys playing basketball, being out on Lake Tippecanoe, and spending time with his girlfriend, Katie, and their two dogs, Brooklyn and Rhonin.

Get to know Jason in his Meet The Team feature!   

Jason Timmerman grew up on a small farm in a small town in Mid-Michigan. After high school, he joined the US Army, and after his service, he attended The University of Michigan, Ross School of Business and received his degree in business. Jason used his military experience and degree to manage 4 different business for the past 25 years where he now lives in Warsaw, Indiana with his family. He has three children; a daughter, a Junior at Indiana University Bloomington, and two boys, currently in grade school. Jason coaches little league baseball, promotes and manages a small dirt race track, and helps his wife, Jackie, with their family-owned landscape company. He also raises grass-feed beef with a partner. Jason enjoys scuba diving, hunting, fishing, racing, and, most of all, vacationing with his family.

Jeffery Hall graduated from the University of Arkansas with a B.S. in Animal Science. He owns and operates a cow/calf operation in central Arkansas. Jeffery worked 16 years for the Arkansas Farm Bureau where he led the organization’s state and national public policy agenda. In 2014, he joined the Silveus team. That same year, he created Capital Strategies and Associates, focused on state policy development for clients. Jeffery has business in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi, and he works closely with the State Cattlemen’s Associations in Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Jeffery and his wife, Kelly, have a 12-year-old daughter, Gwinn, and a 9-year-old son, Rece.

Born in 1957, Jim Banner grew up in the Texas Hill Country where his family raised commercial cattle in Llano County.  He was active in 4-H and FFA participating in livestock judging and showing.  He was the past recipient of the 4-H Gold Star Award and participated in the Farm Bureau Youth Leadership Program.  Jim earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Education from Texas A&M University in 1981 and was a member of Saddle & Sirloin and Collegiate FFA.

In 1983, Jim began his career with Gulf Coast Publishing located in San Antonio, Texas.  He was assigned the job of advertising director for the The Beefmaster Cowman magazine, the official publication for Beefmaster Breeders United.  In 1989, with business partner Michael Sturgess, he formed Southern Livestock Publishing, a multi breed, bi-weekly newspaper which services the area located in the southern portion of Texas. In 1992, he was instrumental in starting the San Antonio Livestock Show & Rodeo All Breed Bull and Female Sale which is considered one of the best replacement cattle sales in the state.

Since 2007, Jim has been a licensed agent for Silveus Insurance Group and was very involved in the initial offering of PRF insurance in the state of Texas.  With clients in Texas, New Mexico and Tennessee, customers seem to appreciate the knowledge and understanding of the cattle business that Jim is able to use in helping them make the right decisions with their policies.

Jim is a member of the Independent Cattleman’s Assn., Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Assn. and has been active in the Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course.

Joe Patton provides service for clients throughout the Midwest and High Plains areas. Joe lives in Warsaw with his wife Aynsley and their two daughters, Kennedy and Kaylee. They attend Warsaw Community Church. In his spare time, Joe enjoys being with his family. He also enjoys running, and makes sure to fit in some time for hunting both deer and turkey.

Joe is a 1994 North Manchester High School graduate. He decided to further his education in 2008 and graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

Get to know Joe in his Meet The Team feature!   

Kari Heiss is a 2008 graduate from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln holding a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and a 2006 graduate of Southeast Community College – Lincoln holding an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration/Marketing.  She worked in the financial industry from 2008-2013.  In 2014, a subsequent position with J.E. Meuret Grain Company led to an introduction to Silveus Insurance Group.

Kari’s focus lies in operations with cattle, corn, soybeans, popcorn, and wheat.  Her husband, Tate, is a corn and soybean farmer and also runs a cow/calf operation. She is extremely passionate about Rangeland Insurance and strives to help ranchers understand how it could potentially play a role in their operations.

Kari currently holds licenses for Crop Insurance, Life Insurance/Annuities, Variable Contracts, and Sickness/Accident/Health Insurance. She and her husband reside in Orchard, Nebraska with their two children.

Kahla Mills, from Gillette, Wyoming, has been involved in the cattle industry for 36 years, as she is a 5th generation rancher in Campbell County, Wyoming. Kahla graduated from Western Dakota Technical Institute with a diploma in Pharmacy Technician. After working in that industry for four years, she worked in the mining industry for a couple of years before eventually ending up back on the ranch. Kahla is the Regional 1 Vice President for the Wyoming Stock Growers Association(WSGA) and a member of the Wyoming Beef Council. She has been with the local, state, and national Cattlewomen since high school. Kahla served as President of the Wyoming Cattlewomen from 2017 to 2019 and is currently active in the American National CattleWomen. In addition, she participated in 4H and FFA and loves to educate about and promote the beef industry in any way she can.

Kevin Schlabach joined the AgRisk Advisors team in 2022. He was an Agriculture Education teacher and FFA advisor for five years prior. He completed his Bachelors from Colorado State University in Animal Science and Agriculture Business and completed his masters in Agriculture Science. Kevin was born and raised in Durango, CO, and operates a small ranch where he raises cattle and works with horses. In addition, he enjoys hunting, camping with his wife and two boys, and skiing when he has free time.

Kurt Kammerer was born in Leesburg, Indiana where he spent his early years growing up on a farm. Kurt graduated from Warsaw High School in 2000. He attended Purdue University and earned a degree in business. After College, Kurt spent six years in sales. Since joining Silveus, Kurt has had great satisfaction in helping out farmers in Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, and Illinois.

Kurt and his wife Priscilla have two sons and a daughter, Jude, Jentzen and Joscelyn. The Kammerer family lives in Leesburg. In his spare time Kurt enjoys spending time with his family ,sports, helping on the family farm, and cheering for the Chicago Cubs.

Get to know Kurt in his Meet The Team feature!   

Get to know Louis in his Meet The Team feature!   

Louis grew up in Southwestern Michigan in a small farming community with a mixture of row crop farms, fruit orchards, grape and blueberry operations.  He attended Manchester College, graduating in 1990, with a Bachelor Degree in Athletic training.  From 1990 to 2014, Louis served initially as athletic trainer to several area schools, before joining DePuy in a medical sales and advisory capacity.  During his service in the medical field, Louis learned to deal with government rules and regulations, knowledge that serves him well in his current occupation as an insurance agent with Silveus Insurance Group.

In 2014, he joined Silveus to service the Midwest market. Louis met his wife, Heather Gaerte, a native of Warsaw, while with area schools and the have now been married for eighteen years with two daughters, Page and Lex. The family is active in sports, social and community affairs. Louis’ great-grandfather was a successful fruit farmer in Royalton Township, Michigan, raising apples, peaches, and cherries.  He enjoys the friendship of a number of farm families in north central Indiana and southwest Michigan.  You will find Louis to have a positive can do attitude and sincere desire to work with clients to address their insurance needs.

Get to know Louis in his Meet The Team feature!   

Get to know Lucas in his Meet The Team feature!   

Lucas Whalen is an expert in risk management. By using Silveus’ exclusive software, Lucas helps his clients view their specific financial risk, ultimately showing which insurance program works best for their farm.

Lucas received his BS in Business Administration and Marketing from Grace College in 2007. He has always enjoyed helping people, and started his working career selling tools in the Ag, Sports and Industrial markets. He is driven to better anything and everything he is involved in, and sees Crop Insurance as a way for him to help the American farmer mitigate part of their financial risk.

When he is not working he enjoys spending time with his wife Grace, and their two children Brooklyn and Grant. He also enjoys working around their house, hunting, fishing, camping and a little golf.

Get to know Lucas in his Meet The Team feature!   

Mark England graduated from Warsaw Community High School in 2003. After graduation, he attended The University of Central Florida and earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Management Entrepreneurship. Before joining the Silveus team, he worked in banking and sports marketing for several years. Mark is a full-time agent and carries licenses in multiple states. His mixture of energy and in-depth financial analysis make him a well-rounded agent in the growing technology age. In September of 2022, Mark and his wife Hailey introduced their first child into the world, a boy named Maverick.

Mark was born and raised in Nappanee, Indiana.  After graduating from high school, he worked in manufacturing management for 22 years.  Acting on a passion he developed as a young man growing up in the Nappanee area, Mark started farming in 1987 and developed a sizeable and successful grain operation in Nappanee while he continued to hold a full-time job in manufacturing.  He brings to Silveus Insurance Group a thorough knowledge of the industry from a producer’s standpoint.  He has purchased crop insurance as a risk management tool for his own operation since 1996.  His experience has developed in him a valuable understanding of customer service and thorough knowledge of effectively meeting a client’s crop protection needs.   His goal is to partner with his clients and bring to them his analytical expertise in assisting them to maximize their overall operations’ bottom line.  He has two children: Chad and Brianna.  Both kids are actively involved in sports and 4-H.   He enjoys hunting, snowmobiling and spending time with his kids.

Matt Dick grew up on a small farm in northern Indiana and graduated from High School in 1989. He graduated from Grace College in 1994 with a degree in Business Education. In college he was Captain of the Golf Team and played basketball for two years. He was a Student Assistant Coach with the Men’s Basketball Program for his final two years and Head Coach of the Men’s Golf Program for one year.

Upon completion of his degree in 1994 he took a job with L.M. Berry Company in Sales and Marketing as a Premise Account Executive. In 2000, after six successful years at L.M. Berry, he went to work in the financial services industry with SYM Financial Corporation. In the two years spent in sales at SYM he was part of a team that grew the company from $200 million to over $450 million in assets under management. Iin the fall of 2002 began his career in the Crop Insurance Industry with the Silveus Insurance Group.

Matt is licensed to sell insurance in five states and works with over 100 clients across the Midwest. In the spring of 2000 he married his college sweetheart, Nicole Ryman. Matt and Nicole have three children, Madison, Kensington, and Jeremy, and attend Warsaw Community Church. When Matt is not spending time with his family you can find him in the woods, either pursuing whitetail deer in the fall or turkeys in the spring.

Matt Savage was raised in Seminole, TX, around farming and cattle. He is the 4th generation, on both sides, to grow cotton and run cattle in West Texas. When he graduated from Texas Tech, he and his wife moved to Seminole where he started farming and running cattle. In 2014, he began working for Silveus out of the Lubbock office. PRF (Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage) is one of Matt’s main focuses. Protecting specifically against lack of rainfall can provide an extra leg to stand on at the exact time it is really needed. Being from West Texas, he also works with many cotton and peanut farmers.

Matt really likes to sit down with each client and gain a detailed understanding of the operation so he can custom fit a plan of insurance that meets his or her exact needs. His goal is always to make each client’s farm or ranch a financially safer and more profitable one. In his free time, he really enjoys reconnecting with friends for the weekend, traveling, and spending time with his wife and family.

Michael Morris, agent, has an extensive background in Ag and crop management.

Prior to joining the Silveus team, Michael served as an input and grain inventory manager at a large row crop farm in east central Indiana, where he oversaw the management and storage of commodities. From there, Michael served as the operation’s billing and safety manager, utilizing high-level revenue knowledge to develop, implement, and maintain systems, procedures and policies, including billing functions, to ensure adherence to company guidelines.

Michael earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Secondary Education from Indiana University Bloomington. In his leisure time, Michael helps a local farmer during planting and harvest seasons—leveraging crop management experience to ensure quality products hit the market.

Get to know Michael in his Meet The Team feature!   

Born in 1960, Michael Sturgess was raised in Dumas, Texas, in the Texas Panhandle. He grew up on the family corn and wheat farm where they also operated a purebred swine operation and ran stocker cattle.

Michael graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Ag Business from Lubbock Christian University in 1982, where he was a member of the Livestock Judging team. He later served two years in 1984 and 1985 as the Executive Secretary of Texas Brangus Breeders Association, headquartered at the time in College Station, Texas.

In 1986, Michael moved to San Antonio, Texas to accept a fieldman position with Texas Farm & Ranch News. Later in that year, he married his wife of 23 years, Lauren. They have one daughter, Shelbi who is a graduate of Texas A&M University and currently resides in Washington D.C. It was also during this time period that he met his current business partner, Jim Banner.

Michael and Jim joined forces in 1989 to form Southern Livestock Publishing, Inc. They began publishing the Southern Livestock Standard (SLS) newspaper in August of that year. Since that time, SLS has served the commercial and seedstock industries with great distinction. As co-publisher, Michael has served the company and its valued customers in many capacities, including advertising sales, advertising development, consulting with customers on advertising and marketing both purebred and commercial replacement females and ring service.

Since 1992, Michael, partner Jim, and long-time friend and customer Anthony Mihalski, have also served as sale managers for the annual San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo All Breeds Bull & Commercial Female Pen Show & Sale, held each year during the Stock show. This event has grown into one of the premier annual events in the cattle industry with buyers coming from as far West as Arizona and as far East as Florida.

Michael is also involved in a family-owned purebred Charolais cattle ranch near LaRue, Texas, just east of Athens, selling primarily range bulls and herd sire prospects through an annual sale as well as private treaty.

Since August of 2007, Michael has also been a licensed agent through Silveus Insurance Group. He specializes in drought insurance for cattle producers with a product called a Pasture, Rangeland and Forage (PRF) policy. His customer base extends from New Mexico to the west and as far east as Florida and Georgia. Because of his extensive work with commercial and seedstock producers, Michael has a keen understanding of how producers operate within their environments.

As time has moved forward, the San Antonio office has made multi-peril insurance, Annual Forage and Whole Farm Revenue Protection(WFRP) available to farmers and ranchers alike.

Nate graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2006 with a degree in Business Administration and a minor in Agricultural Economics. Nate has been in the insurance industry since May 2006 and has been serving customers in Nebraska since that time. He joined the Silveus team in 2011.

Nate lives in Orchard, NE with his wife, Desirae, and two boys, Mason & Braxton. He is active on numerous town boards and is a member of Zion Lutheran Church. Nate enjoys spending time with his family, golfing, hunting, and coaching his boys in soccer and baseball.

Get to know Nate in his Meet The Team feature!   

Nate Setser was born in Warsaw, Indiana, and graduated from Triton High School in 2000. Nate studied at Ball State University and later joined Silveus in 2009. He is married to Lisa and they have two children, Harper and Easton. Nate provides service for over 100 clients in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Ohio. Nate is an assistant coach for the women’s volleyball team at Grace College and he also enjoys hunting, fishing, and the outdoors.

Get to know Nate in his Meet The Team feature!   

Nicole Luety (formerly Nicole Metcalf) grew up in Janesville, WI on her family’s crop farm. She attended the University of Wisconsin – Platteville where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Agricultural Business with an emphasis in Commodity and Price Analysis and completed a minor in Business Administration. While attending college, Nicole worked on UW-Platteville Pioneer Research Farm for three years in the dairy program. Upon graduating in 2015, she accepted a job with The DeLong Co., Inc. in Clinton, WI, and teamed up with Silveus Insurance Group as an agent. Her current role at DeLong is the Seed Division Operations Manager, where she oversees the day-to-day operations for the company’s Food Grade Soybean Program and four Pioneer Seed Agency locations within the company.  Additionally, she is a licensed crop insurance agent in WI, IL, and IA. Apart from work, Nicole currently serves as a member on the board of directors for the Ag Business Council of Rock County. She is also a third generation crop farmer in Rock County, WI, and she also farms with her husband, Paul, and his family.

Get to know Nicole in her Meet The Team feature!   

Paula Vohs grew up on a farm in Bucyrus, Kansas, which still exists today.  It is currently run by her father and four brothers.  Paula has been working with Silveus for about seven months now, and is very excited to come on board with the tram.  She has been involved in the crop insurance industry for twenty-five years.  Prior to becoming a full time agent in 2008, she worked for Great American Insurance for eighteen years where she performed claims management, underwriting, and compliance.

In regards to customer service, Paula values accuracy, policy knowledge, and insurance provider relationships.  She looks forward to meeting you and your needs.

Payton Norell is a native of Delta, Colorado and grew up on his family’s ranch near Meeker, CO. Payton attended Tarleton State University in Stephenville, TX. At Tarleton State Payton received his bachelor’s degree in business and met his future wife Callene who rodeoed for nearby Weatherford College. Payton has since returned to Delta where he lives with Callene and baby daughter McKinley, and in his spare time enjoys team roping and spending time with family and friends.

Randy Owen graduated from Grace College in 1986 with majors in Business Administration and Art.  After graduation he worked as a Designer/Plant Manager of a stained glass company in northern Indiana that serviced the Recreational Vehicle industry as well as the local Housing industry.  Randy began working for Hand Industries, located in Warsaw, Indiana, in 1994 and was involved with many operations within the company and its sub-companies.  Randy joined the Silveus group in 2006 and helps to service clients in more than six states.  Randy and his wife Laurie live in Winona Lake, Indiana with their four children.  They keep busy with many school functions and church activities.  In his free time Randy enjoys coaching and playing soccer and spending time with his family.

Randy was raised and spent the first 22 years of his life working on the family farm in Northern Indiana. After graduating in 1968 from Manchester College with a B.S. in Economics, he became a co-founder and owner of SYM Financial Corporation, a Warsaw based financial planning, investment and pension administration firm. He received a Master of Science Degree in Financial Services from The American College in 1981. After 29 years in the financial services business, he sold his interest in SYM and returned to the agriculture industry to become an agent with Silveus Insurance Group, Inc. in December of 1999.

His 29 years of training and experience in advising financial and investment clients has equipped him well to make comparative analysis of different financial products based upon historical performance and return to the buyer. Today, Randy brings that same analytical expertise to grain farmers throughout the Midwest to assist them in maximizing the beneficial effects of Multi-Peril Crop Insurance to their farming business bottom line.  Randy has served on a number of community boards and is active in his local church. He enjoys snow skiing, fishing, hunting and traveling with Barb, his wife of 43 years. They have 3 children and 10 grandchildren.

Get to know Randy in his Meet The Team feature!   

Robert lives in Bremen, IN with his wife Michele and youngest son Tyler. His family attends Nappanee Missionary Church where they enjoy being involved in the many outreach programs in the church. For more than a decade, both he and Michele served in youth ministry.

For the past seven seasons, Robert has enjoyed his time on Bremen’s Boys Soccer coaching staff. In his spare time, Robert enjoys basketball, soccer, fishing, and woodworking. He received his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in 1983 and brings over 25 years of farm and business experience to his customers in Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio.

Rylan Zwanziger is a Silveus agent working in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He does business as ECI Insurance and holds licenses throughout the Midwest. Rylan was raised in Northeast Iowa and majored in Agricultural Business at Iowa State University. Through his experience of being a grain merchant, originator, and farmer, he has a well-rounded approach at looking through risk management scenarios with clients and keeping them informed throughout the year.

When he’s not working, his hobbies include spending time with his wife (Christie), coaching wrestling, or doing something outdoorsy like hunting and fishing.

Steve is a long-time resident of Sherman, Texas, and was raised with a strong agricultural background.  He is a graduate of Texas A&M with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Science, with a heavy emphasis on Agriculture.  Steve began his career with Silveus Insurance Group in mid-2007.  Steve’s primary focus to date has centered on Rangeland and Cropland policies in North & West Texas, as well as Southern Oklahoma.

With an aggressive expansion program, Steve will be venturing into East Texas, as well as the Midwest.  Steve is a member of AQHA, and breeds racing quarter horses.  He and his wife Marsha spend their spare time traveling and entertaining their beautiful granddaughters.

Growing up on a cattle ranch in western Kansas, Tait Berlier always knew he someday wanted to join the family business of ranching, which has spanned four generations out West on ranches in five states. Nearing graduation at Kansas State University in 2002, Tait took stock of his options and decided against starting out fresh in the cattle business, which seemed too risky at the time.

Tait moved instead to Denver, CO to work as associate editor of the Western Livestock Journal. During his time at WLJ, Tait developed an extensive list of industry contacts which allowed him to gain insights on the cattle industry which he had not previously realized. At the same time, Tait began following the example set by his forebears and became active in cattlemen’s organizations and issues, a passion he continues today.

It was luck that Tait called Aaron Tattersall on the advice of a friend, as shortly after being introduced to the world of agriculture risk management, he was hooked. It was kismet, however, which brought Tait to AgRisk Advisors and the Silveus family. Tait’s own personal and family experiences reflect a deep-seated need for products and advice like he eventually found himself providing, the significance of which Tait won’t soon forget.

Tait advises clients from Louisiana to California, but he and his family call the Sheridan, WY area home.

Tim Gouldie grew up in North Central Kansas in the town of Mankato, and has worked in agriculture throughout his life.  Like many people who have grown up in rural Kansas, his life experiences growing up involved various ag jobs, from throwing bales, to helping work livestock, to running combine at wheat harvest.  He has many fond memories of helping his uncles and other local farmers and ranchers, as well as his time working for the local implement dealer during the college summers.

Following graduation from Kansas State University, Tim enjoyed a career in feed production management for 32 years, with stops in Illinois, Wisconsin, and back to Kansas.  The majority of that time was spent with the Cargill Animal Nutrition division, overseeing feed production facilities from southwest Kansas to the Oklahoma and Texas Panhandles, producing beef and dairy products for the feedlot and dairy sectors.

His position at Silveus has allowed him to get back to production agriculture and the opportunity to work with farmers and ranchers across the High Plains area.  Tim enjoys teaching customers about Silveus’ products and services and how they can help producers to make informed decisions for their operations.

As both a senior director and an agent, Tom brings a deep understanding of the ag industry and culture that surrounds it. Raised on a family farm in Illinois, Tom understands the financial and production challenges farmers face along with the values, faith, and commitment it takes to carry on the family legacy.

Tom serves the business and industry in many ways. Tom pulls together teams, processes, and technology that align growth and sustainability for the business, the agents, and Silveus customers. In addition to the family farm, Tom worked as a business analyst and planner for Lucent Technologies (Bell Labs). At Cargill, he spent 14 years in multiple roles across the grain, advisory, and insurance platforms. In 2016, Tom joined Silveus Insurance Group as part of the Cargill acquisition and serves to execute Silveus’ mission of helping farmers manage risk. From Dwight, a small farming community in Illinois, Tom is active in his community and church, and enjoys much of his time cheering on his children (Emma, Reid, and Ella) as they hit the books, courts, mats, fields, or ball diamonds.