A Person You Should Know
Earl Souva of Bronson is serving as president of the Michigan Cattlemen's Assn. As this week's "Person You Should Know," Souva outlines his involvement in the beef industry and describes his passion for working with cattle.
My home town: I settled in Bronson in 1994 when my wife Melissa took the vocational agriculture teaching job at Bronson High School.
Family: We raised three girls (Courtney, Renee, Shelby) and one boy (Caleb). Ages range from 28-16 years old.
My job: My wife and I own and operate Great Lakes Sire Service. GLSS is a custom semen collection facility that spent the first 25 years serving primarily the beef sector of bovine artificial insemination industry along with captive whitetails before expanding into more dairy breeds and shipping genetics globally for A.I companies based in other countries. U.S. beef and dairy farmers have some of the most desirable genetics in the world.
My mentor: I have had many mentors in my life including former employers, high school teachers, college professors, family members, parents, in-laws, and many of my customers have even been role models. I have gained knowledge from them in many areas such as business decisions, financial planning, personnel management, land management and animal care, but the biggest role model over the years has to be my parents for teaching work ethic and holding me accountable for my actions at a young age.
My role with the Michigan Cattlemen's Assn: I currently serve as the president of the Michigan Cattlemen's Assn. I have served on the board of directors for nearly 20 years and have stepped into this role for a two-year term that expires in February of 2025.
Hobbies: I enjoy traveling and managing hunting land for whitetail deer hunting.
What I will be doing on Thanksgiving Day: Thanksgiving Day will be spent with three of our children and Melissa's parents for dinner. That will happen after Caleb and I work on his show calves.
If I Could Do Something Else: I can't imagine doing anything else that would give me as much satisfaction as what I do today. Helping feed the world by serving in a capacity that allows for continued genetic improvements in converting plant products into usable proteins is pretty fulfilling to me. It is also probably why I can't speak at great lengths about my hobbies. My work seldom feels like work.
To nominate someone for this column, call or email Jerry Goshert (jerry@farmers-exchange.net) editor. The telephone number for editor is 574/831-2138.