Wilson County Agricultural Hall of Fame

925 East Baddour Parkway – Suite 101
Lebanon, TN 37087

Contact:
Keith Harrison | 615-714-3210

Credentials Released for 2023 Wilson County Ag Hall of Fame Inductees

(Lebanon, TN – March 20, 2023)

Credentials have been released for the 2023 Wilson County Ag Hall of Fame Inductees. The Sixteenth Annual Wilson County Agricultural Hall of Fame Banquet will take place on April 4, 2023 in the Wilson County EXPO Building at the Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon with a reception at 6:00 pm and the actual banquet at 6:30 pm. Area FFA and 4-H Members will serve as ushers for the evening. The following individuals will be part of the sixteenth class of inductees:

Lounita and Bobby Howard

Bobby, the only child of R. L. and Christine Howard, was born and raised in Murfreesboro. He attended Oakland High School and was a member of FFA throughout high school. Upon graduation, he bought his grandparents, W. P. and Veda Mae Howard’s, farm near Lascassas. Lounita, the second of four children born to Lew and Sandra Cook, was born in Lebanon. She attended Oakland High School and Middle Tennessee State University where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mass communication. She worked at The Nashville Business Journal and The Lebanon Democrat, where she was hired as a reporter and worked her way up to editor. She then became the Director of United Way. While at United Way, she purchased The Watertown Gazette and ran it for several years before eventually selling it. She worked a few jobs in other fields, but later came back to journalism when she started The Edge newspaper from the ground up in 2015. Bobby and Lounita were married in February 1983. They lived their entire married life together on the farm and supported each other in their endeavors and enjoyed spending time together working on the farm and delivering newspapers around town. They were married for 39 good years until Lounita’s passing in 2021. Their farm is approximately 1000 acres of owned and rented farmland with about 120 head of cattle on it at any time. Bobby also raises row crops (corn and soybeans) and hay. He has recently added a registered herd of Balancer cattle with his goddaughter, Jessica. Bobby and Lounita were very involved in their community. Not only did Lounita use her paper, The Edge, to spread relevant and agricultural news to everyone; but they were both members of several clubs in Lascassas, Watertown, and Lebanon. They were charter members of the Lascassas/Milton Lion’s Club and they were members of the Wilson County Fair Board for 20 years. Lounita was involved in the Chambers of Commerce in both Lebanon and Watertown, the Wilson County 911 Board, Leadership Wilson, Wilson One, and the Lebanon Business and Professional Women’s Club. She was also a founding member of the Women’s Build Committee for the Wilson County Habitat for Humanity. Bobby is the Treasurer of Prosperity Cemetery, and he has taken over Lounita’s spot on the Wilson County 911 Board. Bobby and Lounita were members of Bradley Creek Baptist Church throughout their marriage, but enjoyed attending church at Milton Church of Christ whenever they were able.

James Ray Johnson

James Ray Johnson was born on June 24, 1926, to Herbert and Novada (Tomlinson) Johnson of the

Centerville Community. James Ray married the love of his life Elizabeth Gilmore. They had three children Beverly, Mike, and Mark. James Ray attended Taylorsville School then Lebanon High School, where he soon had to leave school to run the family farm as his father died in 1939 making James Ray a young full-time farmer at the age of 16. The Herman Dies family moved onto the farm to assist the young James Ray in managing the 500 acres. James Ray’s sons (Mike and Mark) quickly started learning the ropes of managing the family farm. They raised cattle, hogs, and various row crops such as tobacco. The contributions of James Ray from his young start as a full-time farmer up until his death in August of 1988 are vast. James Ray’s record of public service included almost a quarter of a century of service as a member of the Wilson County Quarterly Court and County Commission. He was instrumental in securing the land for the Wilson County Cooperative and the land that is currently the James Ward Agricultural Center. During his years of public service, he also served on the Wilson County Road Commission and the Wilson County Planning Commission. James Ray served as the President of the Wilson County Livestock Association and was named Outstanding Young Farmer of the Year. He was a member of the Wilson Farmers’ Cooperative board of directors for 28 years and served as a member of the board of directors of the Wilson County Farm Bureau.

Bob Pruitt

Bob Pruitt was born in Jackson County, TN to Carl and Mable Pruitt. He was one of four children who lived on a farm in Granville where they grew tobacco, baled hay, and raised cattle and chickens. He attended the small, single teacher school at Nameless until they moved to Lebanon in 1961 at the beginning of his sophomore year. During his school years he was involved with the 4-H program showing cattle and served as Vice President of the FFA. After graduation he began farming. He raised cattle, grew tobacco, and baled hay for farmers across Wilson County.

In 1974 he married Anita Walker and soon had four children: Bobby, Amanda, Andy, and Jonathan. He again became highly involved in the 4-H program while his children were in school showing sheep, cows, chickens, and horses. He helped organize and became an active leader of the 4-H Horse Express. It was during this time Bob and family became known as THE PRUITT GANG. In 1986 at the age of 38 he gave up full time farming and started working at the Wilson Farmers CO-OP as the warehouse manager. After 32 years of working and talking with all the farmers of Wilson County he retired in 2018 due to an injury and the death of his wife.

He has served as President of the Watertown Saddle Club and The Tennessee Saddle Club Association. He is a former member of the Livestock Association and the Wilson County Farm Bureau Board. He attends Gladeville Church of Christ where he serves as an Elder. He enjoys raising a big garden where he gives most of the vegetables away, riding his golf cart with his dog Samson, and spending time with his grandchildren who call him Papa.

Don Willoughby

Don was born to Charles and Dorothy Willoughby and joined his older brother Al on the family farm known at the time as Green Hill Farm. A Grade A dairy was the main farming operation along with raising crops for feed and forage, as well as tobacco. Don attended Mt. Juliet Elementary, Jr. High, and High School. He enjoyed athletics and balanced sports and his farm duties. His involvement in FFA, under the advisement of his father Charles, Cliff Ricketts, Tommy Brewer, and Louis Fletcher, was his main interest throughout high school. He was involved in many competitions in judging, public speaking, state champion Parliamentary Procedure team, and Dairy Proficiency. He received both State Farmer and American Farmer degrees and was elected State Reporter for the 1978-79 year. Graduating from Middle Tennessee State University in 1981 with a B.S. degree in Animal Science and Secondary Education, Don came back to live and work on the family farm. As the family began to grow, he saw the need to go outside of the farm for income and took a job with West Wilson Utility District for a couple of years before becoming an agriculture teacher at the 9th grade level of Mt. Juliet Jr. High in 1986. The program merged back to grades 9 through 12 a few years later. He returned to Middle Tennessee State University receiving a Master’s Degree in Vocational Education in 1990. During the late 1980’s through the 1990’s Agriculture Education saw a huge curriculum change as fewer students were coming from farm families, and more had interests in other agricultural endeavors. Don was part of the development and implementation of the shift from farming courses to more diverse offerings in mechanics, horticulture, wildlife and forestry, leadership, agribusiness, small and large animal care, and courses that are now offered for college credit. He is a 1987 charter member of Mt. Juliet FFA Alumni continuing to support as Treasurer. He has served on the Wilson County Fair board since 1988, chairing the Country Ham Show since 2004, with a mission of increasing participation of youth and adults to showcase their skills in the art and tradition. He was elected to the board of directors of Wilson County Farm Bureau in 2016. Although the family farm has decreased in size, Don still enjoys working alongside his family raising beef cattle and high-quality square baled and rolled hay for feed and for sale to local livestock producers. Don has two children, Dale Willoughby & Kate Willoughby Grigsby.

"The purpose of the Wilson County Agricultural Hall of Fame is to recognize citizens of Wilson County who have made a significant impact on agriculture in Wilson County, Tennessee, nationally or worldwide" states Keith Harrison, the Chairman of the Wilson County Agricultural Hall of Fame. "We feel the time is right to pay tribute to these very deserving individuals. Each has made significant contributions to Wilson County Agriculture, as well as Wilson County in general."

Other members of the Board of Directors of the Wilson County Agriculture Hall of Fame are Jeffrey Turner-Vice Chairman, Ruth Correll-Secretary, Diane Major-Treasurer, Ben Powell, Louis Fletcher, Isabel Hall, Lucas Holman & Neal Oakley. The organizers have established a non-profit status for the organization to enable them to raise money to be used for a building on the Ward Agricultural Center to be dedicated to the individuals inducted into the Wilson County Agricultural Hall of Fame. "Any funds raised over and above the costs of putting on the annual banquet will be set aside for the building," states Jeffrey Turner, Vice Chairman of the Hall of Fame.

Tickets for the April 4 banquet can be purchased by calling 444-1890 ext. 3. The cost is $20 each. Jordan’s Catering will be preparing the meal that evening, which is another reason to join in on the festivities. "We want folks to come together to recognize these deserving individuals on April 4," says Harrison. "We owe these folks a great deal of gratitude for everything they have done for agriculture."