Free air

Just one of many signs of customer care at United Co-op in Alamo

Everybody likes to hear that they’ve done a good job. Words of affirmation seem few and far between on some days. An encouraging word can provide a positive pick-me-up when you need it most.

That’s why I love to see letters giving our Co-ops a pat on the back. The latest one we received came in during March of this year. It was a simple handwritten note that Eddie Whitby of Crockett Mills sent to us after an experience at United Co-op in Crockett County at the Alamo location. He also included a clipping from The Crockett County Times, from where he had sent the same letter to the local newspaper, where it was reprinted.

Of all the things he could mention, Eddie praised the free air machine that Co-op provides at the location. It was more than simple convenience, and I suspect that Eddie just used the experience to offer a word of thanks to those employees he works with at the Co-op. It’s often those little things that make for a memorable encounter and leave a customer feeling like they mattered.

Alamo Location Manager Grant Mayfield agreed.

“There’s always someone stopping in to check their air in their tires and take advantage of the machine,” he says. “We’re happy to provide it as a service. He also mentions that the Co-op offers a free ice machine for farmers to fill their coolers when they stop in to shop for Crop Protection products and other inputs.

Eddie, too, mentioned the seed drill rentals and the maintenance on the ASCS drills that the Co-op provides as other benefits. And I’m sure he could mention more.

“When the merger between Mid-South Farmers Cooperative and United Farm and Home Cooperative took place on September 1, 2025, there was some unease among some customers that things might change,” says Grant. “Some were worried that the service the farmers and customers enjoyed from Co-op icons like Terry Sellers and Ray Neal Turner, both of whom retired shortly after the merger, might not continue.”

“That couldn’t be further from the truth,” he adds. “I don’t think customers should be worried. This Co-op has been built on a foundation of service to the farmers, and I believe that will continue.”

These types of letters make me proud. I’m happy to see our folks get a well-deserved pat on the back.

You would be hard-pressed to find a more dedicated bunch of employees, both at Tennessee Farmers Cooperative and at all our member Co-ops. In recent years, we have associated the brand statement “Driven to Serve” as a defining characteristic of the Co-op brand. I’m proud to be associated with this commitment. It’s become a rallying cry among our Co-op employees who have embraced the concept, and that’s simply because it’s true.

It’s a simple thing to provide free air, but sometimes something simple makes all the difference.

Story by Glen Liford,

Contact gliford@ourcoop.com