California Farm Bureau Announces Recipients of Its Highest Service Awards
November 16,
The California Farm Bureau will recognize two distinguished leaders whose careers have shaped California agriculture for decades.
A.G. Kawamura will receive the organization’s Distinguished Service Award, and Karen Mills will receive the Helen Roberti Lifetime Service Award. Both honors will be presented on Dec. 6 during the California Farm Bureau Annual Meeting in Reno, Nevada.
For more than six decades, the Distinguished Service Award has honored individuals whose dedication, leadership and advocacy have strengthened California agriculture and Farm Bureau.
A third-generation fruit and vegetable grower from Orange County, Kawamura has spent more than four decades advancing agriculture at the local, state and national levels. He served as California secretary of food and agriculture from 2003 to 2010 and remains a leading voice on food security, agricultural innovation, climate resilience and land stewardship. Throughout his career, he has championed practical solutions that support farmers as agriculture responds to a growing population and a changing environment.
Before his state service, Kawamura was president of the Orange County Farm Bureau and chair of Western Growers. He continues to farm with Orange County Produce and serves agricultural, educational and nonprofit organizations working to strengthen the future of food production.
Established in 2013, the Helen Roberti Lifetime Service Award honors the legacy of longtime Plumas-Sierra County Farm Bureau manager Helen Roberti. It recognizes current and retired Farm Bureau employees whose dedication and leadership have made a lasting impact on the organization and California agriculture.
Karen Norene Mills served Farm Bureau members for more than three decades, drawing on her legal and policy expertise. After joining the organization in 1988, she became one of California agriculture’s most respected advocates on energy, utility and regulatory issues. She represented farmers and ranchers before state agencies, the Legislature and regulatory bodies, helping secure policies that improved the affordability, reliability and availability of essential services for agricultural operations statewide. As Vice President of Legal Advocacy and Corporate Secretary, Mills mentored staff, guided Farm Bureau’s legal advocacy and helped develop policy solutions to some of the most complex issues facing farmers and ranchers. Colleagues across the state have long recognized her steady leadership, institutional knowledge and unwavering commitment to agriculture.
“A.G. and Karen have dedicated their careers to serving agriculture and the people who make it possible,” said Shannon Douglass, president of the California Farm Bureau. “Their leadership, integrity and commitment have strengthened Farm Bureau and helped farmers and ranchers navigate challenges for decades. We are grateful for all they have done and proud to recognize them with these well-deserved honors.”
“I’ve been fortunate to spend my life working alongside people who care deeply about agriculture and the communities it supports,” Kawamura said. “This recognition is especially meaningful because it comes from Farm Bureau, an organization that has long been a strong voice for farmers and ranchers. I am honored and grateful to be included among those who have received this award.”
“Serving California Farm Bureau members has been one of the great privileges of my career,” Mills said. “For nearly four decades, I had the opportunity to work alongside dedicated farmers, ranchers and colleagues who care deeply about the future of agriculture. I am honored by this recognition and grateful for the many people who made that work so rewarding.”
The awards will be presented at the California Farm Bureau Annual Meeting in Reno, where farmer and rancher delegates from across the state will discuss policy issues and set organizational priorities for the coming year.
California Farm Bureau works to protect family farms and ranches as part of a nationwide network representing more than 5 million Farm Bureau members. Learn more at www.cfbf.com or follow @cafarmbureau on Instagram, LinkedIn, X, or Facebook.
A.G. Kawamura
Karen Mills
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