[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 144 (Monday, September 14, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S4648]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        REMEMBERING RAY GAESSER

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I want to pay tribute to a friend and 
longtime supporter, who was a lifelong champion for the family farmer 
and highly respected leader for innovation and conservation that he put 
into practice on his own family farm in southwest Iowa. Today would 
have been his 74th birthday.
  On Saturday, September 5, Ray Gaesser passed away unexpectedly after 
a farming accident, a heartbreaking loss to his beloved family and a 
big loss to the farming community.
  Like many farmers across Iowa, Ray never stopped working. He started 
farming as a teenager alongside his dad in southern Indiana. When he 
married his wife Elaine, they began Gaesser Farms on a few hundred 
acres near Corning, the county seat of Adams County. With more than 50 
years of farming under his belt, his farming operation eventually 
expanded to thousands of acres that he worked with Elaine and their son 
Chris.
  A lifelong steward of the soil, Ray practiced what he preached. 
Conservation was central to his farming operation, and he was a 
tireless pioneer for sustainability, clean energy, and water quality. 
Decades ago, he implemented terraces, grass waterways, turn areas, 100-
percent no-till planting, and cover crops to conserve the land and 
strengthen Earth's natural resources.
  Ray was widely respected in his southwest Iowa farming community. To 
be sure, his voice and advocacy on behalf of American agriculture 
carried near and far, from podcasts to the policymaking table around 
the world and in Washington, DC.
  Throughout his 73 years, Ray burned the midnight oil on the tractor 
seat and extracted every minute out of the day. He traveled around the 
globe, sharing stories with farmers about feeding the world, 
participating at UN Climate meetings, and testifying before Congress on 
Capitol Hill. A dedicated member of the Iowa Soybean Association, 
serving as its president from 2006 to 2007, Ray went on to serve as 
president of the American Soybean Association from 2013 to 2014. His 
resume reflects his commitment to conservation and forging consensus to 
address challenges facing the future of farming. Among his many hats, 
Ray held leadership positions on the Iowa Soybean Promotion Board, the 
Iowa Economic Development Agriculture Advisory Board, the Iowa 
Conservative Energy Forum, the North American Climate Smart Agriculture 
Alliance, and the International Soybean Growers Alliance. He served as 
cochair of the Iowa Conservation Infrastructure Initiative and was 
named Iowa Master Farmer in 2012 and American Soybean Distinguished 
Leader in 2018.
  In 2014, Ray cofound Solutions from the Land and was a tireless 
crusader for renewable energy, including biomass, wind, solar, and 
hydropower. Ray understood that proper stewardship of God's natural 
resources can produce bountiful rewards for the Nation's food and 
energy security. Just like he never punted on hard work on the farm, he 
rolled up his sleeves to making things work when a solution seemed out 
of reach. From climate change to water quality and carbon 
sequestration, Ray didn't avoid political hot potatoes. He immersed 
himself and brought stakeholders together on transcendent issues of our 
time: feeding the world, conserving resources, providing clean water, 
and producing renewable energy takes a coalition of the willing. In his 
words, ``When we work together, we all benefit.''
  In 2021, Ray was nominated by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny 
Perdue and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to serve on 
USDA's Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee for Trade in grains, 
feed, oilseeds, and planting seeds. In this role, Ray brought decades 
of farming experience and dirt underneath his fingernails to the ears 
of the Nation's top ag and trade leaders to ensure Iowa soybean farmers 
were heard during global trade negotiations. He served as a 
commissioner on the Iowa Department of Transportation since 2022.
  Ray was a gifted leader and communicator. He used his talents and 
work ethic to share a pragmatic vision for resiliency and 
sustainability in agriculture. A son of the soil, Ray wanted to ensure 
the land could feed the world and sustain livelihoods for generations 
of farmers yet to come.
  From my annual county meetings and policy discussions in my office in 
Washington, I appreciated Ray's enthusiasm and expertise. He was an 
impactful problem-solver who effectively leveraged levity and bone deep 
passion for farming that connected stakeholders and made a difference.
  Ray was a faith-filled servant leader, a family man, and a farmer who 
was called home to the Lord. I have no doubt he will continue doing the 
Lord's work among the angels, but as his friend, I will miss his 
advocacy for the family farmer, good-natured outlook on life, and warm, 
welcoming smile. Barbara and I extend our condolences to his wife 
Elaine and his two children Chris and Jennifer.

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