Why I Give to FarmHouse Foundation

Eugene B. Pickler (NC '54) is an acclaimed expert in the poultry industry, a successful farm businessman and part-time professor of economics at a small, private university. He has retired as an egg producer and marketer,
but continues to teach at Pfeiffer University, where he has been on staff since 1961. He has spent considerable time in Ukraine and Russia, seeking to improve the region's poultry production.

Eugene also has devoted much of his life to FarmHouse. He attended North Carolina State University from 1952-1956 and was in the second pledge class of the North Carolina State FarmHouse Chapter. He was House Manager as an undergraduate. As an alumnus, he served several years on the North Carolina chapter association, eight years on the International Board and 12 years on the FarmHouse Foundation Board of Trustees, with eight years as Foundation Chairman. He is a Foundation Club member. In 2000 he was named a Master Builder for his dedication to FarmHouse.

Eugene and his wife Janet reside in New London, NC. They have three daughters and three grandchildren.

He was asked recently about his participation as a donor and former Trustee of the FarmHouse Foundation, which he has supported for many years.

Why do you contribute to the FarmHouse Foundation?

Because I believe strongly in helping give young people an opportunity that they might not otherwise have and I believe strongly in giving students incentives to achieve all they are capable of doing. FarmHouse Foundation offers a good vehicle to achieve these objectives.

How has FarmHouse affected your life?

FarmHouse has affected my life in so many ways that I can't tell you. Included in the ways, it has expanded my horizons, it has provided me with many of my best friends, and it has given me an opportunity to help make a small difference in the lives of others.

Why would you encourage other alumni brothers to give to the Foundation?

I would encourage alumni to give because all alumni have benefited from those who have gone before. Through the Foundation they can help those who come after them.

What does FarmHouse mean to you?

Being a member and being active in FarmHouse, both during college and after college, has been one of the greatest continuing events of my life.

Why is alumni support so important to the Foundation?

Alumni support is important because it gives alumni the opportunity to continue to support the mission of FarmHouse. Without alumni support many of the programs of the Foundation would disappear. Without these programs, FarmHouse cannot fully complete its mission of building men.

What is your greatest FarmHouse memory?

That's hard to answer, but it is probably the memory of every FarmHouse chapter being represented by chapter members in Raleigh, NC, when the North Carolina State Chapter was chartered in 1954. This demonstrated to me that I had joined a great fraternity.