Pine Island bid a fond farewell this week to General Manager Fred Torres, who began his retirement on Tuesday!

We’re all going to miss Fred tremendously. He always gave the job 100%, and never asked anyone to do something he wouldn’t do himself. “He’s taught me so much since I’ve been here,” says supervisor Matt Giberson. “His work ethic is something else, and he really has the kind of personality that encourages people every single day. I’m going to miss the guy. He worked here for over forty years, he grew up here. After that long, the farm becomes a part of you, and you’re part of the farm as well.”

“There are a lot of ways we’re going to miss Fred,” says Facilities/Equipment manager Louis Cantafio. “He’s going to be a tough act to follow. He did a lot of hands-on work and had a ton of institutional knowledge. He was always up and always working…checking the temperature in the middle of the night, making phone calls, checking the water. He always knew what was going around here, every single minute.”

“It won’t be the same without Fred. Not only have I worked with him every day for forty-four years, but we worked together every summer before that; I’ve known him since we were five years old,” says CEO Bill Haines. “I knew his dad, who worked here for over forty years; I knew all of his brothers and his sisters. We did everything together as kids, and during summers we did everything together as well; we were shed boys, we cleaned ditches. And after we grew up and had real responsibility for the business, he was always my right hand. I could count on him to be there when he needed to be there and get done what needed to get done. I’m going to miss him as a GM, but am going to miss him more as a man.”

Thanks for everything, Fred! Neither the blog nor the buffet line will be the same without you.