We are excited to welcome Sid Miller, Ag Commissioner for the State of Texas to our Cameron County group! This is a man who wears many hats — of course none better than his signature cowboy hat. He’s a great story teller, a no-holds-barred speaker, and the quintessential Texan. From advising the Trump administration to advocating for Texas goods to being a rodeo cowboy, Sid has experiences to share that will inspire, encourage, and motivate. Let’s learn about what his office does and where it’s headed, and let’s have a little fun doing it!
We are also hosting Shad Sullivan from R-Calf USA, to speak about the issues affecting the livelihoods of ranchers and others in the livestock industry.
True Texas Project
Speaker: Sid Miller
Secondary Speaker: Shad Sullivan
Tuesday, November 16
Location: New Life Family Church
2109 W Nolana Ave. McAllen, TX 78504
5:30-6:00pm – prayer meeting (open to all)
5:45pm – $5 dinner while supplies last
6:30-8:00pm – meeting
All patriots are welcome. Come as you are!
No dues. No fees. No memberships. No RSVPs.
Coming in late? No worries. We’ll save you a seat.
ABOUT SID MILLER:
An eighth-generation farmer and rancher, Sid Miller is the 12th Commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA). He has devoted his life to promoting Texas agriculture, rural communities and the great state of Texas.
Born in De Leon, in Comanche County, in September 1955, Sid Miller graduated with honors from Tarleton State University in Stephenville with a Bachelor of Science degree in Vocational Ag Education.
A recognized community leader, Miller was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2000. He quickly earned a reputation as a staunch defender of Texas agriculture, constitutional freedoms and individual liberties for all Texans.
He was elected statewide as the 12th Texas Agriculture Commissioner in 2014, and re-elected to his second term in office in 2018.
Since taking office as Agriculture Commissioner, Commissioner Miller has brought real, common sense reform to TDA. Within six months in office, he eliminated a two-and-a-half-year backlog in organic certifications. He reshaped field operations to maximize efficiency for Texas taxpayers. This included increasing the number of consumer protection inspections by as much as 183 percent while slashing the miles traveled by TDA inspectors by more than half a million miles a year.
Commissioner Miller also launched Operation Maverick, a consumer protection initiative to round up businesses which failed to register their commercial scales with TDA. Registrations have increased 35 percent, and more than 2,000 previously unregistered businesses are now monitored by TDA to ensure consumers are protected.
A former ag teacher and school board member, Commissioner Miller is committed to fighting childhood obesity and promoting healthy lifestyles for Texas schoolchildren. His creation of Farm Fresh Fridays and other farm-to-school initiatives resulted in a $14 million increase in the amount of Texas products purchased by schools. Commissioner Miller is also passionate about ensuring rural communities have the water and infrastructure they need to thrive. To that end, he created TDA’s Office of Water to ensure all Texans have access to clean water for today and future generations. Additionally, under his guidance, TDA has directed hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding through the Texas Community Development Block Grant program to local communities for infrastructure improvements and repairs.
Commissioner Miller is the state’s leading advocate around the world for Texas agriculture, Texas-grown products and Texas-owned businesses. He oversees TDA’s world-renowned GO TEXAN program — a marketing effort to showcase the best products, companies and communities that call the Lone Star State home. Since taking office, Commissioner Miller’s passion to increase market exposure for Texas agriculture has led him and his staff to mount trade missions to Cuba, Ecuador, Argentina, Israel, China and every continent on the globe, except Antarctica.
Commissioner Miller is a businessman who breeds and trains American Quarter Horses. In his spare time, he is a recognized rodeo cowboy who holds 12 world championship titles.
He and his wife, Debra, have been married for going on 40 years. They have two sons, two daughters-in-law and five grandchildren. They are active members of the Cowboy Church of Erath County, where Commissioner Miller also serves as an elder.
About Shad Sullivan:
S
had Sullivan is the R-CALF USA Private Property Rights Committee Chair. Sullivan is a fifth generation native to southeast, Colorado. Raised in the family stocker operation on Antelope Mesa in northwestern Crowley County, Shad learned early on the importance of hard work, dedication, loyalty and integrity. He is a graduate of Crowley County High school and earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture/Animal Science from West Texas A&M University in 1996. After a short stint instructing and coaching equine evaluation at Clarendon College, Shad returned to the family ranching operation to help perpetuate family tradition of land stewardship and beef production. His greatest love is watching the cattle grow.
In 2002, Shad built a small preconditioning yard at the headwaters of Bitter Creek, in Archer County, Texas. Procurement of fly-weight stocker cattle takes place in the Mississippi/Alabama region. These calves are then sent to the family grow yard where they take part in a short weaning period and then turned out to graze wheat through the winter. They are then sent north in the spring and summer to utilize the short-grass prairies of southeast, Colorado on owned and leased ranches. The cattle are sold in the fall. Wherever the cattle are, is where you will find Shad.
After falling victim to and witnessing the tragic loss of family farms and ranches through bureaucratic, market and industry corruption he came to realize that liberty in production is at “steak” and it all starts with private property rights. Shad and his wife Thea have one daughter named Lynsey, a Jr. High Mathematics teacher and one son, Beatty Lane, a flash of lightning and a big surprise!
