Charlie Kruse

2024 Missouri Ag Hall of Fame Inductee

Dexter native Charles “Charlie” Kruse has a distinguished legacy of service to Missouri agriculture. A graduate of Dexter High School, he received a bachelor’s degree in agronomy from Arkansas State University in 1967 and a master’s degree in plant genetics from the University of Missouri in 1974. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout at age 14, and in 2003 was named a Distinguished Eagle Scout by the Boy Scouts of America organization. He spent 26 years in the National Guard, retiring with the rank of brigadier general. He served on the MU Board of Curators, as Missouri director of agriculture, and as president of the Missouri Farm Bureau from 1992 to 2010. He also served on the board and executive committee for the American Farm Bureau and received its highest honor, the Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award, in 2012. He and his wife, Pam, farmed for 38 years, retiring in 2014. They raised two sons, Ben, who died in an ATV accident at age 28, and Scott, principal of Dexter Middle School principal. Scott and his wife, Kerri, have two daughters, Addie and Andie.