A roller coaster career journey: THS alumnus serves his community
“I'm a product of this entire district, both in farming friends and Oxford, so that was always kind of cool to me that it had that support.”
Tim Derickson, managing director of food and agribusiness for JobsOhio, graduated from Talawanda High School (THS) in 1978 and became part of the first group of alums to be inducted into the Talawanda Hall of Achievement – a group of THS alumni selected by a board of alumni and retired teachers who wish to recognize the outstanding achievements of graduates – in February 2024.
Growing up, Derickson helped his family on their dairy farm. Throughout high school, he participated in Future Farmers of America (FFA) and played on the football team. He said FFA provided him insight into vocations. This was only the beginning of his extensive career path.
Tom Shoupe, a former executive at Honda and currently a self-employed business advisor and consultant, became friends with Derickson in kindergarten. They grew up together in the same community, and Shoupe supported Derickson throughout his life after they left school.
“I think he’s impacted people in an extremely positive way, with his life and his activity that he’s pursued,” Shoupe said. “And I think he continues to do that.”
After Derickson graduated from Talawanda, he attended Miami University while working full-time on his family's dairy farm. On top of that, he filled an assistant coach position for the THS football team.
Derickson wasn’t sure at first if college was for him; he thought he would grow up to be a farmer, but he said his parents encouraged him to do something else.
Miami didn’t offer agriculture-related programs, so he transferred to Clark State Community College. He returned home after two years to go back to farming full-time after he obtained an associate degree in agricultural business.
He then went back to Miami part-time and finished his bachelor's degree in general business administration and management. Soon after, he met his wife, Kelly.
“He’s very kind,” Kelly said. “And he is a people person. He not only enjoys being around them, but he sees the deeper part of the person and cares.”
Derickson moved to Cincinnati to work as a stockbroker and realized the job wasn’t for him after six months.
“It was a culture shock for me,” Derickson said. “You know, coming off the farm. I did not like it at all.”
So, he started a new job where he sold administrative services for third-party administrator health care. He and Kelly then moved to Columbus, Ohio, for six years, only to return to Derickson’s family farm in Oxford to turn his woodworking hobby into a furniture business called Colonial Woods.
“Kelly ran the retail store, and I ran the finishing shop,” Derickson said. “It started by buying unfinished furniture, selling it and then we had a finishing shop. We did that for 15 years right there on the property.”
During this time, he also built the Indian Ridge Golf Club. He simultaneously served as a township trustee in Hanover County. One year into his third four-year term, the current state representative, Shawn Webster, asked Derickson if he might consider taking his seat. Derickson served as an Ohio state representative for eight years.
“When I got up there (as a representative), there weren't a lot of farmers,” Derickson said. “If there was an agriculture issue, I was one of the few who could speak up halfway-intelligent about the subject, and that's an expectation, so I became an ‘Ag Guy.’”
He also led the workforce development committee, which later led to the creation of OhioMeansJobs and JobsOhio. Former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner asked Derickson to run for Congress, but he lost in the race. Regardless, he appreciated the time he served.
“This community really did support me,” Derickson said. “They didn't like everything I did. There were plenty of bills that they didn't like, but there's plenty that they did, and so they were always supportive. I'm a product of this entire district, both in farming friends and Oxford, so that was always kind of cool to me that it had that support.”
In 2017, John Kasich, former governor of Ohio, asked Derickson to be the assistant director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture. He served in the role for three and a half years.
This journey of career changes led Derickson to his final and current job: first senior director and now managing director of food and agribusiness for JobsOhio. He travels both nationally and internationally to meet with companies that are thinking about making capital investments.
“I’d do it all over again,” Derickson said. “I'm just saying that. I don't want to say one (job) is better than the other, because they've all kind of built upon each other.”
