President’s Message

Positive perspective in challenging times
By Scott Covelli, TOCA President

Greetings from 35,000 feet, TOCA crew!

I’m coming to you from my flight back to chilly Milwaukee after a very rewarding and refreshing GCSAA Conference and Trade Show in Orlando, Fla. While the weather may not have been as warm as we expected, I couldn’t help but notice warm “vibes” throughout the show floor – and especially at the TOCA breakfast on Thursday morning.

It’s no secret that in our world today, it feels like we’re all pitted against each other. From domestic and global politics to our social media echo chambers, it’s exhausting seeing how magnified our differences are. And yet, the news headlines and social media posts don’t often tell the whole story.

I’m continually encouraged that when we get out into the world and talk to each other, we realize that we have more in common than we previously thought. And most of us are working toward the same goals, albeit some taking different paths than others.

There are so many little moments from my time at the GCSAA show that speak to this feeling. I met Alexander Garrett of GIE Media, who has an absolutely magnetic personality and an exceptional content creator and videographer – and has a “Top 5” strongest handshake I’ve ever experienced. He’s presenting on how to make the most of your video content at the TOCA Annual Meeting and I’m even more excited about it now that I’ve seen him in action.

I was doing a lap around the show floor and saw the North Coast Media crew capture some great content at the Toro booth with the help of Kristine and Jamie from Anthologic. It was special to see them seamlessly shift from work talk to life talk to “see you in Cleveland soon” talk.

I witnessed Sandra from our Corner Window Communications team get “scrappy” with the projector for the TOCA breakfast. Plus, she still had time to make some Taylor-Swift-style friendship bracelets for a few TOCA board members. (Sorry if I’m blowing up her spot, but I’m sure if you wanted one, she’d make some more!)

And finally, I lost count of how many people asked me about my youngest son, Judah, who some of you know has had many health challenges in his first 8 months of life. By the way, he’s doing well. It’s another reminder that when we get out from behind our phones and computers and experience life with each other, we connect in ways that aren’t possible otherwise.

And yet, we’re communicators in a digital world, so it’s incumbent on us to point to the good, powerful, meaningful stories that are all around us. There are certainly issues to address in our industries, obstacles to overcome and hard conversations to have, but each time I interact with TOCA members, I’m reminded that we’re all on the same team in one way or another.

And speaking of being on the same team, I’m looking forward to meeting as a big team in Cleveland in just two months! Registration for the TOCA Annual Meeting is open – as is the Communications Contest. Please consider attending the annual meeting. We’ve got a great program planned with a Cleveland Guardians game, tour of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and a jam-packed agenda of speakers and panelists.

Let’s get together and remind ourselves once again that we’re all working toward the same goal – to be the best storytellers we can be in this great industry.

Ope, the plane’s about to land. Gotta put away my laptop. See you soon!

Scott

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Reserve your room for the 2026 TOCA Annual Meeting

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David Cassidy, Russ Warner to enter TOCA Hall of Fame

The Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) will “roll out the red carpet” and welcome David Cassidy and Russ Warner to the TOCA Hall of Fame, in conjunction with its annual meeting, set for April 28-30, in Cleveland. Cassidy served as the TOCA president in 2003 and 2004, and Warner served as the TOCA president in 2019 and 2020.

During his time in the green industry, Cassidy was responsible for creating several magazines, including Superintendent, Sportsfield Management, Landscape Construction, Growing, American Reconstruction and the consumer magazine Home, Lawn, and Leisure. He also oversaw the acquisition and relaunch of Forest Products Equipment. Additionally, Cassidy managed websites for these publications.

Some 30 years ago, Cassidy became a mentor, ally and friend for Stacie Zinn Roberts, a writer, marketing strategist for What’s Your Avocado? Marketing & Public Relations. She inquired about freelancing for Turf magazine. As the magazine’s editor, Cassidy “hired” her.

“Over the years of working together, David mercilessly edited my work and became my greatest champion for including my byline in the publications he oversaw, including Turf and Superintendent,” Zinn Roberts wrote. Besides his writing virtues and dedication to TOCA, Cassidy writes music, plays guitar and sings. TOCA events often “closed” with Cassidy and other TOCA “musicians” leading TOCA member sing-alongs.

Due to the sale of the publications’ parent company, Cassidy left the green industry in 2010 and entered the teaching field. He has taught middle and high school English, and college English composition. Currently, he is teaching English and history to fifth and sixth graders. “The Green Industry’s loss is a huge gain for those youngsters who are fortunate enough to have David Cassidy as their teacher,” wrote Steve and Suz Trusty, Trusty & Associates.

Warner, who worked for GIE Media/Golf Course Industry magazine, gave his time and energy wholeheartedly to TOCA for more than 15 years.

“Russ was always committed to putting the needs of the association first,” said Pat Jones, a TOCA founding member and past president. “TOCA was more than just a ‘schmoozing opportunity’ for Russ. It was an important industry organization that deserved his time and attention – even if it didn’t necessarily put more commissions in his pocket. He’s always been selfless about his service.”

Jones added, “Russ is just a great human being… funny, caring, committed, humble and always reliable. He always did what he said he would do.”

Warner earned his bachelor’s degree in business management from Kent State University. He spent one year in a sales role with Wholesale Mortgage Group and then went to Penton Media and worked as a sales representative. His next stop was Meister Media, where he served as an account manager, working with the American Fruit Grower and American Vegetable Grower. In 2006, he joined GIE Media, Inc., starting as an account manager and moving up to national accounts manager, national sales manager and sales director.

Congratulations, David and Russ!

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Exciting opportunity at this year’s annual meeting.

Sponsored by Hunter Industries

Tickets to the Guardians vs Tampa Bay Rays are available as an add-on to your annual meeting registration.

Tuesday, April 28, doors open at 5:10 p.m.
Register early – tickets are limited!

Register for the TOCA Annual Meeting

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North Coast Media offers TOCA-sponsored internship

Are you a college student (or do you know a college student) interested in deepening your “green communications” skills? If yes, apply for the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) internship with North Coast Media, Cleveland. The intern will get exposure to multiple aspects of marketing, including social media, digital marketing, public relations, writing, collateral creation, custom media/projects and event planning. Additionally, the TOCA intern will participate in team meetings and potentially client calls to get a broad understanding of how a business-to-business media company’s marketing and content marketing departments operate.

The TOCA marketing internship program is sponsored by Gardner & Gardner Communications (Den and Sandy Gardner), and Jose Milan via a commitment through the TOCA Foundation.

TOCA intern responsibilities include:

• Assist with marketing campaign planning, execution and analysis
• Create, schedule and publish content for social platforms
• Research and draft articles for website, e-newsletter, publication
• Help organize an event – could be an internal lunch and learn or one of North Coast Media’s Hall of Fame, Roundtable or Summit events
• Conduct or seek competitive or market research
• Support team tasks, including sales PowerPoint creation, best practice documents, promotion materials

This internship provides an opportunity to connect with professionals who play a vital role in sharing accurate, engaging information about the turf and ornamental industries. The North Coast Media team looks forward to working with a student passionate about ‘green industry’ communications and education.”

The TOCA internship includes:

• $4,000 stipend
• $1,000 to be used toward attending and assisting in executing the TOCA Annual Meeting in Cleveland, April 28-30
• 8 to 10 weeks of work

For more details and/or to apply for the TOCA internship, go to: https://www.toca.org/toca-internship. The application deadline is March 27.

If you have any questions related to the TOCA internship, contact Sandra O’Rourke (sandra@cornerwindowcommunications.com).

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Apply for TOCA’s $2,500 scholarship

The Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) will award one $2,500 scholarship (2026-2027 academic year) to an undergraduate college student pursuing a career in green industry communications. To qualify, students must major or minor in technical communications in a green industry-related field, such as horticulture, plant sciences, botany, agronomy and plant pathology. Also, applicants must demonstrate an interest in using this course of study in the field of communications.

For more information and/or to download the TOCA Scholarship application, go to: https://www.toca.org/toca-scholarship. Applications must be submitted by March 15.

Golf Course Management, GIE Media and North Coast Media provide financial support for the TOCA Publishers’ Scholarship.

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Upcoming webinar

Influencer Marketing Blueprint: How to Leverage Authentic Voices

Thursday, March 5, 2026 at 12 PM CT|Presented by: Alyssa Zipperer and Gretta Hegland from Anthologic

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, brands are increasingly leveraging influencer marketing to build credibility and drive authentic engagement. In this session, Alyssa Zipperer and Gretta Hegland from Anthologic will discuss what influencer marketing is and how it plays a role in the B2B space, as well as walk through a practical, step-by-step blueprint on how to get started.

Join the Conversation!

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FIND THE CONTEST INSTRUCTIONS HERE

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TOCA Communications Contest judges share evaluation insights

While winning the TOCA Communications Contest can be gratifying, it’s the learning that yields the greatest benefit. Learn what four veteran TOCA Communications Contest judges look for when judging entries.

What makes a TOCA contest entry stand out and earn the coveted Gardner Award?

Cynthia Clanton: An innovative, creative approach to solving a problem will stand out from the crowd. That’s not just innovation for innovation’s sake, but understanding an audience’s need or desire, and addressing it in a way that spurs desired action.

Jennifer M. Latzke: The standout entries, in my opinion, take a different approach to telling the story. I had a professor once tell my class that starting a story with a question in the lead was “the laziest thing she’s ever seen.” That stuck with me – right or wrong. But for me, as a reader, I’m going to make my decision to read all the way through the piece in the first three paragraphs. Think of those graphs like a “micro elevator pitch.” What is the absolute takeaway from the article you want your readers to get? Is there something about the source you interviewed that stands out? Is the topic something they need to know for their hearts, their minds or their balance sheets? Write that and then re-write it if you need to – again and again. That opening, setting this piece apart from all others that are taking attention from the reader, sets your piece apart from the herd.

David Lundquist: Technology advancement, particularly drone video and photo capture, has been significant to the TOCA contest video and photo entries that I have judged over the past 15 years. Drone footage over golf courses, athletic fields and stadiums, landscaping, new lighting at homes and businesses, you name it, it’s been a game-changer. And with more sensitive cameras, the days have gotten longer. Golf and various contractors and workers are out on their jobs before and after the sun shines. The challenge is to make the expanded capability into a better product. In many ways, this has been done. The best of recent TOCA photo and video entries are at a high standard.

Kenna Rathai: Gardner Award winners stand out when you tell your story so that a judge becomes invested in your project. That can be through making an emotional connection on the “why” behind a project, explaining a unique project that hasn’t been seen or done before, accomplishing something in a different way, etc. Consider what you think elevates your entry above and beyond a typical entry. Then, make sure the judges understand it.

What are some common entry mistakes you see, and how do you suggest fixing them?

Cynthia Clanton: Too many entries miss the opportunity to provide results. Being clear about your objectives and how you met them makes all the difference. If you can, include numbers or anecdotal feedback to indicate success.

Jennifer M. Latzke: Not paying attention to the category requirements. Not checking that all pages of the piece are included. It’s the minute details that will trip you up.

Kenna Rathai: Keep in mind that many of the judges are not involved in the turf and ornamental industry. Keep it super simple; elevate the entry description so that someone who knows nothing about your industry can easily grasp the concept. Don’t get technical. Don’t use jargon. Tell your story and explain the “why” behind your entry in a succinct way.

Do you have any other advice you’d like to share?

Cynthia Clanton: For campaigns, a quick write-up about objectives, audience, strategies, tactics and results ensures the judge has the information needed to see why you believe the campaign deserves to win. If you overcame significant challenges, let us know what those were and how you addressed them.

Jennifer M. Latzke: No one becomes a better writer if they aren’t also reading a lot each day. We develop our storytelling habits and techniques through reading and taking those “bits and bobs” into our own techniques. Set aside time each week to read other articles. Read books – actual printed books. It will train your brain and help you more than mindlessly scrolling social media.

David Lundquist: For those hoping to improve their standing in the contest results, I suggest looking at TOCA winners from recent years. Plenty of examples and potential inspiration exist in our larger culture, including advertisements and TV programs. Whether you are working with in-house staff and/or have an outside vendor, good communication to come up with a unified view is a great start to a successful end product. Ask yourself, “What do I like?” “How could I do that in my projects?” For someone who has been mid-pack with their entries or newer to the competition, two or three solid improvements may move you closer or into the winner’s circle.

Is there anything an entrant can do to make a judge’s life easier?

Cynthia Clanton: Check the judging criteria and be sure you are providing everything requested. Take the time to label or describe elements in a campaign, if needed.

Jennifer M. Latzke: Just keep entering. Take the comments and learn from them. Read other entries in the category and see how they approached their storytelling. We never stop learning and adapting as writers.

David Lundquist: Some entries may be intentionally humorous, which is fine, but co-judge Greg Lamp and I both give extra credit to authenticity for those trying to attain that. Include some gloss, but not all gloss. Whether for environmental portraits or video interviews, finding a comfortable setting is key to an authentic and convincing message. Good lighting and good, clear sound in videos are very important. Asking how someone feels about aspects of a project or their part in a process usually results in heart-felt answers – and sometimes a tear in their eye or an energetic twinkle!

Kenna Rathai: While you do need to tell a story and share some background on the “why” behind it, keep it as concise as possible. Get to the point and keep it simple so your judge doesn’t get lost. In some cases, using bullet points can even be helpful.

Meet our panelists.

Cynthia Clanton is a self-professed content fanatic and gleeful destroyer of errant apostrophes. She found her calling early in life. From audience understanding through idea generation, content creation, editing (especially editing!), design and measuring results, her four decades in ag communications have revolved around content. Clanton started her career with 10 years in editorial roles in ag trade publications, followed by a 25-year tenure at Colle McVoy/Exponent PR, specializing in ag communications and content. She joined the CHS communications team eight years ago to continue the journey. Clanton has been a TOCA competition judge for many years and particularly enjoys the writing and special projects categories.

 

 

Jennifer M. Latzke, is the senior editor of Kansas Farmer magazine, a Farm Progress publication. She has judged TOCA Communications Contest categories for a decade. Features are her favorite to judge, but Latzke says that all writing categories are her “jam.”

 

 

 

David Lundquist retired six years ago, after a 40-year corporate photographer career in the agricultural world with the CHS cooperative system. His home office was in Inver Grove Heights, Minn., but he traveled extensively to the many local co-ops and U.S. farms and ranches the company served. His worked included about a dozen international trips to photograph and interview customers and company employees. He described those trips as a “great joy.” “There’s nothing more fun than being on assignment,” he stated.

 

 

Kenna Rathai has been communicating to agriculture, turf and ornamental, and other business-to-business audiences for more than three decades through the disciplines of writing, public relations (PR) strategy, media relations, issues management, event planning and advertising account services. She spent most of her career at marketing communications agencies and freelancing, and joined AgroLiquid in 2025 as the corporate communications specialist. She is a former TOCA member and served on the conference program committee for the association’s 25th anniversary. She has judged TOCA Communications Contest entries in the past, including marketing communications/writing for newsletters and international writing/best writing publication.

 

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A ‘behind the scenes’ look at 3 Gardner Award winners

Extending influencer relationships, even further

Miscellaneous Special Communication Project Gardner Award
By Kristine White, Anthologic

Receiving the Gardner Award is a great honor in our industry so when we learned that we won the Gardner Award in the Miscellaneous Special Communication Project for the Toro Lawn Legends Program, our team was very excited. But this award didn’t come quickly or easily; the journey started more than a year prior with a simple question from our partners at Toro: “How do we take the wonderful relationships we’ve built with our influencer partners even further?”

As our team thought through the question, we knew a hard-hitting brainstorm session was likely ahead. We rolled up our proverbial sleeves, and got to work, utilizing our newfound improv skills (Yes, and…), that we learned at the TOCA Annual Meeting in Lake Las Vegas.

We knew that not only did we need to make this effort exciting, memorable and purposeful, we needed the right moment to launch this program to the world. And staring us in the face from the October page in the calendar, we knew that we had found our moment: Equip Expo – our industry’s biggest event.

At the core of Lawn Legends is a beautiful blend of enhancing relationships with influencers (and the larger-than-life versions themselves), brought to life through social media, PR and experiential channels. Because of the elevated level of exposure, on-point messaging was critical.

With our influencer partners as the centerpiece, the campaign provided showgoers with the opportunity to engage with these iconic heroes beforehand on social media – and in-person at the show. It was a one-two punch of whimsy as Toro offered the opportunity for hardworking contractors an opportunity to meet the strongest voices in the industry – in many cases, their heroes.

The results?

The Toro booth: hopping. Vibes: high. Attendees: motivated. An industry: inspired.

…All because of two simple words: “Yes, and…”

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Behind the Gardner: ‘Electrifying the landscape industry’

Writing, Product Information Gardner Award
By Scott Hollister, Editor-in-Chief, Landscape Management

While gas-powered equipment remains the standard in the landscape and lawn care industry, a growing number of companies are making the switch to electric and battery-powered equipment. To properly report on this growing movement in the industry, Landscape Management has featured an annual special section for the past several years focused on battery-powered equipment. This section traditionally appears in our December issue.

To anchor our 2024 section, I reached out to freelance writer Mike Zawacki to pursue a story profiling landscape contractors who had already switched to battery. The story was to explore the reasons behind their decision to make the change, what worked and what didn’t as they made the conversion, and the lessons they learned throughout the process that would be valuable to others considering similar changes.

I also asked Mike to include several of the industry’s top manufacturers in this space to bring added color to the story – mainly focused on recent advances and new technologies that might help inform a contractor’s decision to transition from gas- to battery-powered equipment.

We were confident this approach would resonate with readers, largely because it would provide several real-world examples of successful transitions for those contractors who still had questions about the viability of battery-powered equipment in the commercial space. Concerns about everything from power to battery life and cost have long been common concerns as battery-powered equipment, and early, these concerns were certainly well-founded.

But as technology has improved, those concerns have largely abated. Thus, it was our desire to present remaining holdouts with a balanced, realistic look at the current state of battery-powered equipment, told from the perspective of the companies producing this equipment and the contractors who had committed to making the change.

I think the combination of a solid game plan going into writing this story and having a talented writer/reporter at the helm combined to produce a story that clearly resonated with contest judges – the same way it did with readers of Landscape Management. It successfully blended the lessons learned by industry professionals who had already transitioned to battery-powered equipment with the latest product information to create a broad, balanced examination of where the industry is when it comes to battery-powered equipment and where it’s going in the future.

The entire Landscape Management team that worked on this special section – from Mike to our talented editors and designers to yours truly who just went along for the ride – was honored that the story received a first-place award in the Product Information category in the TOCA Communications Contest. For the story to be acknowledged as the best-in-show in the writing category was the icing on the cake. We’re grateful for the recognition.

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A look inside how Golf Course Industry produced its Gardner Award-winning October 2024 issue

Publishing Gardner Award (Best Single Issue)
By Matt LaWell, Golf Course Industry

Mark Twain popularized the word “bluff” to describe how you might try to fool folks at a poker table and the word “lunkhead” to describe those who bluff rather poorly. Long before crime writers called their detectives “hard-boiled,” Twain cooked up that term. He also coined the phrase “The Gilded Age” for his 1873 novel of the same name and was the first to call Anne Sullivan “The Miracle Worker” for her dedication to Helen Keller. Old Sam Clemens was nothing if not creative.

“I like a good story well told,” he once said. “That is the reason I am sometimes forced to tell them myself.”

All of us here at Golf Course Industry like a good story well told, too. Books, of course. Newspapers and websites and blogs (they still exist). Movies and television series and podcasts. And magazines.

We are lucky enough to still print a magazine every month, packing each new issue with as many good stories as we can find. Our October 2024 issue was a particular favorite.

For most of the last decade, our October issues have highlighted recent golf course construction and renovation projects – from new courses and major renovations to in-house specials and little tweaks that can help any course or club. Our primary goal is to help our readers, but we still want to entertain them in the process.

Channeling his inner Twain, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Guy Cipriano talked with me, Digital Editor Kelsie Horner and a quartet of our incredible team of contributors to discover what wound up being eight good stories:

• California (and Minnesota) correspondent Judd Spicer headed up to Idaho to learn how Osprey Meadows went from dormant to dashing.
• Canadian correspondent David McPherson traveled to Osprey Valley, a stunning Toronto-area course whose business goals have changed over the decades.
• Florida-based contributor Scott Kauffman profiled Miakka Golf Club, a literally jaw-dropping new private course in the Sunshine State that could rank among the best in the country.
• Ohio contributor Lee Carr talked with Scioto Country Club Director of Grounds Bob Becker and Architect Andrew Green to learn more about the relationship between those two positions after a project is finished. She also talked with clubs in South Carolina and the United Arab Emirates about how adding lights has helped expand their tee sheets.
• I profiled Bill Kupfer, whose renovation work as the superintendent at Southern Delaware Golf Club mirrors his own professional overhaul.
• Kelsie took her first work trip, to Saint John’s Resort in Plymouth, Mich., where she shared how Golf Course Architect Ray Hearn has improved that special spot – and where she recorded her first hole-in-one.
• And Guy himself traveled to Cable Hollow Golf Course in Russell, Pa., where the Martin family worked together to improve a track they all love.

“Finding stories is a collaborative effort,” said Guy. “We have a great internal team that has a lot of connections that keeps our eyes and ears open. We also have external contributors all over the place and they’re all excellent writers who are very well connected, so they come to us with these ideas.

“When it comes to October, we also have a lot of industry friends who work in that segment of the market and they’re always sending us updates about their projects. We’re very fortunate to have the team and resources that we need to pull a package like this together,” added Guy.

On top of all those stories, Carolinas Correspondent Trent Bouts talked with a former superintendent about his new murder-mystery novel; monthly columnists Henry DeLozier, Bradley S. Klein, Tim Moraghan and Matthew Wharton all delivered; and each of our three internal editorial staffers handled a partnered story. Kelsie wrote four spotlight features for our Insect Controls Turf Report, sponsored by Envu; Guy traveled to Knickerbocker Country Club outside Manhattan for an installment in our Enduring Greatness series, presented by Toro; and I talked with three superintendents who were early adopters of the GS3 smart golf ball for a story sponsored by USGA.

Those partnered stories filled 15 of the 84 pages in that issue. We had 41 total pages of ads and partnered content – tangible proof of work from Account Representative Jimmy Clark and Former National Sales Manager Russ Warner. The issue contained genuinely good stories, reported to the same level of detail and quality as every story in the magazine and on our website. They also help fund our general operations. Without them, we aren’t able to publish an 84-page issue – the largest in Guy’s 12 years with Golf Course Industry.

“We have tremendous support from our partners,” said Guy. “There’s no way we could produce that caliber of product without their support. The more people support a good print product – which our research shows is the most widely read and respected way to consume industry content – the more content you can offer your readers in that format.

“We’re fortunate to have several key strategic partners who understand that one of the best ways to grow their business is through marketing with smart, savvy, impactful print publications.”

Media continues to change and we’ll change along with it. But as long as our research indicates that our readers prefer print, we’ll continue to produce a monthly magazine – designed by Creative Director Jim Blayney, who lays out every page around leading the design team responsible for 13 other GIE Media magazine titles.

And we’ll fill everyone with good stories well told.

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Get your brand in front of the most influential communicators in the green industry

The TOCA Annual Meeting provides a unique opportunity to network and learn alongside green industry communicators. Editors, writers, publishers, photographers, public relations/advertising practitioners, industry association leaders, manufacturers and others involved in green industry communications. From our beginnings in 1990, TOCA has been serving members of the green industry by fostering an open exchange of information regarding issues that affect how we communicate to our various audiences.

For more information, contact Sandra O’Rourke at the TOCA office: sandra@cornerwindowcommunications.com

 

View the TOCA Sponsorship Opportunities

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