BJ Thurlby, president of Northwest Cherry Growers, crowns Jim Archer as the 70th Cherry King on Jan 10, 2014 in Yakima, Wash. Courtesy James James Michael

BJ Thurlby, president of Northwest Cherry Growers, crowns Jim Archer as the 69th Cherry King on Jan. 10, 2014 in Yakima, Wash. Courtesy James James Michael

Congratulations to Jim Archer, the 69th Cherry King selected by Northwest cherry growers at the annual Cherry Institute meeting in Yakima, WA. Jim was crowned Jan. 10 by B.J. Thurlby, president of Northwest Cherry Growers.

Jim gets to wear the ancient crown in recognition for his decades of service to the industry, starting as a smudge pot technician, then the head of the inspection program for the Washington State Department of Agriculture and most recently as Manager of Northwest Fruit Exporters. Archer was born in Kansas in 1943 and moved with his family to Wapato, Washington, three years later.

In his role with Northwest Fruit Exporters, Archer played a critical role in working with international regulators to ensure access for U.S. cherries to markets in Japan, Korea and Australia, said Thurlby.

A.E. Penney was the first Cherry King in 1945.

 

Learn about Jim’s career: NFE’s Archer retires