Bill Uhler started at Ogden Publications, Sunflower Publishing’s parent company, in 2004 as director of operations. Quickly promoted to general manager and then Publisher, he’s now responsible for leading both publishing organizations as well as Capper’s Insurance Services.

Before joining Ogden, Uhler spent 14 years at CMP Media. While there, he honed his marketing and message-development expertise in a variety of roles, including direct marketing specialist, group circulation director, sales director and publisher. He won CMP’s inaugural Sales Director of the Year award, as well as two Addys.

Uhler graduated from Washburn University with a bachelor of arts in communications with an emphasis in advertising and public relations, and a minor in business management.

Brenda Escalante began her career at Cappers Insurance Service in 2001 while completing her education at the University of Kansas.  She transitioned to Ogden Publications shortly thereafter, where she served as accounts receivable manager before being promoted to business office manager.

In 2010, Brenda joined the Advertising Department as the Operations Manager and then later moved up to supervise convergent media sales.

Brenda accepted the position of Advertising Director in 2020.  She currently oversees all aspects of advertising and event sales, including traditional, convergent, and sponsorship platforms for Ogden Publications.

She enjoys helping our partners connect with rural consumers to grow their businesses and supporting our knowledgeable sales team in their daily efforts.  When she is not at the office, Brenda is with her two daughters at their school activities, traveling, or spending time at their family farm.

Susan Conrade started at Ogden Publications in 1992 when Stauffer Communications still owned it as the Accounting Manager. She was responsible for all aspects of financial operations, including daily accounting procedures. She was promoted in 2023 to Director of Finance and Accounting, where she manages the business office, which includes accounting reporting and operations.

In her downtime, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, the opera and symphonies, hiking new trails, and traveling to explore different places.

Susan earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Emporia State University.

Robert “Bob” Cucciniello spent 12 years at CMP Media starting in fulfillment then circulation before he moved up to sales manager and later interim publisher.

Cucciniello started at Ogden Publications in July of 2007. He is currently the Production and Newsstand Director overseeing the purchase of materials and production of all print publications, as well as their newsstand distribution and sales. In addition, he oversees the fulfillment and facilities operations at Ogden’s main building in Topeka, Kansas. In 2010 he was named Folio: Audience Development’s Newsstand Manager of the Year.

Cucciniello graduated from Washburn University with a Bachelor of Arts degrees in History and Political Science. He taught history and political science at Highland Community College for 20 years before “retiring” to spend more time with his family.

Cherilyn Olmsted oversees Ogden’s audience development department, encompassing circulation, customer care, social media, and digital marketing initiatives. These teams work together to improve upon the integrated marketing efforts across all titles, drive more traffic to the websites, grow and engage readership through print and online marketing efforts, improve the customer experience, develop larger and more targeted e-mail databases, and increase overall print and online revenues.

Olmsted has worked in the publishing industry for over 33 years. She began her career as the business manager for a small family-owned publishing company in Lawrence, KS. She then flipped to the marketing side and spent nine years managing the audience development efforts for four high-tech publications at Miller Freeman and CMP Media, before joining the audience development team at Ogden Publications in 2005.

When she’s not working on the latest marketing campaigns, you can find her enjoying time with family and friends, tending to her backyard garden, kayaking at local lakes, or exploring the bike trails near her home town.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Ottawa University.

Josh Wilder has spent over 12 years as a professional in the media industry creating engaging user experiences through design, events, and video. In his current role at Ogden Publications as the Director of Events and Video, he is responsible for overseeing all of the company’s events and video production, from concept development to execution. His projects include the Mother Earth News Fair, participation in partner events, and educational videos. He is also passionate about diversity and inclusion in the media industry and is committed to making the highest quality of experiences that support and celebrate all life on Mother Earth.

Josh is a graduate of Ohio University with a degree in Graphic Design, but more importantly, has spent his lifetime learning from a variety of growers and makers who thrive within DIY communities across the Midwest. He endeavors to share those problem-solving skills to everyone interested in finding solutions. Ultimately, he hopes to spend his twilight years tending to a pumpkin patch.

Tim Swietek started at Ogden in 2001 as the Director of Information Technology. He is responsible for guiding the strategy, vision and direction for web application development, technical infrastructure, work-flow operations and e-commerce systems, as well as the in-house fulfillment systems. Tim leads a multifaceted department that is charged with supporting all areas of our internal operations and that reaches out to our customers, clients, vendors and more.

Tim has more than 30 years of experience with Information Systems, Programming, and he played a key role in establishing Ogden’s technical infrastructure and operations.

He graduated from Washburn University with a Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems with an emphasis on business management.

Randy Smith started at Ogden Publications in 2017. Previously, Smith spent 26 years as Director of Marketing, and then General Manager of Sunflower Marketing, a Topeka-based promotional products & custom printed and embroidered apparel company.  Specializing in product management, specialty catalogs, and marketing campaigns, he is responsible for new product development, merchandise sales, and inventory procurement for Ogden Publications.

Away from the office, Randy enjoys spending time with his children, working in his workshop & gardens, and home improvement projects.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Emporia State University.