Oklahoma ginner Jeannie Hileman is blazing a trail in the Southwest cotton industry. Not only was she the first female to become a certified ginner through the National Cotton Ginners’ Association’s Southwest Ginners School but recently the first woman to be inducted into the Oklahoma Cotton Hall of Fame.

While being the “first female” isn’t a title she wears like a badge, she says if it helps a woman feel comfortable about entering the industry, she’s proud to have led the way. “It’s kind of like a vehicle. I tell people I drive it; I don’t wear it. And that’s like this.”

Farm Press spoke with Hileman in March as she visited booths at the Texas Cotton Ginners’ Association (TCGA) 115th Annual Meeting and Cotton Trade Show, Lubbock. She discussed the value of the combined annual gin school and trade show, not only to her career but employees as well.

“I started back in 2004, bringing my crew up here,” she recalled. “I would register my guys to come to gin school and last minute they would find a way to weasel out of going. I wouldn’t even know they hadn’t gone.”

That’s when she decided to bring them herself, which eventually led to her attending the school and becoming the region’s first certified female ginner. “As far as being able to manage a cotton gin and do repairs and figure out what we need, this has been the best resource I’ve ever had,” Hileman said.

Continuing education hours and camaraderie bring her back each year. “In Oklahoma, gins are few and far between, so in order to talk with guys who have experience, you’ve got to go where they are.

“You’ve got the industry people, plus you’re still running into so many knowledgeable people. It’s invaluable as far as the contacts you make.”

Ginning career

Over the last 33 years, Hileman has managed two Oklahoma cotton gins including Carnegie Gin in Carnegie, where she started as seasonal office help in 1990, only to be promoted to manager by the mid-90s and years later spearheaded the construction of Carnegie’s new gin north of town. She was there for 30 years. Today, she manages Western Planters Cotton Gin in Hobart – the state’s largest gin plant when “it runs at capacity,” she told Farm Press in a 2020 interview.

Recently, she was recognized for her years of service and industry impact. Hileman and the late-Wayne Winsett, a producer from Elmer, were inducted into the Cotton Hall of Fame by the Oklahoma Cotton Council during OCC’s annual Denim Ball. The event, hosted in Oklahoma City, is a fundraiser for The Committee for the Advancement of Cotton, the political action committee for the U.S. cotton industry.

OCC Executive Director Harvey Schroeder, who’s known Hileman for about 18 years, praised her eagerness to serve state and national-level organizations to improve the ginning industry. “She has always worked to do the best for her producers and the gins she manages. I am very proud to have Jeannie as one of my board of directors,” he said.

“Being inducted into the Hall of Fame was a humbling experience,” Hileman told Farm Press this week. “It was a wonderful entry in the final chapter of my career.” Hileman, who’s approaching retirement, plans to complete her final contractual year with Western Planters and then serve in a lesser capacity.

Advice

For women considering a career in the industry, Hileman, who was also recognized as a Significant Woman in Agriculture in 2018, advises, “We’re no different than the guys,” she says. “You’ve just got to blaze through it and get it done.”

Working in a male-dominated field has come with its challenges. “The gin, agriculture was definitely a man’s world. I didn’t try to convince them how smart I was. I just went ahead and learned what I needed to learn. If you’re doing your job and doing it well, everyone knows it,” she says. “Get it done, do your job and do it right and remember you don’t have to answer to anyone except yourself as far as doing things right.”

Take a look at the attached slideshow and catch a glimpse of this year’s TCGA Trade Show.