Global executive, prolific author, and family man: ABE distinguished alumni award recipient reflects on a lifetime of purpose and passion

Paul Wallem turned 91 earlier this year, but that hasn’t slowed him down one bit. He is a regular columnist at Farm World and the author of six books, and that’s just since his retirement a decade ago.

Wallem was also a global export manager at International Harvester, ran two IH dealerships, worked as a certified financial planner, and co-founded an airplane museum. Equally important, he is a family man – he was married for 67 years to Joan, his high school sweetheart, and together they raised three children.

It all started with a degree in agricultural mechanization from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He graduated in 1956, the first year the major was officially approved in what is now the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE), part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences and The Grainger College of Engineering at U. of I.

Paul is a recipient of the ABE department’s 2025 Distinguished Alumni Award for his lifelong contributions to the agricultural industry.  

Upon graduation from Illinois, Paul became IH’s first intern, and he went on to have a whirlwind career with the company.

“I was a farm kid from Streator, Illinois, and I got the job with Harvester because of my background and my ag mechanization degree. I attribute much of my career with IH to that degree, and I’ll never stop being grateful to the program,” he said.

Launching a career with International Harvester

After the internship and a two-year stint in the Army, Paul came back to IH as an assistant zone manager who provided support to dealerships. He rapidly moved up the career ladder to different sales management positions in Illinois and Wisconsin, and he entered a general management training program where he would visit dealerships across the country.

After just four months in that program, he was promoted to farm equipment export manager.

“Then I started traveling worldwide. I’ve visited 52 countries, and I had offices in Lima, Brussels, Singapore, and Beirut,” he said. “It was a great experience, without a doubt. I saw Harvester’s impact worldwide, going all the way back into the early 1800s when they started picking up distributorships throughout the world.”

Focusing on family

However, the constant travel began to take a toll on his family life. He realized that he barely knew his young children because he spent so much time away from home.    

Then in 1967, a tornado hit Belvedere, Illinois, killing 21 high school students. Paul’s family lived in nearby Mount Prospect, but he was working abroad. He called home to learn everyone was safe, but the experience further underscored the stress of life on the road.    

The following year, the family was scheduled to move to London, where Paul would assume a top-level management position for IH Great Britain. His wife and kids had been preparing for the transition, but in consultation with Joan, he ultimately decided to turn down the opportunity and focus on his family instead.

Paul’s boss was understanding and helped him get started with an IH dealership in Belvedere. He later opened a second dealership in Plainfield, Wisconsin, and ran both until 1986.

IH faced severe headwinds throughout the 1980s and eventually the company broke up, with the tractor division merging with Case. During that turbulent time, half of the IH dealerships in the U.S. closed, and Paul lost his enthusiasm for selling farm equipment.

His next career move was to become a certified financial planner. He founded Wallem Associates and was eventually joined by his son Jeff, who took over the business in 2012 when Paul retired.

But Paul isn’t one to sit back and do nothing. He dabbled in selling golf carts for a couple of years. Then his friend Steve Alexander, reporter at WGN Radio, suggested he start writing books, beginning with topics that he knew well.

Becoming a writer

He first wrote a book about the IH breakup, then another one about the company’s history and successes. 

Paul is also an avid airplane enthusiast, and he helped found the Vintage Wings & Wheels Museum at Poplar Grove Airport. That interest led to a book about his adventures in the world of aviation, and another book about all the vehicles he’s owned over the years, including cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, and airplanes. He has also ventured into fiction, authoring two mystery novels that take place at a Wyoming ranch.

He now writes a regular column for Farm World called “All About Tractors.” He recently discussed ABE degree options in agricultural mechanics, including the Engineering Technology and Management for Agricultural Systems (ETMAS) major, excited to see renewed interest in the field.

Paul first started writing in 2016 when his wife developed heart problems and he needed to stay home more.

“I did not want to sit around being restless and driving her nuts. And that's when the books became lifesavers. Every morning, I could write, and there was enough stuff that I knew about that I could write with facts, and then I could take care of her. That was the real reason why I wrote these books,” he said.

“Since Joan died [in December 2023], it's been a terribly empty house. I just have to find ways to stay busy, to not dwell on the fact that she's not there.”

Sharing life lessons

Looking back on his life, what Paul finds most rewarding is his son coming to work with him as a financial planner, and the involvement of all three of his children in his dealership business.

That became possible when he chose to leave the IH export job, which also allowed his wife to pursue a career as a national officer in the sorority system. She joined the Phi Mu sorority as a student at U. of I., and she continued to be devoted to the organization, serving as a member of the Phi Mu Board and as president of Phi Mu National Foundation. In 1984, she received a Dean Fred H. Turner Award from U. of I. for her contributions to the sorority and university community.

“She would not have done any of that if we had moved to London. Giving her the opportunity to create a 50-year career of her own was the best thing I ever did,” Paul said.

He feels fortunate to have had a lifelong, supportive partnership, and he advises young people to pick their partner carefully. He also suggests they become involved in organizations and clubs that can help them grow. 

“I would advise kids, including city kids, to join FFA, which is growing rapidly in middle and high schools across the country,” he said. “They’ll get a focus on agriculture, and they learn public speaking and listening — all the skills that 4-H and FFA are so good at transmitting. Focus on the future and give it 110%, and all the rest will take care of itself.”

The ABE Distinguished Alumni Award was established in 2008 and the Young Alumni Achievement Award was introduced in 2020 to recognize alumni who have achieved significant success and distinction in their careers. Awardees are selected for their contributions to their professions and the lasting impact they have made in their fields. Nominations are accepted through an online submission form.