(KXNET) — Eric Eriksmoen has been with the North Central Research Extension Center since 2012, but he’s been a research agronomist in North Dakota for 35 years.

He’s done many stories with KX News and Friday, March 31 will be his last official day of work.

He says over the years, there have been many advancements in agriculture, which he saw firsthand.

“We didn’t have the GPS so, global positioning satellites,” recalled Eriksmoen. “We didn’t have auto-steer. We didn’t have yield monitors. We didn’t have any of the electronic monitors that we have today. We didn’t have any GMOS at the time, so there were no roundup or any crops.”

At the party, there were cutouts of Eriksmoen on the cake slices.

On Wednesday, the NDSU extension celebrated him with a party — one that included food, fun, and cutouts of Eriksmoen on the cake slices. The man of the hour told KX News he was happy to help farmers in the north-central and western parts of North Dakota.

“It’s been a great run and I love the work that I’m doing,” said Eriksmoen. “This is a great place to work. And we’ll continue to progress in the future.”

He says he will be a snowbird from now on — spending his summers in North Dakota, and his winters in Mexico.