2020 Hall of Fame Inductee

The following is the text that appears on the plaque hanging in the Hall of Fame.

Bill Walters is the public face of the company that first brought farm toys to toy farmers. He grew up enjoying a typical farm boy’s life on the family farm, just 20 miles north of Dyersville, Iowa. After serving eight years in the Air Force, stationed in South Carolina, Bill and his family returned to eastern Iowa and landed a job at the Ertl Company. By 1999, Bill became a manager responsible for the farm toy line. Throughout his career at Ertl, he has maximum contact with the user and the collectors of Ertl Products. He is constantly learning about toys that consumers want. His management style is something he learned in the Air Force, “Nothing gets done without teamwork” still hold true today at Ertl/Tomy. He helped develop great toys for kids and collectors while preserving history. What Bill’s work means to him can be summed up in his quote, “My passion is what I do every day~ Toys! It’s really fun,”

For a complete list of inductees click here.

To nominate a person or persons for their contribution to the farm toy collecting hobby, please complete and send the nomination ballot to the Hall of Fame Committee.  You can also find a printed version of the ballot in the February 2021 issue of Toy Farmer on Page five.