18th in The Courier's 20 Under 40 series.

WATERLOO -- John Deere has helped Dan Dougherty see a good share of the world.

And one thing the Virginia native has learned is that the "Southern hospitality" he was raised with can be found in many places.

The Cedar Valley is one of them.

"The South has the reputation for 'Southern hospitality.' I think that's true to a large extent," he said. "But living here in Iowa, I've come to appreciate what I consider to be just genuine hospitality. People are so friendly and welcoming. I've never felt like an outsider. That's made it easy to live here."

Dougherty, a native of Gate City, Va., is a program manager at the John Deere Engine Works. He's been here four years. He started with Deere full-time in 2000 after working for the firm as a 1999 summer intern out of MBA school at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, following another classmate to Deere. Dougherty did undergraduate work at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.

"My first visit to Iowa was when I began working for John Deere," Dougherty said. He worked on his father's cattle farm through college, "so I always was well connected to agriculture."

He began working with Deere in Atlanta, with the company's southeastern factories, and "on loan" to company plants in Germany.

" I think I have visited not all, but most of the John Deere facilities -- almost all of the locations in North America and most of the ones in Europe," he said.

His current tenure at the Engine Works is his longest for Deere in a single location.

"Time goes by so fast, it really does," he said. "Certainly my time here has been the most rewarding," including production and quality control and working with union-wage employees affiliated with the United Auto Workers. Most recently, he's been busy improving engine emissions to meet federal standards.

In the community, Dougherty is involved with the Cedar Valley Lions Club. The group's comparatively small size -- about 25 members -- "drives the camaraderie as well as gets more people involved in more of the leadership aspects of the club," he said. One aspect of living in Iowa, though, is less than desirable.

"I don't like the winters," he said, laughing, "but that comes with the territory, of course."

Contact Pat Kinney at (319) 291-1426 or pat.kinney@wcfcourier.com.