Deanne Dilger Oakes is the wife of famous farmer and businessman, Alfie Oaks with whom she shares three children.
Deanne Dilger, originally from Matamoras, Pennsylvannia, lives in Naples, Florida with her husband and family.
Dilger attended Delaware Valley High School.
She started working for Alfie decades ago when he opened his first venture, Hancock Farm Market on Hancock Bridge Parkway. Aged only 18 at the time, he hired a cashier to help him with his work.
The cashier, Deanne Dilger, eventually became his wife.
Deanne and Alfie Oakes have welcomed three children in their marriage – Dain, Kyle, and Hannah. She remains a critical part of his farming empire.
Who is Alfie Oakes?
Alfie Oakes, born on June 16, 1968, in Delaware City, Delaware, is a prominent American farmer, businessman, and political influencer based in Southwest Florida. He is the founder and CEO of Oakes Farms, an agribusiness based in Immokalee, Florida, which produces, packages, distributes, and sells fruits, vegetables, and other agricultural products.
Raised in Fort Myers, he became involved in agriculture at a young age, working in his family’s produce business. By age 15, he was selling tomatoes and watermelons from the back of a pickup truck, and at 18, he leased 40 acres to grow zucchini and opened his first market.
This entrepreneurial spirit laid the foundation for what would become Oakes Farms, one of the largest independently owned agribusiness operations in South Florida.
Oakes attended North Fort Myers High School but did not pursue higher education.
Instead, he focused on developing his agribusiness skills through hands-on experience. After high school, he brokered wholesale deals and expanded his farming operations despite early challenges such as crop failures due to weather conditions.
He created Oakes Farms Market in Naples in 1994, which has since grown into a multifaceted enterprise offering farming, packing, shipping, and retail services. Oakes also owns Fruit Dynamics, Food & Thought and Thoughtful Threads.
Oakes is currently involved in a legal tussle with Federal Authorities. Law enforcement raided his North Naples home and packaging plant in Immokalee Thursday, November 7th, 2024. He is accused of taking out two loans totaling about $4.5 million from the Farm Credit of Florida, a Farm Credit Association. As of Oct. 9, Oakes is accused of still owing about $2.8 million to the organization.