2022 Cross Diamond Chronicle

T h Te h e

C r o s s D i a m o n Cd r o s s D i a m o n d C h r o n i c l Ce h r o n i c l e

B u ul l l s B r e d FOR D T Toou u g h ! ww w w w. c r ros s s sd d i a m on d c a t t l e . c o m

O c t to o b e r 2 0 2 2 , V Vo o l um m e 1 15 5

S Suur thhrriivaabbiillity, , P Paar r t 2

It was ten years ago in the drought years of 2012 and 2013 that we first coined the ter m "sur thrivability." It's loosely defined (because, it's loosely a word) as the ability not only to sur vive in tough times, but to actually thrive under tr ying conditions. In 2013, we defined the ter m as it per tained to the cattle they were developed and con ditione d in a par ticular way that al lowed them to take adversity in stride and remain productive.

Now, here we are, a decade down the road and still seeing the value and re ward of a management system that fo cuses on optimum care and use of forages to build a resilient, productive cowherd. Our mission statement refers to “studied stewardship.” T his means to us that we are always lear ning , adapting and g rowing in our manage ment practices both in utilization of forage and in c attle nutritio n, he alth and genetics.

We are sur rounded by a team that has fostered sur th riv ability in a nd among themselves, as well. We are bless ed to work with g reat people on a daily basis. Weather conditions have been br utal at many dif ferent point s this year, as many of you can re late to: relentless wind; dr y, dusty conditions; fires and record heat have been a few of the weather challenges in our area. T his team has come together to strate gize and plan to make decisions based on cur rent re sources and cond ition s, while kee ping an eye to the future. We are sur rounded by a team of peo ple with stewardship in their hear ts faithfully caring for the land and live stock., whatever the adversity.

Another g roup of peop le we are blessed to work with are our g reat

consignors. As you read about them in the following pages, you will see a common thread of dedication and ser vice to their cattle, the industr y and to you.

W hat a joy it is to be among the two percent of the nation involved in production ag riculture. We know that steward ship and dedication to land and cattle is not the exce ption it is the nor m. Cattlemen and women in this day and age must have sur thriva bility, dedication and love for what they do. May we all en courage and lift one another up as we go about the business of sur thriv ability.

The smell and sound of change.

It seems that "pumpkin spice" gets a lot of press this me of year. I'm never sure if this is a smell or a taste. I generally like it, but there are some agricul tural smells that rival it as a fixture of fall like cracked corn and the crispness of fall foliage. But around our place, it's the sounds that mix with the smells of fall that really make an impression. Take the chaos of bawling cows and calves at weaning, the air brakes hissing as a truck idles at the chute, or the distant bird calls as flocks travel south overhead.

I o en wonder what an outsider would think of the coming and going around our place in October. I think the answer to that is that an outsider doesn't stay an outsider very long they either depart for safer (and saner) ground quickly, or get sucked into the vortex of fall work before they know what's hap pened.

But how blessed we are to have fulfilling work for our hands The work of produc on agriculture is vital and necessary in feeding our na on, and many others Many thanks to all of you who contribute to this great work.

Our opera on lost a day to day hand, but gained a "Cowboy" this fall, as Johanna departed for her freshman year at Oklahoma State University She is majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. (A mouthful, for sure just saying it seems way above her parents' heads.) Johanna was home at the end of September for a visit, which was quite welcome. It was a full weekend so full that we completely for got to get an updated family photo... we're hoping to get one when she returns again

Marie is a sophomore at Bertrand High School and staying busy with FFA and other school ac vi es. She recently competed in the state range judging contest, among many others this year Marie ac cepted an a er school job at a care home in Hol drege. (Oddly, she seemed unimpressed by our offer to allow her to care for her aging parents at home.)

As it has been across much of the na on, our summer was one of making plans, then making drought plans, then modi fying drought plans. It has been a trying spring and summer, to be sure. As you will read from our friends in the follow ing pages, this is widespread. We can all know that we aren't in this trial alone, nor should we think we are. Trials can be isola ng, however, there is always someone ready to lend a hand, an ear or a prayer to help out. The pressure can be intense at mes like these, so please, reach out is you are feeling over whelmed. We’ve all been there.

Most importantly, there is One to whom this is no surprise, and Who is sovereign over all. As is wri en in the account of Job 23:10, "But He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come out as gold." May we all be tried and refined, and trust in Him For as Jesus says in John 16:33, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribula on, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

God's peace to all, and may you rejoice in the work (and smells and sounds) that He has placed before you this fall.

Sco , Kim, Johanna and Marie

Commi ment to serve.

Our Mission: Developing excep onal ca le, crops and rela onships through studied stewardship and faith in Christ.

It is our mission to be faithful followers of Christ and stewards of the land and live stock entrusted to our care. In addi on, we are here to serve others through the re la onships that come our way through business, community and church. Our Cross Diamond team is all in to get to know each of you, and the needs of your ranch, live stock and family, so that we may be an encouagement both professionally and per sonally.

Our lives have been blessed by the rela onships grown and nourished over the years in the livestock industry, and we look forward to the con nued encouragement and benefit that each bond brings.

Right ON Cattle Company

As many of you know, there is never a dull moment in the cattle business. T his year we were for tunate we didn’t lose our summer g rass, as a fire broke out ½ mile away. T he wind blew it south, and our g rass was spared, but many of our friends and neighbors’ g rass were not. It was a subtle reminder that we can plan and work hard towards a goal, but our Lord and Savior is still in control.

Our family continues to enter into new milestones as Car ter and Karli welcomed Brodie Rolf Johnson on March 18th. T his is the 4th g randchild for Mark and Jodi and we couldn’t be more thankful. Car ter works as an accountant for Nelnet and Karli as Of fice Mana ger at First Free Eva ngelic al C hurch in Lincoln, NE. Hakon (5) star ted Kindergar ten this year at Le gac y Christian Church, a new Chris tian school with its first year of school. Jake ser ves as a board member for Le gac y Christian and was instr umental in star tup operations. Joslyn stays busy with Hakon, Rorik (3), Malia (18 months), and one more on the way!

Tanner continues to work with the Agtech Incubator prog ram, along with helping on the operation. His longtime girlfriend, Shelby, is in her last semester of Law School in Lincoln. T his leaves many wondering when the next stage of their rela tionship will hit and we can add another member of ficially to the family. Howard continues to be a g reat asset on the operation both physically, and for his many

years of knowledge. T here aren ’ t many days that go by without someone ask ing him for cattle records.

W hile there are continual challenges, we can count the many blessings in life. We look forward to seeing ever yone at the sale.

Please join us on

De c. 1 11 f foor r t h he e S undday Catt t le D Drivve e and d A Apprre e c ciiati on S Suupppeerr, f feeat urin g s sppeeake r, , D David B Baar r t ton n

David Bar ton is the Founder of Wal lBuilder s, a national pro family organization that presents Americ a ’ s forgotten hi stor y and heroes, w ith an emphasis on our moral, religio us and constituti onal herita ge. WallBuilder s i s a n ame taken from the Old Tes tament writings of Nehemiah, who led a g rassroots movement to rebuild the wall s of Jer usalem and restore its strength and honor. In the same way, WallBuilders seeks to energize the g rassroots today to become involved in strengthening their communities, states, and nation.

David is the author of numerous best selling books, with the subjects being drawn largely from his massive librar y of tens of thousands of original writings from the Founding Era. He is a sought after speaker, bringing the tr uth of America’s histor y to

churches, civic and militar y g roups, schoo ls and univers ities, and community events. David is also a frequent guest on a number of national media prog rams, and is a host on a daily radio show, Wall Builders Live.

His exhaustive research has rendered him an exper t in historical and constitutional issues and he ser ves as a consultant to state and fed eral le gislators, has par ticipated in several cases at the US Supreme Cour t, was involved in the development of the Histor y/Social Stud ies standards for states such as Texas and Califor nia, and has helped produce histor y textbooks now used in schools across the nation. David and his wife Cher yl reside in Aledo, Texas, they have three g rown, mar ried children (Damaris, Timothy, and Ste phen), and five g randchildren.

The Right On family, from lef: Tanner, Shelby, Karli (with Brodie), Carter, Jodi(with Rorik in front), Mark, Jake (with Hakon in front), Joslyn with Malia

Leftt: Andy and Me gan branding. Aboove: Michael, Kyle and Andy sor ting pairs. Riigghtt: Michael, Corey and Kyle moving cows.

Far r r riightt: Corey bringing a calf out of a creek bed during calving.

We are bl esse d wi th a talente d crew w il ling and able to put i n the tough m ental and phyi cal hours of ste wardship.

A Abbove and d beelloow: We got to pre condition the commercial calves in the rain. It was a nice change!

Fog or dust? It was a heavy mor ning in July with an odd mix of both.

It was a g roup ef for t with lots of planning , measuring and walking through to re model our cattle working facility at the home place... the outcome has been wor th the hours of planning and elbow g rease!

T Trriiaanngglle e Y C Caattttlle e C Coo.

It has been the g reatest blessings becoming a husband and now a father. With that brings a new level of intensity. Not only do we as ranchers have obliga tions to the land and livestock God has in tr usted us with, but we also have the responsibility to steward and g row the lives of the people we care about most. It is amazing the care and mental energ y you can put towards a goal when you view it through that lense.

It is no longer ok to just go with the f low and not make intentional plans for the future of our family or our businesses. Ranching is a good teacher of that. We plan the cows we want, the sires we use on them, when the calves will be bor n and when that calf will be marketed. We have to have a goal with a plan.

It has also been a year in which the planning was the most impor tant par t, since most of us have thrown the actual plan out of the window. With the dr y times and high winds came some devastating fires in our area. We have long seen the benefit of controlled bur ns, but got first hand knowledge of what it looks like when a tr ue wildfire breaks out. T hose were some scar y phone calls to get. It is always amazing to see how people pick each other up in times of need. We continue to pray for all of our friends and neighbors who suf fered losses.

T he cattle we are developing need to be able to adapt to any environment. A large par t of that is ensuring they have the ability to forage for their needs. We have found through management intensive g razing we are able to kee p our cattle out foraging and feeding them as little supplemental feed as neces sar y. We owe it to our customers to develop genetics that will work. I am pleased to say the bulls and their heifer counter par ts look fantastic heading into fall and have perfor med outstanding to this point. We will be weaning the 2022 calves in the coming weeks and look forward to getting them out onto cor n residue.

Blake and Sterling love to be outside. We enjoyed the new pool in Ber trand this summer and Blake made major strides with her swimming lessons. Blue Duck the pony fulfilled his duties of packing the kids around, and Blake made the leap to ride him around with no help from mom or dad. We enjoyed a family trip to the Black Hills along with a visit to see the Cable family in Mis souri. Meredith is such a fantastic mother and teacher to both kids. We have expanded our meat business and we enjoy the people we get to build rela tionships with and to see how the genetics we are putting out in the world compare on the plate. If you have any interest in sampling some of our prod uct visit Crossdiamontmeats.com

We are so blessed to be sur rounded by such g reat people locally and in our industr y. T here is no setting I would rather raise a family. We look forward to catching up with you in December for some laughs and good conversation!

S Soolliid d R Roocck k R Reed d A Anngguus s

Hello friends and fellow cattle breeders!

W hat do these things have in common: Hur ricane Sandy qualified as the sec ond more costly hur ricane in the histor y of the U S ; end of the Mayan calendar ; Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee; Michael Phelps became the most deco rated Olympian of all time?

Add to the list, Sol id Rock Red Angus was established and be gan marketing seedstock Red Angus bulls at Cross Diamond Cattle Company’s annual production sale. T his all happened in 2012! T hat’s right, we have been blessed to be in the CDCC sale lineup for the last ten years, just a por tion of our over 40 year career in raising cat tle. As always, we are thankful to Scott & Kim for including our genetics in their sale for the last decade

Along with celebrating this accomplishment, our family was honored to be the national re cipient of the 2022 Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) Cow Calf Award It is humbling to be honored for something we take responsibility for ever y day in doing the right thing to take care of our cattle We will continue to be dedicated to improving consumer confidence and shar ing the impor tance of BQA on our operation and in U.S . beef industr y.

In the company of successes will always be challenges like the weather and our anti ag gov er nor. However, our philosophy remains the same: generate healthy g razing lands to produce future herd bulls with traits of fer tility, functionality and overall disposition. We continue to focus on ef ficient cattle, concentrate on quality genetics, and put emphasis on calving ease, g rowth and mater nal traits to meet your needs and the changing landscape of the cattle industry.

T his summer was our ninth year for our inter n prog ram. We welcomed Ethan Holst, Uni versity of Tennessee Mar tin far m and ranch management student, who came with just a little bit of cattle experience, but was a g reat asset to our team this summer and all of the kids (ok, adults, too!) were sad to see him leave.

We enjoyed the summer watching kids play ball, sing VBS songs and compete in the county fair. Ryan and Lindsay’s kids, Maelle (4th g rade), Tucker (1st g rade) and Genevieve (Kinder gar ten) also spent the summer in g ymnastics Maelle raised two market pigs, Polly and Molly, and Red Angus breeding heifer, Suzy. Her siblings got to show her pigs in the peewee class. She also had a state fair qualifying photog raphy project Chisum (3rd g rade), the older son of Ronny and Kelsey, had his first fair and took two market pigs, Sally and Spotsies, and two Red Angus breeding heifers, Rosey and Daisy Daisy got to be his companion in the Round Robin/Master Showmanship competition. He also took a leathercraft project. T he littlest fam ily member, Conagher, tur ned one year old this summer and is used to being in the car seat or stroller, chasing his big brother and cousins!

All of the kids were g rateful Aunt Emily got to spend time with them at the fair. She still lives in Olathe, Kan., but star ted a new oppor tunity as landscape designer with Br ummel Lawn and Landscape in Blue Springs, Mo. Joe and Cindy had the oppor tunity to travel to Bowling Green, Ky., for the National Master Far m Homemakers Guild Convention where Cindy is the national secretar y.

As fall settles in and we be gin thinking about the upcoming bull sale season, we are looking forward to visiting with you in December. Follow our ranch happenings on Facebook (River Bend Ranch Solid Rock Red Angus), Instag ram (solidrockredangus) or at www.SolidRockRedAngus.com.

God’s Blessings, Joe and Cindy Frasier ; Ryan, Lindsay, Maelle, Tucker and Evie Frasier Ronny, Kelsey, Chisum and Conagher Pope; Emily Frasier

R Roouuggh h D Diiaammoonnd d R Raanncch h

As we age, we be gin to realize that our parents may have known more than we gave them credit for. As we reflect on this past year, I kee p hear ing my dad’s voice saying , “ stay the course, don’t give up. ” T his year pre sented challenge s we never though t we would face in our lifetime or that we ever thought we would have to face in our careers. With one of the largest g rass fires on record, and a summer of drought that many peo ple say is one of worst they have ever experienced, you star t to have a much g reater appreciation for rain and be gin to understand why ever y old far m has 20 rain gauges.

As Brittany and I continue to g row at Rough Diamond Ranch, we contin uously find ourselves leaning on those that helped shape us both as individ uals and as ranchers. If it wasn ’ t for those people teaching us and helping us navigate through tough times, it is hard to imagine where we would be today, especially without those people that took the time to help a young person lear n the ways of the American west and what it means to call yourself a rancher. In ag riculture we need to recognize that many of the things that have allowed far mers and ranchers to be successful cannot be taught in a class room but instead through trial and er ror and life experiences. As producers we must have patience and be forgiving as these young people come into our lives and tr y to navigate their way to success. T hese young people are the fu ture of our industr y, they come in all shapes and sizes, with dif ferent back g rounds and experiences. So, if you have an oppor tunity to help one of these young people g row and succeed, cherish that oppor tunity, nur ture them and help them g row because our future de pends on their success.

With all that being said, Brittany and I are excited to announce that we are expecting our first son this Januar y and can ’ t wait to help guide him through the ways of the west and teach him about our passion and our love for ag ri culture. We look forward to seeing ever yone on sale day, and God bless. ~ Ben and Brittany Mar tin

P Paauullssoon n T Trriiaanngglle e B Baar r

Greetings Fellow Producers,

In the Word of tr uth the verse Proverbs 27:17 proclaims : "As iron shar p ens iron, so one man shar pens another." T his simple statement has been a calling for all these years to understand that no one is alone. In order to make ourselves better we must choose to spend time around good people and have discussion par tners that stimulate thought. I tr ust that ever y fel low reading this paper is just that kind of person, and I'm so thankful to have people like this in my life. We can each find mutual benefit in giving and receiving this kind of stimulating thought about tr uth and where we each have strengths and faults. Day to day conquering thr u this life takes a team ef for t and hear ty souls to lock ar ms with. T he challenges of ag ri culture requires friends, par tners and family.

Find your people and find value in them! I was not planning to write a devotional but there you have it. You didn't ask for it, but you got it and got it for free, in a free publicat ion.. .a tr ue cowboy devotional.

T here is always a friend in this business just pick up the phone and call, or jump in some old tr uck and go see one; because you will both benefit!

Happy Ranching and Blessings Friends, T he Paulson family