October 2020
Century Farms
PAGE 7
Rice County farm family plants a legacy By SAM WILMES samuel.wilmes@apgsomn.com LONSDALE — As the sun began to set on a gorgeous fall evening, farmer Dan Pumper and his family gathered around a tractor and marveled at the colors of the changing leaves.
PUMPER FARMS 1906: The original Pumper Farm is founded in Rice County 1993: Dan Pumper graduates from Montgomery-Lonsdale High School
The scenery, something Pumper has 1998: Dan marries his wife relished for decades since he started Jessica helping his father with fieldwork as a child, reminds him of his love for 2002: Dan becomes an farming, a profession and passion insurance agent through Farm four previous generations of his fam- Bureau Financial Services ily have lived by since 1906. obligations and into adulthood, Dan consistently helped his family during A consistent presence the spring and summer months. Pumper’s great-great grandparents purchased the property his father Gary now operates in 1906, originally farming corn and soybeans. Today, Dan is joined by his younger brother, JC Caron; his uncle, Kevin; and Gary, who all farm near each other., still growing corn and soybeans. This year, the Pumper family received Century Farm status. “It’s important that that stuff stays intact,” Dan said of continuing the family tradition. I think there’s a sense of legacy with it, not necessarily pressure to continue doing it, but almost an honor to be able to do it.” Dan’s childhood memories of helping his father include driving a tractor and combine when he was only 11 or 12. He started operating his own acres when he was 15.
Those memories are shared by Dan’s father. Gary Pumper remembers walking in the pasture as a child and seeing cattle and pigs. He would even sometimes chase cows down the road. Sometimes, he was responsible for driving a tractor and stacking hay on a wagon when he was just 6 years old. As he grew older, he would milk cows before school and then finish daily chores after returning home.
harvest when they were dating. Being so close to the farming industry has given her a unique appreciation for farmers and the origin of food products. After a brief stint in Lonsdale, Dan and Jessica built a new home in 2004 on the original Pumper farm site on Millersburg Boulevard outside Lonsdale. ‘It’s in your blood’ After graduating from MontgomeryLonsdale High School in 1993, Dan attended South Central College in North Mankato and later worked for four to five years as a mechanical drafter. He then entered the insurance business in 2002 as an agent through Farm Bureau Financial Services after considering careers in banking insurance and real estate. His position allows him to sell to farmers, coverage that includes auto and home insurance on outbuildings, cattle, pigs, equipment and crops. Now, he leads a team of six Farm Bureau Financial Services employees with two offices in Faribault and Farmington.
Pumper was selected as a member of “A good life,” Gary said of his child- the 2014 Farm Bureau Hall of Fame for consistently performing as a top hood. achiever for 10 years or more. Pump“It’s a good life for my children to er has also earned 2015 PC Agent of grow up around, the freedom to the Year, Century Club Award, 2015 move around … I don’t know. It’s just Pacesetters and Super Pacesetters, 2015 Super All American and Agent the family farm.” Council member. Dan married his wife, Jessica, in 1998. She would ride along during “I like the team approach to helping people and getting people the protec-
“It was interesting,” he said. ”They’d come bring me to a field, they’d go around the field once on the outside, then they’d leave me, and they’d go to another field and then I’d finish that one.” “Like a purpose, like you had something to do, that you were helping with the family thing,” he added. Beyond physical farming work, some of Dan’s fondest childhood memories came when his mother would bring him lunch and the entire family would bond in the long hours they spent together during spring planting and fall harvest. Even with other
Farm Bureau Financial Services (FBFS) agent Dan Pumper (center) was recognized in 2015 by the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation (MFBF) as a member of their Elite Builders Club during their annual meeting in Bloomington. Pumper signed 143 new members that year. (News file photo)
Kevin, Dan, Griffin, Jessica, Gary, and Dan’s brother, JC Caron, stand near a John Deere tractor on a recent fall evening. The family comes together during the fall and spring months to plant and harvest their annual yields. (Sam Wilmes/southernminn.com) tion that they need and their families, and avoid liquidation or foreclosure. In 2019, there were nearly 600 such their assets,” Dan said. bankruptcies, an increase on the 498 The couple’s oldest daughter, Geor- filed in 2018. gia, is in her second year of college in a vet tech program. Griffin, 11, attends fifth grade at TriCity United Schools and helps on the farm during the spring and fall. Farming has not been an easy way to earn a living over the last decade. Across the region, farm income, though peaking in 2013 during a short period of strong prices and good yields, has since trended much lower, forcing farmers to refinance debt when they don’t earn enough to pay back the loan they take out each year to plant crops. Technology is advancing on an unprecedented scale, and fewer are entering the industry. Data released by courts across the U.S. reportedly shows the number of farm bankruptcies across the country grew by 20% in 2019. The data refers to Chapter 12 bankruptcies which are part of the federal bankruptcy code that’s designed to allow family farmers and fishermen to restructure their finances
Despite the problems facing the profession, Dan Pumper still finds joy in fieldwork.
Pumper
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Call me today to see how I can help protect your operation, family and future. Dan Pumper 1220 7th Street Ste A Faribault, MN 507.331.2345 danpumper.com
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