Tri-States Grain Conditioning

to farm.” Mary does their books and “there’s never a penny missing,” he said. Mary said, “I learned that from my mom. She used to reconcile the bank statements and she kept on until it was to the penny.”

HOGS HELPED OUT

There’s always been cattle on the farm, but an old fashioned farrow-to-finish swine operation helped get the ball rolling. “When I started farming I had hogs, that was my source of steady income,” Bill said. Mary added: “When we got low on money, he’d say ‘Well, I think I’ve got some butchers out there I could sell.’” For the hogs, they used existing buildings except for one farrowing house built in 1977. The old big barn was used for sheep before the pigs moved in. In recent years, they removed the hayloft and remodeled it into a heated shop for Robert. About the time Bill’s dad passed away in 1995, hog prices tumbled. “It was a good time to get out,” he said.

44 YEARS ON THE COURT

In addition to a 40-year marriage and 44-year farming career, Bill has also been a high school basketball referee for 44 years. “I played ball in high school and being a ref was just a way to stay with the game. If I quit, I don’t know if Mary and I will make it because I’ll be home too often and it will be too much time together,” he joked. Mary said, “I wish he’d kept track of how many games he’s officiated and how many miles he’s driven.” Bill said, “Who knew I’d still be reffing when I was 62?” About 75 percent of the games he officiates today are done in tandem with their oldest daughter, Kari. “She’s been doing it for about 10 years. She does more games than I do now.” Kari works as a rehab specialist for a chiropractor in Yankton. The further away from Sioux Falls, the harder it is to find officials, Bill said. So the father-daughter duo along with another referee will travel as far as Kimball, Burke, Bonesteel, Armour, Lake Andes and Dakota Christian. He’s not uptight about the heat directed towards officials. “Truth be known, when the game’s over, you really don’t have any enemies. That’s just the spirit of the game and home town rivalries.”

Age Media Qtr Page Color 7-12-19.pdf 1 7/12/2019 11:22:43 AM Bill feeds the Schoenfish cattle.

Robert and Abby with their flock of sheep.

Bill and Mary Schoenfish with their restored grand piano which is more than 100 years old. Their other daughter, Cassie Wielenga, is the mother of their four grandchildren and works with her husband, Ryan, in their trucking firm. For a time, Cassie worked for the same law firm that Mary had years earlier. Cassie and Ryan’s two oldest daughters beg Grandpa to go practice basketball with them. “I hope the good Lord lets me live long enough to see my grandkids play in high school ball,” he said.

THE BEST SILAGE TRUCK DRIVER

Mary has worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 36½ years. Initially, she just did fill-in work as a clerk for the mother of her employer, a local attorney. After about seven years of working both jobs, she quit her job at the law firm. Two years before Robert was born, she took a full-time position with the USPS in Olivet, where she worked for 22 years. Then about 10 years ago, she was fortunate to get the postmaster’s job at Marion. Bill said, “She knows if she doesn’t go to work, I’ll put her to work here.” Mary replied: “No, I retired from farm work. Robert took over for me.” “Oh I don’t know,” Bill said, “You’re still my best silage truck driver.” In addition to her USPS job and her work on the farm, Mary also served on the Menno School Board for 19 years. Mary said postal employees were deemed essential workers during Covid in 2020, so they never missed a day of work. Robert’s reply to his mom: “We never got a day off here either.” Bill said 2020 was a good year for fence repair. “Many days we were putting posts in. We got more done in that Covid year than we ever have. Still, you know, I’ll never live long enough to get all the fence fixed.”

THE NEXT GENERATION: ROBERT AND ABBY

Robert graduated from the diesel mechanics program at Lake Area Technical College in Watertown. Lake Area Tech was the right fit for him in part because of the hands-on nature of the program. During college, he never spent a weekend in Watertown. He always drove home, worked on the farm all weekend, and went back either on Sunday night or Monday morning. Mary said diesel program instructor Carl Tesch “ran a pretty tight ship. He would tell the kids ‘I’m not going to teach you diesel mechanics, I’m going to teach you to be a good employee – you come, you be on time, you be in the shop ready to turn a wrench. If you miss class three times, you and your toolbox are going out the door.’” And Robert said there were a few students who were shown the door.

Like her mother-in-law, Robert’s wife, Abby, grew up on a farm southwest of Menno owned by her parents, Brian and Cindy Herrboldt. Abby has an associate’s degree in animal science from Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Neb. She worked at a vet clinic for four years, but she wanted more room to grow, and is now attending Mount Marty University in Yankton to become a radiology technician. She’s currently