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Kristen and Chance with their children, Emerson and Wyatt.

THE MCNEIL FAMILY

Lincoln County, November 2021

Unhappy with their careers in town, Chance and Kristen McNeil of Harrisburg returned to the country about a decade ago and have since developed three businesses: CK Stables, CK Kennels and CK Bulldogs.

CK Stables provides horse boarding and riding lessons. CK Kennels provides dog boarding in a state-of-the-art facility. CK Bulldogs raises and sells French and English bulldogs. “We started all of this from nothing,” said Chance. “Because Kristen and I have our names on it, it took me a long time to find people who pride themselves in their work and get it done the way I want it.” he said. Two of their best workers are their own children, Wyatt and Emerson.

Caring for animals is a 24-hours-a-day, 365-days-of-the-year business – which is just the way Chance likes it. “I don’t do well with downtime. I always have to have a project, I always need to have something going. I always feel like I’m behind the eight-ball, but when I look back, there are a heck of a lot of things we’ve accomplished in 10-12 years.”

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Keith and Deb McGuire.

DEB AND KEITH MCGUIRE RODNEY HAMMERSTROM

Minnehaha County, November 2021

Deb McGuire is well-known in equine circles for producing riders and horses who win national championships in Arabian horse competitions. More important than the championships, though, is connecting kids with horses. “I don’t care whether they just want to ride in lessons, go trail riding, or go to shows. I want to teach the kids to be committed and responsible and learn how to ride.”

Deb owns and operates Performance Plus Arabians, a private training facility with a riding lesson program near Sioux Falls. She’s helped a lot of youth gain confidence in themselves. “It’s especially good for the kids who are real introverted, it helps them come out. It helps them learn how to communicate.”

She said Arabian horses are sensitive athletes, but her work ethic for the horses pays off. “Normally when I get a new horse I spend 30-40 minutes a day, three to four days a week on their back. Then I’ll spend a couple days a week on ground work. It takes about three years to train them.” Eighteen years ago, high school senior Rodney Hammerstrom took his colt out to check some fence lines in the family pasture near Davis. During the ride, he suffered a traumatic brain injury and almost lost his life. Years of physical and speech therapy were grueling. When Rod was ready to give up, his dad asked him, “Have you given it all over to the Lord?” That was the real beginning of his road to recovery, which eventually took him to 20 states as a Christian motivational speaker. “The most crucial thing I did was say to the Lord, ‘Here is my good and here is my bad, do with it as you may.’”

Turner County, November 2021

About five years ago, he eased back into the rodeo arena, competing with his parents in local team penning and sorting events. His comeback peaked in summer 2021, when he and sorting partner, Bob McPhearson, competed at the world finals of the Ranch Sorting National Championships (RSNC) in Fort Worth. In the finals of their class, they sorted 19 cattle in 147.93 seconds – good enough to go home with “World Champion” belt buckles.