The Farming Families of Turner County (SD)- August 2020

August 2020 | www.AgeMedia.pub

of Turner County

Faith / Family / Friends / Farming

Meet the

WILLIAMS Family Sandy and Zane Williams on an acre of virgin prairie. The mound behind them marks the dugout where Zane's great uncle once lived.

Story on page 26.

August 2020 | www.agemedia.pub | The Farming Families Magazine

39

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of Sioux County

SOCIAL SECURITY DEATH & TAXES

PUBLISHERS Garrett and Mindy Gross, AGE Media (605) 690-4071 EDITOR Bob Fitch, AGE Media (712) 551-4123 ADVERTISING SALES Garrett Gross, AGE Media (515) 231-9367 garrett@agemedia.pub Š The Farming Families, Age Media & Promotion The Farming Families is distributed free exclusively to the farmers, ranchers and producers in rural southeastern South Dakota. All rights reserved. Content in this magazine should not be copied in any way without the written permission of the publisher. The Farming Families assumes no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs. Content in articles, editorial and advertisements are not necessarily endorsed by The Farming Families and Age Media & Promotion.

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

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FROM THE EDITOR

WILL THE REAL BOB FITCH PLEASE STAND UP?

By Bob Fitch Jr.

I’m proud to introduce myself as the new editor of The Farming Families magazines in Turner, Hutchinson, Lincoln and Minnehaha Counties. AGE Media owners and Farming Families publishers Garrett and Mindy Gross will continue to be intimately involved in the publication, working with our valued advertisers and contributing editorial content. I’m excited to meet many more of you in the months and years ahead as I help tell the stories of area farmers, ranchers and agri-businesses.

I started working for AGE Media last year when we introduced The Farming Families magazine in the northwest Iowa counties of Lyon, Sioux and Plymouth. As I began traveling in our South Dakota coverage area, I’ve discovered that at least a few of you noticed the byline “by Bob Fitch” pop up over the past year as some stories I wrote for Iowa were also published in our South Dakota edition. Some of you have wondered if the writer was “that Bob Fitch” who used to buy and sell cattle in this territory.

Well, no, I am not “that Bob Fitch.”

But I am proud to call “that Bob Fitch” my dad. Bob Fitch Sr. retired last year after 55 years in the cattle business, having helped hundreds of feedlot operators buy feeder cattle and market their finished cattle to packers. Dad has a long history in all four counties in our coverage area. He grew up in Lincoln County and returned there to the family farm about 15 years ago. He started his career at the Sioux Falls Stockyards in

Minnehaha County in 1964. Ten years later, we moved to Yankton and beef producers in Turner and Hutchinson Counties were some of his most important clients.

My mom, Joyce, died seven years ago, but Dad is fortunate to have reacquainted himself with a high school classmate named Mary Lee Gayer and they were married last year.

They’re both in good health and enjoying retirement together (Dad continues some farm work and the wonderful Mary Lee continues part-time in the health care field).

I didn’t think Dad could truly hang up his spurs as a cattleman, but he really did.

As I’ve visited with some of his old customers, they’ve affirmed to me what we always knew – as a cattleman, he was a straight shooter, caring, and pretty darn good at doing his best for his customers. As the editor of this publication, I’ll do my best to live up to his standards.

A little bit about me … I was born in Hudson and grew up in Sioux Falls and Yankton. In the mid1970s, my parents started farming the family farm west of Hudson.

Every weekend, we “commuted” from Yankton to Hudson to get the field work done. Dad took a lot of vacation time from his job in Yankton to get the crops planted

Bob Fitch Sr. and Bob Fitch Jr.

and harvested in the spring and fall.

He always said some guys golf or boat or camp or fish for fun – we farmed.

In my high school and college years, I spent many hours cultivating the corn and soybeans as well as walking the beans on the farm founded by my great-great-grandfather in 1873. I’ve spent most of my career in positions connected with agriculture. I worked for a farm newspaper and then spent two decades with ag associations in Minnesota. A new professional opportunity brought us back home in late 2012. Today, my wife, Kathy, is a special education teacher at Lifescape in Sioux Falls and my son, Cole, works for PR Construction in Ireton. Our grandson, Robby, attends West Sioux Schools in Hawarden, Iowa, where we live.

Returning to my original career as an editor and writer has been rewarding. I’ve been welcomed with real warmth into the homes of farmers in northwest Iowa and now southeast South Dakota. Thank you.

August 2020 | www.agemedia.pub | The Farming Families Magazine

5

LINCOLN COUNTY FAMILY

FARMING AND CATTLE FEEDING . . .

WHERE A HANDSHAKE STILL MEANS SOMETHING

By Bob Fitch

Charis, Dave, Ron, Cheryl, Eric, Hunter, Faith, and Ginger Poppens.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Ron Poppens passed away on Monday, July 20, just 11 days after the photos for this story were taken. The staff at Farming Families magazine extends our sincere condolences to Ron’s wife, Cheryl, and their entire family.

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

Being a good neighbor grows in importance every year at OK Corral south of Tea. Brothers Dave and Ron Poppens farm south of Tea with Ron’s son, Eric. “Where this farm is at now, we have more neighbors than we used to. Some aren’t as friendly towards farming as others. Most tolerate it pretty well. We’re fortunate with this feedlot, we’re the only ones on this mile,” Dave said.

When Dave and Ron were kids, Tea was a town of about 300 people. Today, its population is 5,000 and still growing as a bedroom community for Sioux Falls.

“You get north of Highway 18, there are definitely more acreages and a more urbanized area. In northern Lincoln County, you’ve got to be more cautious and careful when you’re spraying. You see more people now taking pictures of you when you’re spraying in case something dies … then it’s your fault.

“Most people are very understanding. We try to educate them that we have weeds that we have to spray for. We ask them to plant their garden at least 10 feet away from the fence line. We frequently explain why and what we spray; and how we’re trying to be very cautious,” Dave said.

Poppens are also proactive about warning neighbors when they

Hunter, Eric, Faith, and Ginger Poppens.

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

will be hauling manure. “What helps us is we have three smaller lots. We’re not as concentrated on one lot. When you tell people there are only about 300 head per spot, that’s more acceptable.”

He expects the urban encroachment will continue. “There will always be people who want to be in the country. The day might come we get crowded out. For the next five to 10 years, we’ll probably be ok operating the way we are.

“Some of it is maybe not all bad. It brings awareness to us that we may need to do a better job being a little neater.

Part of that is you just need to be a good neighbor.”

Dave laughed about people who move to the country, but want to have city convenience. “In the winter, they wonder ‘When’s my road going to be plowed?’ Well we’ve got 36 square miles in the township and we’ve got one guy and a maintainer. You might be first, you might be last. The new country neighbor says ‘Well, I can’t wait that long.’ My response is ‘Maybe you’d better get a tractor and a loader then.’”

Ron and Dave’s grandparents started farming in Lincoln County in the 1920s. Their brother, Gary, farmed with them until about 10 years ago. Ron’s son, Eric, is the fourth generation to live in the farm house which was built in 1927 or 1928.

Poppens grow grass hay plus corn and soybeans. They had a

Ron and Cheryl Poppens.

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12-sow farrow-to-finish hog operation until the 1970s. “We’ve always had cattle. Since ‘77, we started custom feeding cattle. The last 20 years, they’ve all been custom-fed,” Dave said.

“We incorporated as Ok Corral in 1976. I don’t know why Dad ever chose that name. I don’t know if it had something to do with westerns. We catch a lot of heck over it … ‘You guys having a shootout over there?’ And I want to reply, ‘You keep tickin’ me off, we might.’”

Dave said custom feeding has been good to them. “It takes the highs and lows out of it. In 40 years of custom feeding, we only got burned (for non-payment) once. We feel fortunate.” He joked that some of the cattle owners who you think have plenty of money sometimes don’t pay their bills as timely as those who seem like they’re struggling.

“Like anything else, 99 percent of the guys are all good, solid, down-to-earth people. And we still do just about everything with handshakes. There’s no contracts involved. That’s one thing about farming and cattle feeding, you can do business over hundreds of thousands of dollars over a handshake yet. If you don’t trust them, it doesn’t matter what the contract says.”

Dave said the Covid-19 crisis has hurt a lot of cattle owners. “There’s a lot of guys who lost a lot of money this spring. The extreme swings – everything was out of balance. The futures were nowhere near the cash price. Packers had enough captive supply that they didn’t really

Dave and Charis Poppens.

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

need to bid much of anything. The one guy we feed for had cattle that he had to hold for almost a month.

When they finally went out, there were over 1,700 pounds.

Hopefully this recovery act gets them back to zero.

“I hate to say it, but you take years and years and years of building these things up, and then you have a spring like this year, especially the cattle guys, you see people losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in just a month. Everything you’ve built up can be lost in such a short time. Thankfully, the government has helped. Last year, crop insurance was a big help. We try to protect ourselves that way.

“Like all other farmers, we just want to raise a good crop and sell it on a decent market,” Dave said.

He said one of the hardest things about the Covid situation for farmers is the fact the churches have been closed.

“People missed the social aspect of church so much. For farmers, going to church, that’s the one time you get to see your friends and visit with your neighbors. That’s the part that everyone was craving to get.”

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Going to church was not optional at the Poppens’ house when Ron and Dave were children. “Our mother instilled that in us. We did not have a choice. You talk with people our age and that’s fairly common – we didn’t have options. Saturday night, you watch Lawrence Welk or Gunsmoke, you get your Sunday shoes polished, get your clothes laid out. Sunday morning, you get your chores done, you get cleaned up and go to church, and then go visit some relatives. That was just the routine. For our family, my generation type, that’s just the way it was. You’d better be near death before mom would let you stay home.”

Trinity Lutheran Church in Tea started a food response ministry when the Covid-19 crisis hit. “If you were in any service-type industry, you basically lost your job. It started out, we were helping 25-30 families, but it got up to about 90 families. We hope to continue that food response until there’s no longer a need. But maybe there will always be a need,” he said.

Dave’s wife, Charis, is a nurse at Avera. Their son, Brian, currently has a successful career in commercial painting for new home construction, but would love to join the farm operation.

Ron’s wife, Cheryl, is a retired math teacher.

Eric’s wife, Ginger, work at Showplace Cabinetry in Harrisburg. They have two teenagers, Hunter and Faith, both of whom are active in 4-H and FFA, and attend Lennox Public Schools. Hunter started his own cow-calf operation last year. “Hunter seems to have farming in his blood,” Dave said.

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1-800-251-3111 August 2020 | www.agemedia.pub | The Farming Families Magazine

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KEEPING LOCAL HISTORY ALIVE

Views of yesteryear at Gunderson Park just north of Centerville. Photos courtesy City of Centerville.

GUNDERSON PARK WAS A SUMMER HOT SPOT “As the man who journeyed far afield and unsuccessfully searched for four-leaf clovers, only to return home to find that which he sought growing profusely in his own backyard, so Centerville one day awakened to the fact that the Vermillion River flowing by our doors and the land adjacent thereto offered splendid

14

possibilities for a bathing beach and park.”

That was a passage taken from the May 29, 1924, issue of the Centerville Journal. The poetically written article describes how community leaders came to the realization they had an amazing space, right in their own backyard,

The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

full of potential for a wonderful park and recreation area. The article goes on to tell how the community rallied and came together to make their vision for the space a reality. This 7.5 acre stretch of land came to be known as Gunderson Park.

Centerville’s Gunderson Park, or

“The Beach” as it is often referred to, gets its name from long time community leader and businessman T.I. Gunderson. Mr. Gunderson, who was mayor at the time the concept for the park was first introduced, owned the land where community members thought it best to put their park. Gunderson deeded the land to the city with the agreement that so long as it was maintained as a park it would remain the city’s space to utilize.

The Centerville Journal depicted the volunteerism, collaboration, and just plain old hard work the community put forth to achieve their vision of Gunderson Park. “In response to a call for volunteers, dozens of men and boys gathered at the park and, from early morn until late at night, they were busy clearing the grounds of willows, underbrush, tall weeds, and grass, and other refuse. Some tore down fences and built new ones; still others worked on the beach itself, with teams, scrapers, etc. Every day for at least a week, a crew of men was busy making a road across the dike leading to the park, sloping off the beach, and erecting the necessary buildings.

In this connection we remember the most noticeable fact was that everybody helped.”

Today, the stone pillars from the once vibrant grape arbor still stand as does a large stone fireplace. Stone pillars at the park’s entrance also still stand. Photos courtesy City of Centerville.

The park became an outdoor recreational hot spot. In its heyday, Gunderson Park was the place for everything from swimming and recreation, to fishing, to picnics, to meetings and celebrations. The park was home to bath houses, concession stands, and a clubhouse. Patrons could enjoy benches, swings, teeter-totters, a maypole, and even large waterslides dumping into the swimming area.

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Later, another article in the Journal from the 1920s boasted that “Gunderson Park and Bath Beach is the best tourist camp between Sioux City and Rapid City, and every year more and more tourists are finding this to be a fact!”

Sadly, over the years, time and Mother Nature were not good to Gunderson Park. Several seasons of flooding gradually started to destroy the park’s amenities and wooden structures. Park repair and clean-up days were held by community members but deterioration, vandals, and flood waters took their toll on the park. In the early 1960s talks began on a new state-of-the-art swimming pool and there was a push to continue developing the new City Park on the east side of town. Gunderson was no longer the main priority.

In 1993, what was left of the old dam located down river at Centerville was taken out. During this time Centerville had what was considered another “100 year flood.” The combination of the dam being gone and the now faster

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flowing flood waters again did not bode well for Gunderson Park.

Most of whatever remained of the buildings at Gunderson Park was destroyed.

Today, Gunderson Park’s stone entrance pillars remain. Also still standing, like well-preserved ancient ruins, are the stone pillars from the once vibrant grape arbor.

Near the grape arbor a large stone fire place once used for cooking picnic meals has also managed to endure.

The city still mows and maintains

the park, honoring that original agreement with T.I. Gunderson.

Towering mature cottonwoods offer ample amounts of shade. The river winds around the park and its waters and banks are appealing to the eye in their own right. Open stretches of green grass, clover, and prairie flowers are inviting. The dense stretch of trees along the river leading towards town makes for an alluring area to hike and explore.

The city hopes to eventually further revive Gunderson Park.

With new, more flood resistant

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materials and the proper planning, Gunderson Park could be redeveloped back into a desirable, functional park space. While it would not include concession stands and waterslides, there is the possibility for picnic areas and benches, camping spots and fire pits, recreational play areas and trails.

There is a boat ramp available now which provides a good launch point for kayaking on a nice stretch of the Vermillion River. – Adapted from an article by Jared Hybertson, Centerville Economic Development Coordinator. Used with permission.

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

COMET NEOWISE AND THE RENNER GRAIN ELEVATOR ON JULY 14, 2020.

PHOTO BY CHRISTIAN BEGEMAN. Order prints at cbegeman.blogspot.com

August 2020 | www.agemedia.pub | The Farming Families Magazine

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HUTCHINSON COUNTY FAMILY

‘OUR LIFE IS NOTHING IF WE CAN’T HELP PEOPLE’

By Bob Fitch

Ken and Lynn Wintersteen of Olivet run a traditional farm and an old-fashioned sale barn. But they happily embrace technology.

“Farming is a lot different than when I started … the air conditioned cabs, the computerized scales, the two-way radios, the cell phones. If I’m in the field and I need something, I just call my wife. It’s pretty handy,” Ken said.

“This is so nice today, I don’t care whether you’re in agriculture or in a business uptown. I was headed out to windrow hay about 8:30 in the morning the other day and I got a call from my son in Afghanistan.

He said, ‘Why don’t you take the windrower back home because it’s going to rain soon. We don’t want that thing to get hailed on.’ His buddy who was out in the field had texted him because he could see the clouds. What a neat thing – we can talk to him most any day we want.”

Lynn and Ken Wintersteen on their farm near Olivet.

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Their son, Evan, is in the Air National Guard and currently deployed serving in an intelligence unit in Afghanistan. When Evan isn’t serving his Guard duty, he farms with his parents. “We farm in a 50/50 partnership with our son.

Very soon, it will just be him doing it and me just helping. Hopefully sooner rather than later,” Ken said.

“Because we’re small farmers, I think he’s opted to stay in the Air Force because it’s a good security blanket.

“It’s a really good fit for us when he’s back. He has to go a weekend a month and a couple weeks a year. It gives us a little bit of a break from each other, even though we get along real well. We’re pretty fortunate we’ve got a son who wants to do what we do and is able to.”

In addition to alfalfa, Ken and Lynn raise corn and soybeans, have a cattle feedlot plus run several dozen stock cows. While Lynn was raised on dairy farm in the Clayton area, Ken’s upbringing was a little different. “We grew up just north of Olivet. Dad was kind of an entrepreneur. He liked things that weren’t quite normal.” Lynn added: “He was little eccentric.”

“First, it was an Arabian horse deal,” Ken said. “I grew up with the Arabians and trained them and showed them. We traveled all over the upper Midwest. I remember traveling down to Missouri to breed three mares in the late 1960s or early 1970s where we paid a $1,000 stud fee each. There was no money to made on deal like that. That was a lot of money.

Dad just wouldn’t quit with the horses. I could see the writing on the wall … it was fun, but you could never make a living at it. Then he got into exotic cattle. I thought, ‘Well, I’ll just do my farming.’ And we agreed to disagree. Eventually he said ‘You just got to do what you want to do.’”

Ken started buying some farmland and started a small auction business, plus even sheared some sheep when he was really young. His grandma gets credit for his entry into auctioneering. “When I was a little kid, I was always impressed with how auctioneers talked. When I was a freshman in college, I told my grandma I’d sure like to go to auction school, but it was about $1,000. Then I went to visit her one day and she said ‘There’s an envelope for you on the table’ – and there was $1,000. So I went to auction school.

I grew up with both sets of grandparents which was a blessing in itself.”

Age Media Qtrand Page Color 1 7/12/2019 11:22:43 AM Ken Lynn7-12-19.pdf Wintersteen with their children,

Ellie and Evan.

He said new auctioneers dream of selling big ticket real estate. “Well, that has never happened. What we do now most of the time is benefit auctions – we do 15 or 20 a year.

My wife does all the clerking and I do the talking. We spend a lots of weekends and nights doing that. But that’s good.

That’s why we’re put on this earth – to help other people.”

Auctioneering was also good for his love life. Lynn’s first husband had passed away in a tractor accident. Ken was hired to auction her sale. “We did her sale and it went pretty well. About a month later, she called to ask me if I wanted to go to Sioux Falls to shop for computers on a Sunday afternoon. You know, I like to sleep on Sunday afternoons. So I thought this has got to be a sign from God. We went to Sioux Falls and looked at computers and it’s been love ever since.”

When they’re not putting up hay, feeding cattle, spraying weeds and hauling manure, their love has endured what some considered a crazy move – buying Menno Livestock Auction 24 years ago.

August 2020 | www.agemedia.pub | The Farming Families Magazine

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to see both of our kids involved in agriculture in some way.”

Menno Livestock Auction is the only family-owned sale barn in South Dakota still selling all classes of livestock. Lynn said, “We sell sheep, hogs, cattle, horses, goats … whatever shows up. If we did all cattle all the time, our facilities would need some work because cattle are so hard on things. And there’s still a need for a sale barn selling hogs and sheep and horses and donkeys. It works for us.”

Wintersteens own and operate Menno Livestock Auction.

“I remember when we bought the place. A good friend of mine called me and said, ‘You’ll never make it, I guarantee you.’ This was back when Wagner was going and Tripp was going and Avon was going and Yankton had two barns. And we’ve

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outlived them all. It isn’t because we sit on our duff, I’ll tell you that.

“We wanted to do something hands-on and we wanted our family around us. We got to watch our kids grow up and we get to work together. Is it always rosy? No, but it always works out,” Ken said. Lynn added: “And our daughter still works there. She runs the scale for us.”

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When she’s not running the scale, their daughter, Ellie, works at Northwest Vet & Supply in Parkston. “Northwest Vet is such a great fit for her,” Ken said.

“She is the inventory manager primarily with large animal products, organizing large animal chute jobs. She has a real passion for large animal agriculture and helping the large animal producers keep their livestock healthy and their operations profitable. It’s so great

Ken easily shares the credit for the sale barn’s ongoing success.

“Our success is because we’re surrounded by a lot of good people.

When it comes to what we do for a living, it would be impossible without my wife, with the work she does. And, when it comes to what we do together working at the sale barn, it wouldn’t be possible without our employees. Some of them have been with us almost since the beginning.”

Ken and Lynn are also glad the sale barn gives them an opportunity to hire young people and give them a chance to grow and mature, to take on responsibility and learn to show up to work on time. “I enjoy working with the young people.

They will get on your nerves but, for the most part, when you need something, they will run. They don’t shuffle like I do. The gals in our office are really good. Maybe I shouldn’t say it’s one big, happy family, but I guess it is in a way.”

During the summer months, sales are on Tuesday evenings. From October through March, regular sales are on Wednesday. Currently, the sales are broadcast live on YouTube. Very soon, they expect to take another technological leap forward and broadcast their sales on www.cattleusa.com.

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Lynn and Ken Wintersteen at Menno Livestock Auction.

takes its work for livestock producers seriously. “You’re dealing with people’s livelihoods. They’re entrusting us with their entire year’s work in 10 minutes. It’s got to work for them. You wish there’d be some stability in the markets, but there just isn’t.”

The sale barn draws customers from a broad area. “Last night,

we sold livestock from Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska.

The majority of the livestock we sell comes from out of state. And the majority that we sell goes back to those states. Those young kids from Sioux County (Iowa) come into every sale. They buy and trade and have a good time.

Northwest Iowa lives, eats, sleeps and breathes livestock.”

He hopes the enthusiasm for livestock production is not waning in Hutchinson County and the surrounding areas. “We have some of these new hog buildings coming in and they’re young people oriented. Hopefully they’ll work for them.”

Since they’ve been doing their Tuesday evening sales on YouTube, occasionally he’ll get a phone call at 9 or 9:30 at night from someone he knows who says: “‘Ken, you just look terrible.’ I kind of growl back … ‘I’ve been here since 8:00 in the morning and I’ve dealt with 250 phone calls and everybody is concerned about the market.' I tell that guy ‘How many smiles can you put on your face at 9:00 at night?’”

Even at the end of a long sale day, he abides by a strict definition of success. “Probably the best word of advice is in Matthew 6:33 which says ‘Seek first God’s kingdom and everything else will be added onto you.’ For us, life isn’t what you’re going to take out with you, but what you’ve left here for other people to use. Really, our life is nothing if we can’t help people.

And that’s what we try to do.”

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TURNER COUNTY AREA FAMILY

‘WHEN THERE’S HAY TO PUT UP OR CATTLE COMING IN, I’M JUST ALIVE AGAIN!’

by Bob Fitch

Zane Williams isn’t scared to speak his mind. And what’s on his mind these days are the people who don’t understand the importance of agriculture and long-time family farmers.

“We are really the bread basket of our great country – the United States of America.

We have to preserve something because concrete is eating up 160 acres an hour in this country. Agriculture is the engine that drives our local economy,” Zane said. As a cattle feeder and hay grower southwest of Irene, he and his wife, Sandy, have been active with efforts to battle what they and others perceive to be an antianimal agriculture agenda by a majority of the members of the Yankton County Commission influenced by outside special interest groups.

Sandy said, “The challenge is that some of the current Yankton County commissioners want to highly regulate livestock. Through the Planning & Zoning Commission, they’ve proposed that any changes in ownership/ operations outside of the family farm will require a conditional use permit for 50 or more animal units.” One cow equals one animal unit. Such permits will discourage the sustainability and future growth of livestock operations in the county.

Sandy and Zane Williams in front of a tree planted in memory of his daughter, Brooke.

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Even with roots that go back almost 140 years in Yankton County, Zane is among the leaders from Marindahl, Mayfield, Turkey Valley, Walshtown and Jamesville townships who have been studying the idea of seceding from the county and joining Turner County which has a more positive outlook towards livestock production. If the Covid-19 crisis had not gotten in the way, he’s confident enough signatures would have been

collected to put the issue up to a vote in both counties in this year’s general election.

Livestock production helps dollars stay local and keeps small towns and regional centers like Yankton economically strong. “We can make the most when we can feed crops through livestock. There are impacts all across the board,” Zane said.

Zane gets frustrated when county leaders and local citizens ignore evidence and statistics which show how much income can be generated for farmers and nonfarmers alike in a community which supports sustaining and growing livestock production – production that can be done in an environmentally-sound manner. “I could name 10 guys my age who don’t have heirs – thousands of acres of land. I’d like to have families who live here actually do the farming.

Where are we going to raise food for our children’s children and their children?” he said.

In a related effort, Zane and Sandy are involved in a group called Families Feeding Families – Agvocacy which is striving to bring awareness about the impact family farms have on the region. Families Feeding Families – Agvocacy aims to present community and school educational events to raise awareness of modern, best practices used by family farms to protect the environment and produce more with a smaller carbon footprint. A fundraiser for the organization is being held Sept. 12 at the NFAA Archery Center east of Yankton. For more information, see www.familiesfeedingfamilies-AGvocacy.com or find them on Facebook.

Zane serves on the Yankton County Planning & Zoning Commission and has been on the Marindahl Township Board for 36 years. His commitment to public service and public affairs comes from his late father, Deane, who was on the Yankton County Commission for 20 years.

Zane’s passion for the land is handed down from his Norwegian ancestors who started farming in Marindahl Township in 1874. Zane’s maternal great grandparents, Benjamin and Karen Marta Anderson, immigrated from Norway and homesteaded about 1.5 miles from where he lives now. His home property today is where his great uncle, Olaus Anderson, homesteaded in 1895. “Olaus lived in the side of the hill like a coyote,” said Zane. Around the spot of Olaus’ original dugout, there is still one acre of virgin prairie. “Grandpa told my mom to save it. My mom told me.”

The Williams’ farm with Marindahl Lake in the background.

Times were never easy for Olaus, Benjamin, or Zane’s grandfather, Martin. Karen Marta died giving birth to Martin.

“Martin was one of the survivors of the Children’s Blizzard in 1888. Their teacher was smart enough … she kept them in school.”

Grandpa Martin and his wife Lizzy had two daughters. “Aunt Mildred was born in 1909 and then my mom wasn’t born until

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27

13 years later in 1922. So often, my mom spoke of her older sister as like her mother,” Zane said.

“Grandpa Martin despised tractors. When those came, that’s when he retired. He retired in 1946 or 1947. He farmed for about 50 years. My dad and mom helped Grandpa for a couple years. But then Dad thought he wanted to milk cows.

So they moved to Minnesota to milk cows. Grandpa rented the land out for six years before my parents moved back here and started over.”

Zane’s grandparents, Benjamin and Karen Marta Anderson, in 1905.

Zane and Sandy live in this home today, albeit with a number of additions and updates.

Zane’s parents met when his mom, Eleanor, started teaching at age 18 in 1942 in Faulkton where his father was a senior in high school. They married in 1943 just before his dad shipped out to serve in World War II. Zane is the youngest of four children. He and his siblings had an early responsibility for farm work. Their father became disabled at a young age. Zane graduated from high school in 1976 and bought out his parents in 1977. “This was a dairy farm till I was in high school when I told Dad I was going to play football. Then nine or 10 years later, we bought the neighbor’s place and started milking again. We owned and ran that for 17 years. That’s where my girls grew up, milking cows.”

While Zane has land devoted to alfalfa, corn, and sometimes soybeans, he considers row crop farming drudgery. “We do some tillage work. But we let others plant and combine our corn crop. Right or wrong, that’s the way we’ve gone.”

Zane Williams and his right-hand man Bubba Huether with a load of hay bound for northwest Iowa.

He likes to keep his focus on cattle and hay. “We finish cattle, plus have about 40 head of cow-calf pairs that we run.

Normally, we feed 500 cattle all year round. But this year, I don’t know if we’ll fill these pens back up. Covid has got things so screwed up.” In the spring, the cow-calf pairs graze

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

on state land bordering Marindahl Lake. The cattle eat brome grass down before it heads out which allows Big Bluestem and other native species to come back in the summer.

Zane is also a long-time commercial hay grower and broker. He and his hired man, Tristen “Bubba” Huether, grow dairy quality hay on the Williams farm which they generally sell and truck to dairies in northwest Iowa. He also buys and sells hay from neighbors as well as farmers in other parts of South Dakota and Nebraska. Bubba helps harvest and truck the hay, plus works the cattle. “Bubba is a mainstay on this farm. We would be lost without him.”

Livestock has been ever-present in Zane’s life. “I guess it’s a passion, the craziness of it. I’m a little bit of an adrenalin freak. When there’s

nothing going on, I get kind of down. All of sudden when there’s hay to put up or cattle coming in, I’m just alive again.”

Also energizing is the time he and Sandy spend with their three grandchildren who live in Sioux Falls. Zane’s daughter, Alicia, and her husband, Andy, have two sons, Jude and Jack. Sandy’s son, Alex, has a daughter, Aaliyah. Sandy’s older son, Ben, also lives in Sioux Falls.

Sandy has a background in sales and marketing and has connections in healthcare. She is currently consulting with Northeast Nebraska Behavioral Health Network.

Left: Zane’s daughter Alicia with her husband Andy and sons Jude and Jack. Center: Zane and Sandy. Right: Sandy’s sons Ben and Alex with his daughter Aaliyah.

Zane and Sandy met in “divorce class” about a dozen years ago. She was a rock he relied upon when his

younger daughter, Brooke, died of esophageal cancer 11 years ago, just 30 days after being diagnosed.

“Those were the toughest days.

Luckily, I had Sandy.”

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29

MINNEHAHA COUNTY FAMILY

LESSONS FROM A LIFE IN RURAL SOUTH DAKOTA Don and Sue Olson of Colton both grew up on farms and the lessons learned there are instilled in their hearts and souls.

The farming roots of Don’s family go back 144 years in Minnehaha County. “Raising our children and now grandchildren with that faith, those traditions and values is simply invaluable. Having children learn how to raise a garden and animals, appreciating the land and environment, and growing up in rural South Dakota has life lessons that just aren’t found in a textbook,” said Sue. The farm was homesteaded by Charles T. Austin in 1876. It is listed on both the State and National Registry of Historical Places. In addition to being a fully operational farm, it was also the beginning location of the Minnehaha Lutheran Church.

Don’s grandparents had milk cows, hogs, and chickens. The crops were mainly corn, oats and alfalfa.

Gardening has always been a part of every generation. “We still have chickens and horses. We used to raise sheep and goats, but stopped doing that when our youngest son, Eric, left for college. We are now a 16-acre portion of the original homestead quarter section farm,” Sue said. Don and Sue live in a cottage house on the farm.

Sue and Don Olson on their farm near Colton. Photo by Bob Fitch.

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Eric and his wife, Laura, live in the original farm house. Their 2-yearold son, Owen, and his soon-to-be little sister, represent the seventh generation of the family to live on

this land. “Everyone chips in on whatever needs to be done as they are able. Don is somewhat limited physically due to some respiratory challenges but he does almost all the mowing. At two, Owen already wants to help with work, but we tend to do much during his nap time,” Sue said.

Growing up, Don helped on the farm plus worked for a neighbor, Glen Weiss. Sue was one of eight children on her family’s farm.

“We all pitched in doing whatever chores and work we were able to do. Whether doing chores, walking beans, driving the tractor to pick up hay bundles or bales ... if it needed done and we were able to do so, we did it. As my older brothers left for college, I became Dad’s main hired hand. Pay was pretty minimum if it happened. We just did it as part of being a family.” She said her favorite part of farming was “simply working outdoors, living in the country, and being connected to the land, animals and community.”

Don taught music, sold insurance with Lutheran Brotherhood, was in the Army National Guard band and was a hospital pharmacist for Avera Hospital. Sue taught school and worked as a counselor for 41 years.

“We have been blessed to have both a good life and a successful life. Hopefully we have been able to pass on our values and faith to the next generations. Faith, attitude, willingness and ability to reach out and work has much to do with both. We know that we are only managers of what God has entrusted to us,” Sue said.

Activities such as 4-H and anything that helped children were a big part of their lives when their children were young. Their four children all graduated from Tri-Valley School.

Jon is an attorney / international trust officer; Sonja is a trained counselor who is currently at home and home schooling her children; Ana is an elementary counselor;

Sue and Don Olson’s children and their spouses: Greg and Sonja Delaney; Eric and Laura Olson; Jon and Jan Olson; and Ana and Seth Schurman. Photo by DeAnn McClure of Yankton.

and Eric is a geo-technical engineer.

For fun, the Olsons read, spend time at their cabin in the Black Hills, travel, attend horse events and musical concerts, and spend time with their grandchildren. “It is our relationships with family and friends that we cherish more and more and stuff less and less,” she said. Family gatherings have been valued traditions.

“Usually there is food involved and getting ready for those things is wonderful.

Anticipation brings such joy and it is cherished as much as anything. It is part of savoring the moment.”

“Christmas In the Barn” has also become an important tradition. Every December for one or more nights, Don and Sue host family, friends, and fellow church members in their barn. The horses keep the group company as Don reads

the Christmas story in a setting much like the one where Christ was born. “It is so endearing as our grandchildren have a meeting around Thanksgiving and decide who will play what part,” she said.

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Another set of fond family memories came from their effort to take their children to the 48 contiguous states before the youngest one graduated from high school. The flag flies on their front porch in honor of the nation that has given them so much – and a nation to which they have also given back. Don served in the Army National Guard for many years and also spent four at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Sons Jon and Eric now serve in the Air National Guard.

Don and Sue Olson’s grandchildren: Connor Delaney, Cade Schurman, Alley Delaney, Carolyn Delaney and Joey Schurman. Photo by Diane McClure. Youngest grandson, Owen, is pictured on the cover of the Minnehaha edition.

“Our hope for the future is that America can stay strong and free as a country where we can practice our faith and where small businesses and free enterprise can thrive. Last, but not least, our Christian faith has always been our guide,” she said.

“All of our children, grandchildren and relatives love coming home to the farm. In the future, we hope we can have this piece of land still in the family. We feel that land should be cherished and we have a responsibility to care for it as God intended.”

Granddaughter Alley Delaney as Mary during Christmas in the Barn.

Jon, Eric and Don Olson at the officer pinning ceremony for Eric.

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020

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Roll out on board, sprinkle with sugar and roll in gently. Cut. Bake in 400-degree oven until just done.

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of Minnehaha AUGUSTCounty 2020

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The Farming Families Magazine | www.agemedia.pub | August 2020