Alex Bryan Girdner
Family: Alex Bryan Girdner lives in Stilwell, Okla., with his wife, Kristy, and their daughter, Kamry and son on the way, Gauge.
In Town: “I previously worked at an air-conditioning business in Fort Smith, Ark., but have worked at Morrow Heating and Air-conditioning in Prairie Grove, Ark., for the last seven months. It’s a good place to work with a family oriented atmosphere. The owner, Jeremy Hunt, goes out of his way to help me and my family while paying detailed attention to customers’ individual needs as well as doing large jobs efficiently. The company was formed when a larger company went out of business and presented both a need for a local replacement and qualified workers looking for employment.”
In the Country: “I inherited 300 acres in Stilwell, Okla., eight months ago that I own jointly with my brother. We have 24 calves, eight of which are heifers and 16 steers as well as a Santa Gertrudis bull that belongs to our uncle. We are planning to change to a Black Angus bull because black sells well and holds up better during market fluctuations. We sell calves at 400 to 650 pounds and usually after weaning though occasionally we will sell before weaning depending on the market. We give the calves a round of shots before selling. Fortunately for us, deworming is not an issue so rather than deworming the entire herd routinely, we only deal with problems individually as needed. We have both creek and pond water.”
Future Plans: “Our ranch has been in the family for three generations with the fourth in the very early stages. The town job allows me to keep the family tradition of ranching, and I would love to someday follow in the footsteps of those before me and be a full-time rancher. Though that future is a long ways away, I have plenty of time to get there. I want my children raised in the country so they understand the circle of life better, what illness and death are but also the joy of birth and the value of hard work. In the short-term, my brother and I would like to institute rotational grazing and increase our hay productivity by clearing overgrown pasture.”
