Hometown: Inola, Okla.
Family: Wife Brenda; daughters Kaslin and Amanda; and sons Clay, Adam, Wyatt and Allen
In Town: “I have worked for BancFirst in Inola, Okla., for 16 years and am now vice president and a loan officer. I worked for a radio station that was sold, and at the time BancFirst was opening a branch in Inola. I was offered a job. Jeff Jensen, president of BancFirst in Clarmore, Okla., said he could make me a banker but he could not teach me public relations skills. He thought I already had those. I started as a loan officer and moved up to the vice president position. My loan portfolio has a heavy emphasis on ag loans since I fully understand the issues and needs, but I do other types of lending as well. My wife Brenda owns and manages the vehicle tag agency in town which she has had for 30 years.”
In the Country: “I have had previous agricultural jobs, including being an animal science professor at Murray State College in Tishomingo, Okla., and farm director for radio station KVOO in Tulsa. Brenda and I have 500 owned and leased acres outside of Inola with 150 to 160 Angus/Red Angus/Brangus cross cows bred by eight bulls. Six are registered Angus and two are registered Red Angus. The Angus bloodline provides quality meat while the Brangus bloodline provides hardiness and longevity. I also have a handful of Super Baldies, which adds the Hereford line with its tendency for docility and milk production. I prefer spring calving so the land works for me, and I don’t have to supplement much during the summers. I learned this concept and many others from my mentor Mike Armitage of Claremore, Okla.
“I sell at weaning in the fall with the calves having had two rounds of shots. Daylight savings time works well with spring calving. I need more daylight hours once I head home from my real job at the bank. Brenda wants the animals to be in top condition so we feed 20-percent protein cubes daily during cold weather and a couple of times per week during warm weather. An important advantage of cubes for us is that we can feed on the ground. Our land is river bottom, and I can’t keep enough gravel to stabilize troughs. We also offer free-choice loose mineral, which contains fly control in the summer months. Brenda’s son Adam is a huge asset on the ranch helping with calving, feeding and anything else that might be needed.”
Future: “My wife and I are very happy with our life and would just like to spend more time on the farm, which we plan on doing when we retire. We want to market high quality calves and may move towards raising more Super Baldy Cows.”
