Missouri Neighbors

Selling Beef with Taste
“Our beef is not your conventional beef from the grocery or restaurant. It’s beef you will remember. It’s got a taste to it.”

Tucked away in a far corner of Laclede county is a small farm, maybe it’s not a farm (you’ll have to be the judge,) bearing the name Falcon Ridge Farm and owned by Wendy Lombardi.

Question: What do you get when you combine an Angus herd and a Simmental herd? Answer: A happy marriage, of course. Just ask Devin and Bailey Keltner. When the two wed three years ago they merged their herds. Devin brought his registered Angus herd to the marriage and Bailey contributed her purebred Simmentals.

Ask Wes and Ame Hunter of Providence Farm in Seymour, Mo., how they ended up farming for a living, and they will tell you that “it just kind of came together.” The Hunters have always had a longtime interest in alternative farming and knowing where their food came from, and the quality of their food; around the time they started their family, they decided to make the jump to begin pursuing the lifestyle they dreamed of. Today, Wes, Ame, and their three children, Addison, Benjamin and Nathaniel, are proud to make their living off of their family farm. “We do this because we think it’s the right thing to do,” said Wes.

Jim Nichols was raised around Missouri Fox Trotters in the Mansfield, Mo., area and his father was on the original Missouri Fox Trotters Horse Breed Association Board of Directors. Likewise, he brought up his daughters, Mitzi and Monica around the breed as well and they have all spent years in the show ring at various horse shows in Ava, Mo., the Fox Trotter capital of the world. In the past three decades, however, Jim has discovered a new passion, involving his beloved horses. “I went on my first elk hunt with the horses when a friend invited me and I’ve been going back ever since, for 25 years in a row now. My daughters, Mitzi and Monica go, too, as do their husbands and we have a great time,” Jim Nichols explained recently standing beside one of his horse trailers at his home in Laclede County, just south of Lebanon, Mo. “I have a few horses here, one in training, some others at Mitzi’s and at Monica’s. We just have 14 acres here for the horses.”

Owned by Lesley and Barry Million, Terrell Creek Farm is located in Webster County near Fordland, Mo. They got their first goats in 2007 for their own personal use. Lesley stated, “We started the business in 2011. It was kind of a justification for me to be able to have goats.”

Marvin Burnett is retired from the Missouri Department of Transportation where he worked on highway maintenance while his wife, Barbara, is a retired elementary schoolteacher. The couple met early in life when Barbara’s father was hired to move Marvin’s family from Kansas to Arkansas when Marvin was a senior in high school and Barbara was in junior high. Barbara said, “At the time I was a snot-nosed kid no one wanted to be around, but I grew up and everything changed.” Marvin said, “One night we were both stood up and decided to make the best of it.” They began dating and have now been married for 49 years.

When Robert Todd hit the age threshold for showing cattle and hogs through FFA, he walked away from the show ring thinking he had closed that chapter of his life for good. But now, after almost a decade, Robert’s back in the ring, but this time it’s all for his kids. “It is basically set up for the kids to learn how a farm operates and learn the work involved. We teach them hands-on everything,” explained Robert Todd. In 2012, Robert and his wife, Heather, decided to buy Spots pigs for their two young sons and their niece and nephew. The Spots breed holds fond memories for Robert, who showed Spots as a teenager. “The thing I like about the Spots is you never know if they are going to be more dominant black or white. They look like Dalmatian puppies when they are born,” said Robert. The Spots breed dates back to the 1900s in Indiana where it was developed from the lines of the Poland China breed. Spots are known for their fast-growing and efficient offspring.

Four generations of the Pitts family have made their home and living on a Missouri Century Farm in Hickory County with the fifth generation currently joining in on the tradition.

When the Trixie Chicks Trick Riders gallop into an arena the audience holds its breath, mouths drop and eyes pop wide. The stunts these riders accomplish make even their own parents nervous, really nervous. “My parents have only been to two or three performances,” admitted Ashlee Hearod. With stunts called “Suicide Drag,” “Under the Neck,” and “Full fender,” who could blame them? The Trixie Chicks Trick Riders may sound like a group of daredevils looking for a thrill but this is not the case. The riders are all Missouri State University students or recent graduates with a deep love for horses and a burning passion for pushing the limits. “It is such an unique sport. It is so challenging and I wanted to be a part of something that not many people do as their sport,” said Katy Tennison.