Neighbors

Kory Keeth is part of a family-owned cattle operation, as well as a PRCA rodeo announcer  Kory Keeth has known since he was 5 years...

Sharon Medina Benigar moved to Osceola, Mo., from Coosbay, Ore., in 1980. She was a young, single mother with three children. Sharon moved here to find the life she had always dreamed of, but she found more than expected.

"Girl, set me up on my horse, come on, and get the dogs,” Those are the words of Beth Ferguson's grandfather, even after he was diagnosed with cancer. “He rode up until just weeks before he passed away. I hope that I can enjoy things as much as he did. That was a good life.” Beth's life has revolved around horses since before she can remember. “My mom said when I was little she'd drive down the road and I'd just start screaming. She couldn't figure out what was wrong at first, but eventually she figured out it was horses. Every time I would see one, I'd just get excited and start screaming. I've always loved them, for as long as I can remember, and from what she says, even before I can remember.”

It is a love for cattle and the country that brought Calvin and Laura Harris together and keeps their marriage strong after 26 years.
The couple, originally from Fresno, Calf., started raising Limousin cattle in 1979. They moved Harris Cattle Company to Tontitown, Ark., in 1987 to expand the operation and now have 65 cows and two herd bulls they use to raise Limousin, Angus and LimFlex cattle.
LimFlex cattle are a combination of Limousin and Angus, and flex is an acronym for flexible Limousin efficiency cross.
In 2004, the Harrises bought a national reserve champion Limousin bull to breed to their cows. In 2007, they decided to

As every producer in agriculture knows, starting a new farm is an expensive and complex process. Pauline Thiessen seems up to the challenge. She has worked at Ozark Natural Foods in Fayetteville, Ark., for 16 years, the last four as produce manager. During that time she put herself through college. Being in charge of $2 million worth of produce annually has taught her the value of careful and meticulous planning as well as general management skills.

Sean Bansley didn’t begin his working life as a farmer.
He was a union carpenter who ended up having a small farm in Illinois, then a larger one in Iowa. He now has close to 300 acres near Harrison, Ark. Sean and his wife, Carol, are now both on the farm full time, and have worked with Berkshire pigs for more than six years.

Married 40 years, Rob and Peggy Appleby have lived on their 120-acre farm near Conway, Mo., for the past 12 years. Around 80 head of Simmental and Gelbvieh cattle roam the family farm.

Curtis Millsap grew up in Springfield. He wasn't raised on a farm, but was a regular at his grandparents dairy farm. In college, he didn't study to be a full time farmer, but he knew that he had a deep passion for the outdoors and a sincere love of the land. Never did he realize that this interest would lead him to what he's doing today.

For Logan Genz, now a senior at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville, Ark., leaving for college and being away from home were more important in determining his future then simply starting college.

The tales that Jerry Crownover documents in his column Life is Simple have brought Ozarks farmers laughs throughout the years and stories to be passed on at local coffee shops in every small town. Friends getting their tractors stuck in frozen ponds, dead cows sliding down the hill or even memories of what he learned as an agriculture teacher about the real way to farm – Jerry has shared much insight about rural life and the changes in the industry. But, what about the man behind Life is Simple?