Neighbors

A teasing comment from his son, Ryan, may very well have inspired Randy Kell of Raymondville, Mo., to invent his Double K Alleyway, a quick attach alleyway that transforms a common livestock trailer into a cattle working station in five minutes or less.

With a rifle scope mounted on a tripod, Gary Routh watches over his cattle from the comfort of his Dallas County home. Gary and his wife of 52 years, Barbara, have lived on their 160-acre farm near Buffalo, Mo., for 26 years.

In 1997, Holly and Matt Linck's daughters, Rachel and Shelby, were attending school at Southside, Bee Branch, Ark., and were involved in 4-H. They had pastureland that was mostly browse at their 40-acre farm on Harmony Mountain Road near Choctaw, Ark., and the girls wanted to get involved in showing livestock.

"In every conceivable manner, the family is a link to our past, a bridge to our future," summarizes Alex Haley, the author of "Roots." Family farming roots in Arkansas run deep, but the future generation of farmers is more in flux. However, in the Whorton family of Lincoln, Ark., there is no doubt that the farming tradition started by family patriarch and matriarch, Basil and Wilma Whorton will be continued on through the third generation. Basil was the Vice President of Phillips Food Center/Food-4-Less in Bentonville prior to retiring, but always farmed on the side. Sadly, Basil passed away two years ago, but his legacy endures. His wife Wilma still lives on the farm, and his son Tim, daughter-in-law Stephanie, and grandson Tyler run Whorton Cattle Company. Bridging not just generations, but careers, Tim and son Tyler also own Country Feed and Farm Supply in Lincoln. In two weeks, the family will expand, as Tyler weds his fiancé Matea Stilley of Kansas, Okla., and starts a second operation in Leach, Okla.

LeAnna and Bob Hall met at a rodeo 22 years ago. Bob team roped professionally. LeAnna primarily competed in barrel racing and later in team roping. They still attend rodeos today, now with their younger son Brenten. Dylan, their oldest son, just graduated from high school and is attending NEO in Miami, Okla., with a full scholarship earned by judging horses. Brenten is just in the fourth grade, but has already completed his third year of junior rodeos, winning a number of trophies, buckles, cash prizes and two saddles. "We never even thought about it. Nothing else was an option. We just always had land and cattle," she added. "We are really blessed."

In December 2005, when Ron Scott retired as ranch manager from Wildwood Ranch and the ranch's gate closed for good, he started his own ranch. A friend asked him what he was going to name his new place. The friend suggested that he didn’t need a catchy name on a flashy sign; all he needed to do was to let people know who raised the cattle. So today, the sign on Ron’s gate simply states “Ron and Linda Scott, Registered Herefords, Quality Breeding Stock.” And that says it all.

"I like a good challenge,” said Gary Brown, about why he bought the Mo-Ark Livestock facility, formerly Barry County Livestock Auction, in Exeter, Mo. “Also, I don’t believe this market has ever reached its full potential and I’d like the chance to get it there.”

Say ‘float’ and many southwest Missourians think a canoe and maybe Bennett Spring. But to a horse owner or a vet it means only one thing:

Walking through a pasture of Texas Longhorns could be quite intimidating. Whether straight or curved, the horns are long and threatening, and the animals are huge. But then the owner calls them by their names and scratches their heads, and suddenly they’re not as unapproachable. It’s hard to be afraid of a cow named Nancy Jane, Little John, Get ‘er Done, Deadeye Dick – and the best one – Princess Margaret.

A lot of farmers don’t look forward to the times that they have to work their cattle. That’s not the case for Randal Bonds of Cecil, Ark. In fact, he even does it for other farmers all over the Franklin County area. He uses his team of Catahoula dogs and a horse to quickly accomplish a task that takes hours for some. Often, it only takes Randal 10 to 20 minutes to gather a herd that is used to being driven by horses and around an hour for those that aren’t. “My dogs gather the cattle up, and then I use the horses to drive them to where they need to be, he explained.”