“You don’t just clock out of agriculture — it’s a lifestyle.” 

This episode of Farming on Purpose features a meaningful, wide-ranging conversation with Olivia Harms — a sixth-generation rancher, country-western artist, and self-employed musician balancing life on the ranch with life on the road. 

“You can’t raise a cow that only has steaks on it — it doesn’t exist.” 

This episode of Farming on Purpose features a powerful, honest conversation with Nola and Mikaela Schultz, a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law duo building Schultz Country Market alongside their multi-generation family farm. 

From navigating processing challenges and pricing realities to marketing meat, raising kids, and preserving family relationships, this episode pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to build a direct-to-consumer business that supports both the farm and the family behind it. 

“You can do anything you set your mind to. I say that all the time—and I say that as a working mom. There’s judgment, exhaustion, and chaos, but I’m building a legacy for my daughter. She doesn’t know any different—this is just life for her, and that’s what makes it worth it.” 
— Penny DuSablon 

Building a business is one thing. Building a marriage, a family, and a brand all at once is another. 
In this episode of Farming on Purpose, I sat down with Cole and Penny DuSablon of Springpoint Company in Newton, Illinois — a husband-and-wife team who have built a thriving feed store, western boutique, and trailer dealership from the ground up. 

“If cash is king, cash flow is queen.” 

This episode of Farming on Purpose dives into one of the least glamorous—but most critical—parts of running a farm or ranch: year-end financials. I sat down with Tressie Mitzner, economist with Kansas Farm Management, to talk about how producers can set themselves up for smoother tax seasons, stronger books, and more confident decisions year-round. 

Tressie’s story is one many producers can relate to—starting small, juggling family and work, and learning the business side the hard way. But through it all, she’s built a perspective that’s practical, encouraging, and full of hard-won wisdom. 

“Imperfect planning is still better than no planning. If you don’t talk about it now, the people you love are going to be in a really hard spot.” 

Estate planning and transition planning tend to be the two conversations farm families avoid the most — and the two conversations that shape whether the next generation can continue the work at all. 

I sat down with Jessica Groskopf, a Nebraska Extension Economist, farm wife, and daughter-in-law in a fourth-generation operation, to talk about how families can approach these decisions with honesty, clarity, and courage. Jessica has worked with farm families for more than a decade and understands the emotional, legal, and financial layers behind passing an operation on. 

In this episode, Jessica breaks down the difference between estate planning and succession planning, how to get started when everything feels overwhelming, and what every family should gather before meeting with an attorney or advisor. Her insights are both practical and deeply human — especially as she shares her own family’s journey navigating a major buyout at age 32. 

Whether you’re the generation stepping back or the one stepping forward, this conversation is one every ag family needs to hear. 

A Note to Parents 

Dear listeners, 

Tonight's episode is something special - a departure from our usual conversations. As Christmas Eve approaches, I wanted to create something a little different.  

“Some years you're going to make more money than other years and I think as long as you  don't outpace your budget, then you'll end up being just fine.” 

Starting to farm isn't easy, especially when you're juggling a full-time job. But for Brenna Beard, a beginning farmer from central Indiana, the pull of continuing her family's 200-year farming legacy was too strong to ignore. 

“My life does revolve around farming but I also think we have good boundaries where I’m not resentful of that.”  

Growing up on a farm, Heather Nienhueser always knew she wanted to marry a farmer. While some people couldn't wait to leave farm life behind, she put "must be a farmer" at the top of her list of requirements for a future spouse. Today, she's living that dream as a farm wife and mom in South Central Nebraska, where she balances raising three kids, running multiple businesses from home, and renovating an 1890s farmhouse. 

 “The opportunity is out there, you’re just going to have to do a better job than trying to compete with Walmart on price and volume.” 

When I first met DL on TikTok, we were chatting about bottle calves. But as I got to know his story, I knew there was so much more to share. His journey from running a 400-head operation to starting over with just five borrowed calf hutches speaks to the heart of what farming is really about - family, resilience, and finding your own path to success. 

“And it's very important that you're thinking about what's best for the whole family and the whole ranch. Instead of just what's best for you or your individual family.” 

“And at the end of the day, the best thing you can do is, as long as you have good intentions, is to put some piece of your story out there because I promise you somebody will find a connection.” 

Every family farm has a story worth telling. When I sat down with Ashlynn Jones, a third-generation cattle woman from Southeast Iowa, we talked about something that hits close to home for many of us - how to share our farming story with the world. 

“If you trust the process, the process will reward you back.” 

As a sixth-generation cattle farmer in Southern Minnesota, Haley Ammann-Ekstrom knows a thing or two about juggling responsibilities. She farms alongside her husband and father, manages a cow-calf herd, and has recently ventured into selling beef directly to consumers. But what makes Haley's story truly inspiring is her passion for educating the younger generation about agriculture and her determination to keep her family's farming legacy alive. 

“What is so understood to you is not understood to the average person. And I know that sounds really silly as especially multiple generations. Like it's just. It's so ingrained in everything, that outside perspective, like you're missing it. And that's one of the things that I will say as coming in from a total outside perspective, what I didn't know, I realized somebody else didn't know too. So I had to figure out how to communicate it.” 

“I think that a lot of landowners really want someone who's willing to learn and being very open and wanting to learn, being inquisitive, being curious.” 

As a farmer or rancher, you know the importance of planning for the future. But when it comes to passing down your farm or ranch to the next generation, it can be a challenging and emotional process. That's why I invited Ashlee Westerhold, Director of the Office of Farm and Ranch Transition at Kansas State University, to share her insights on the Farming on Purpose podcast. 

Growing up with family farms in Nebraska and Illinois, Ashlee understood the value of agriculture from a young age. Her passion for helping farm families led her to specialize in farm succession planning. Now, she's dedicated to assisting farmers and ranchers in Kansas with this crucial process. 

“Having a spouse that you are on the same page with when it comes to growing your business makes a huge difference. If you guys are both running in the same direction for your dream, you get so much farther, so much faster versus if only one of you has that dream or if you are going in different directions with that dream.” 

As I sit in my hammock on a beautiful day, surrounded by the sounds of our farm, I can't help but reflect on how far we've come. From our humble beginnings seven years ago with a few cows, goats, and chickens, we've grown into a thriving operation with crops, more livestock, and even a dairy cow (my pet project). 

“Buying the farm is probably the best not only personal but financial decision. Best decision for my family. It’s really opened up a quality of life that we wouldn't have had otherwise.”

Growing up on his family's dairy farm in Utah, Derek Penrod always knew he wanted to be a farmer. But with no clear path to take over the family operation, he had to forge his own way. Now, Derek runs a first-generation farm in Idaho, growing alfalfa and raising Scottish Highlander cattle.

In this week’s episode of the Farming on Purpose podcast, Derek shared his inspiring journey of becoming a self-made farmer while balancing family life and a full-time job.

“I believe that farming and agriculture give us an incredible sense of purpose because we have a job to do and we show up to do it every day.”

In farming, family life and business often mix together. We're not just running farms – we're raising families and shaping futures. Today, I'm sharing my journey of balancing motherhood and running a business in agriculture.

“It’s the season of life we’re in right now and we’re making it work.”

Join us in this powerful episode of Farming on Purpose with Amanda. Amanda shares about her family’s operation and the cattle operation that her and her husband own and run. Amanda delves into the different avenues she has pursued not only for additional off-the-farm income, but to fulfill her own passions. Amanda offers great advice about finding your priorities and making sure what you’re doing aligns with those priorities. Amanda is passionate about fighting to help farmers and ranchers as well as the land needed for agriculture. Listen in as we dive into the importance of knowing and pursuing your priorities and passions, and fighting for your way of life.

“Anybody who is at all a part of agriculture, at all a part of direct-to-consumer knows that there is a lot of money that goes into this.”

Join us in this insightful episode of Farming on Purpose with Amanda. Amanda shares about finding her place on a multigenerational cow calf operation. Amanda opens up about what led her to start selling their beef directly to consumers. Amanda delves into how diversifying your operation can mean different things and reveals some realistic reasons for needing more than one stream of income. Listen in as we delve a variety of topics from finding your role, diversifying your operation to supplement your needs, and Amanda’s great advice on how to get started on a new venture.

“We’ve just had to get our name out there and stop being afraid of saying, ‘We are first generation farmers. I know we’re new but we have some phenomenal products.’ It’s become an education process for us to educate others on, honestly, what little we do know and it’s been a confidence thing. I had to be confident to say, ‘Hey, I raise livestock and I grow some phenomenal products. Would you like to try them?’”

Join us in this inspiring episode of Farming on Purpose and get up and close with Shohni Christensen, a newcomer to the agriculture industry with a great story behind their lifestyle switch. Taking us through her fascinating journey of getting into ag with a few animals for her children getting into 4-H to raising livestock and selling the meat locally and on their website. Shohni also shares about canning and educating others on food storage. Listen in as we delve into the world marketing in agriculture and Shohni is candid about some of her struggles marketing for a small farm.