In my day we started at the bottom. I have to admit the job wasn’t always easy, until I worked up into the drivers seat. In 1996, I was at the Pinceton Horse Sale, when Mel Klein came up to me and said, “Give me ten bucks.” I asked what for? He said, don’t ask just give me ten bucks. After a few more rounds, I finally gave him ten bucks, and Mel said, “Welcome to the Northern Minnesota Draft Horse Association. You are now a member for two years” that was the beginning of our involvement for my wife Pat, and I, in the NMDHA. Pat served as treasurer for several years, and I’ve been a director a couple of different terms. We are honored to have the members put their trust in us to serve the club in this capacity. It’s a great club, and it takes a lot of teamwork to keep it that way.
With Barb Schloemmer as the club’s first woman president, we’re “one up” on the United States, as Hillary didn’t make it!
I liked horses as far back as I can remember and my plan was, when I started farming, I was just going to raise horses. As I got older, I realized that if I didn’t want to starve, I would have to raise cows, raise pigs, chickens, crops etc. My love for horses always stayed with me. Growing up, my Dad got a horse for us kids to ride, named “Babe”. Then when Pat and I started our family, Pat’s Dad gave the kids a Shetland pony, Named “Banker”. When the kids got a little older, Tom Seifermann kept his Morgan horse, name “Brandy” out here for the kids to ride. One day, Rudy Loxtercamp, my cousin brought his Morgan guilding, "Anchor”, out here to drive with "Brandy" as a team. That’s all it took, I got hooked! First I got a team of Sorrels. One was a balker. When I said “giddyup”, he planted all four feet, turned around, and smiled at me. Then I got a team of Percheron-Hakney cross, from Jim Vannurden, “Fancy Freddie” and “Silver Lady”. “Silver Lady” was bred to a Shire stallion, and when she foaled, she had a prolapsed rectum and died. Again we didn’t have a team. The filly foal, now orphaned, named “Silver Shadow” was born in 1987 and stayed on our farm until last fall, when we gave her to Jeri Brown, knowing she’d have a good home. Still, not having a team, Jim Vannurden found us a team of Shire mares out in Newark, Ohio that were just like the ones he had Arlin Waring import for him from England. Pat and I along with Rudy and his wife, drove out to Ohio to look at them. We liked them and bought them, right away. This was in the winter of 1988. The two mares, “Hanning Field Desire” (Des) was 2 and “Stationdale May Queen” (Queenie) was 3. My dream of raising horses had finally materialized. We were in the horse business and still are raising foals today.
Gene at the 2007 Stearns County Fair |
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