Midwest Livestock Service

After Loren graduated from Central Lyon 1980, he made the Te Slaa team a trio. “The three of us farmed together until Dad passed away two years ago. Now we've been keeping the farm going trying to get Chad started.” In addition, it’s possible Gary’s youngest son, Lane, could follow into the Te Slaa farming tradition. Currently, Lane lives in Inwood and is a spray applicator based out of Doon.

Gary and Loren’s father, Alfred, grew up farming in Sioux County near Hull. But he migrated north into Lyon County in 1962 onto a farm just outside the Rock Rapids city limits. Then he rented the current homesite in 1972 and purchased it in 1975. Alfred fed cattle into the late ’70s, stepped back from livestock for 12-15 years, and then got back into cattle in the ’90s. He was still in robust health until he was hit by Covid and passed away in December 2020.

A PASSION FOR MARKETING

Loren and Gary share Chad’s interest in digesting and analyzing the farm markets as well as the larger financial markets. After graduating from South Dakota State University with a bachelor’s and master’s in economics, he worked as an ag lender at First Dakota National Bank in Sioux Falls for about two years. Going from his bachelor’s degree into his master’s program, the learning emphasis transitioned to scholarly research. His thesis was about accumulator contracts, an advanced grain marketing contract which included knockout levels, double ups and some sophisticated options. His thesis addressed how the accumulator contracts performed during neutral, up or down trends.

Working with numbers and

A good share of the Te Slaa family in 2019. Front: Phyllis, Alfred and Lane. Back: Brent, Morgan, Chad, Susan, Loren, Gary, Barb and Mitchell.

Providing Feed and Vet Supplies for over 30 years. We also provide consulting services for feedlot cattle and cow calf pairs.

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Chad, Jace and Elizabeth Te Slaa. It’s not hard to guess from looking at his arms that Chad’s favorite hobby is weightlifting.

analyzing numbers is fun for him, but he jumped at the chance to get his hands dirty when a monoslope building east of Rock Rapids came up for sale. He transitioned out of the position at First Dakota National Bank – and now farming/feeding cattle is his full-time occupation. “I always wanted to farm,” Chad said. “It's just hard to get started. Working at First Dakota and starting at the farm part-time was an opportunity. Through college, I was over here and helped out on weekends; and I did the same when I got time off from the bank.” Chad manages all the financial transactions related to the cattle, plus helps manage the herd. Their hired man, Brim, carries the greatest physical daily demands of the job.

SUNSHINE IN THEIR EYES EVERY MORNING

No one in the Te Slaa family actually lives on what was the home site of Gary and Loren’s dad. Strangely, half the family has a “reverse commute” compared to others in the Sioux Metro. Gary, Loren, Chad, and Loren’s son-in-law, Brent, all head east every morning, squinting into the rising sun; and evenings are all about going west and squinting into the setting sun. According to Loren, “When we got married, Susie already had a house in Sioux Falls, so I moved in with her and we haven't made it back to the farm yet.” Susan worked as a medical secretary at Sanford and retired last summer. They’ve been married for 34 years. Chad and his wife, Elizabeth, live on the southeast outskirts of Sioux Falls. She is a registered nurse at Sanford USD Medical Center and serves as a triage nurse in women’s health. Elizabeth is a native of Chaska, Minnesota. The couple met through Chad’s sister, Morgan, while Liz was in nursing school in Mankato. Morgan and her former roommate set the two up on a date. Morgan lives in Harrisburg and is a nurse practitioner in Sioux Falls at Limitless Male. Morgan’s husband, Brent drives from Harrisburg to Rock Rapids for his position as an electrical engineer at DGR.