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He said he’s been lucky to surround himself with a good team. “I’ve got an agronomist I’ve hired who helps make decisions. And I hired Corey (Schoellerman) to work here on a daily basis. He helps take the pressure off me and helps me make good decisions.” Robert Harris works on the trucking side of the operation. He got caught with an empty truck coming back from Aberdeen when the derecho hit. The wind blew the truck over. Pedestrians pulled Robert out of the wreck and took him to the hospital in Watertown. “So he's been recovering for the last month, but he's ready to get back to work. We just got a different truck for him.”

Ryan is part of the sixth generation of his family to farm in Lincoln County. He farms part of the original homestead which is owned by his dad’s cousin. Ryan’s parents, Scott and Lynnette Vaksdal, live about three miles east. Scott has slowed down, but is still involved in keeping the planters going in the spring and plays a key role during harvest. Ryan’s mom and his sister, NaCole Venjohn, help get the Vaksdal kids where they need to be. In addition to farming, Ryan’s dad used to run a custom beanbuggy business. When John Deere introduced its new “See & Spray” 120-foot boom sprayer – which has 36 cameras on it to detect weeds – Ryan thought: “See and spray? That’s nothing new. I spent my whole childhood seein’ and sprayin’ on the bean buggy. Some ‘cameras’ were better than others. My grandma was good at spotting the weeds.”

Taylor doesn’t really fit the role of the traditional farm wife. “I don't think I can remember bringing food to the field the last two years. I’m gone so much. I get home from work and then I haul the kids here and there.”

While sometimes he’s jealous of a dish of lasagna a fellow farmer might get delivered to the field, he tells Taylor, “You've provided insurance for our family and added income – and most days I would take that over a hot meal in the field anyway.” The couple met via FarmersOnly.com. Taylor said, “I always wanted to live in the country. I have a love for animals – way more than he does, that’s for sure.” At one point or another, they’ve had horses, dogs, cats, chickens, a hamster, chinchillas, a gecko and ducks. Her sister has peacocks and she hopes to add one of those. “And we’ve got a couple goats who are more like dogs,” she said. Ryan added: “She’s always texting me stuff like: ‘Oh, by the way, we need to go pick up this fainting goat on Tuesday.’”

A Marico Ranch sale poster from 1994.

Hobey poppin’ wheelies on the speed bumps at the campground near Yankton.

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Kaylor on January 19, 1923. Photo courtesy First National Bank in Kaylor.

KAYLOR HAS LIVED WELL

A note from the publisher and editor: The Farming Families team extends its sincere condolences to the family of Gary Jerke who passed away unexpectedly on June 28. While his career was in financial services, his passion was preserving and promoting the history and traditions of the Germans from Russia community in South Dakota. He was featured on the cover of The Farming Families twice. In 2019, he talked about the mission of Sodak Stramm and the Menno Oktoberfest. In 2021, Gary and his wife, Janice, told the story of “The Farm,” a Christian nonprofit retreat center and sanctuary they established on the family homestead. Gary also occasionally submitted articles about area history for publication in The Farming Families magazine. His address was Tripp and the family farm was just across the Hutchinson County border in Bon Homme County, but Kaylor was his hometown. So it’s fitting that this final article he submitted to us was an essay about “living well” in Kaylor. Thanks Gary for sharing your passion with all of us.

By Gary Jerke

Kaylor is an unincorporated community that lies between Tripp and Scotland. It has been the site of numerous historical events, but seldom remembered unless it was your destination for Wednesday and Saturday night socializing and Sunday worship, as it was for myself and my family. A book has been written about much of the history, but as with all stories, it is never complete. So, as Paul Harvey would say, it is 'time for the rest of the story.’ On Oct. 9,1907, the Kaylor townsite company, based in Lesterville, announced the auction sale of lots on the plot of land in Kaylor township lying next to the Chicago, Milwaukee and St, Paul Railroad. There were 200 lots for sale for homes and necessary businesses such as coal dealers, hotel, black smith, barber shop, newspaper, dray line, etc. I possess a copy of one of the early newspapers. The early years saw multiple construction crews putting up businesses including F.F. Mayers & Co. Hardware, Fred Hirsch implements, a Farmers Elevator