MID MISSOURI STOCKYARDS town & country in the field and in the office Marla Moreland

By Julie Turner-Crawford

Hometown: Halfway, Mo.

Family:

Husband Bob Moreland; son John-Austin Shepard and his wife Katie

In Town: Marla Moreland, a native of Halfway, Mo., has been Realtor since 2004. In 2015, Marla and her husband Bob opened More-Land Realty. Marla is the Broker, and upon his retirement as president of Commerce Bank in Bolivar, Mo., in 2020, Bob joined Marla at the realty company as an agent.

In the Country: Bob and Marla live on 160 acres near Halfway, Mo. Marla grew up on a “hobby farm.”

Their Calf Across the Creek Cattle Company is home to a cow/calf operation. Marla said Bob is the “actual farmer,” and she likes to ride along with him to check for new calves in the spring. She also raises any orphaned calves, and her favorite cow, Cinnamon, which she raised from a bottle.

“She will never leave our farm,” Marla said. “She still comes running across a field if I call her name.”

Bob might be the cattleman, but Marla has her own “herd.”

“We have horses, miniature donkeys, and Pygmy goats,” Marla said. “The goats and the miniature donkeys are all me. Bob asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I asked if I could have anything I wanted, and he said yes. I told him I wanted miniature donkeys. Bob’s the farmer, and I’m his sidekick.

“My goat pen is my happy place where I can decompress from my real job as a Real Estate Broker.”

Marla said they will adding chickens back to the farm, once things slow down for them a bit.

Marla and Bob have their town jobs, but they love their farming way of life.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Marla said. “We love our farm and the country life, and we love our animals. We also love the people we interact with, the fellow cattlemen.”

Bob is the president of the Polk County Cattlemen’s Association, and as he became more involved, Marla did as well. To get more ladies involved, Marla began recruiting ladies for the Polk County Cattlewomen organization, which is an auxiliary of the Polk County Cattlemen’s Association focused on beef promotion, education and community involvement in Polk County. The organization sponsors the county Beef Queen and is active in Bolivar’s annual Missouri Beef Days event.

“It was to have more fellowship with the ladies, and we all have something in common,” Marla, who serves as the Polk County Cattlewomen Representative, explained.