Working Ranch Magazine Summer 2025

PHOTO COURTESY OF BRENDA HAMPTON

Sam and Phyllis Hampton

have not had adequate snow this winter, so Justin and Reed have been pumping the wells to make sure there’s sufficient water for the cows. Saturday nights, I refresh our sour dough starter, so it is ready to ship by Monday. It is very active here and a big reason is our well water. SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 2025 On Sundays, Dan and I watch Cowboy Church of Tarrant County online. It was my home church when I lived in Texas and Pastor Jimmy Roberts came to the ranch to perform our ceremony when we got married. We have an amazing story and living 1,200 miles apart, it was all God that brought us together. Dan headed to get supplies, grocer ies, and dry ice for shipping our beef on Monday. I worked in the “Beef Shack” pulling orders and getting our boxes prepared. We brand every box with our dHb brand as well as write handwritten notes to all our custom ers. It brings us immense joy to pro vide quality beef, right from the ranch. MONDAY, APRIL 7, 2025 We got up early to check on the cows but no new little ones. After breakfast, Dan and I filled our beef boxes with dry ice, put the labels on, and taped them for shipping. I also package and label our sourdough starter, cooking tallow, tallow moisturizer, lip balm, and dog treats.

Steve checked on the water tank at our butte pasture and did a little hose fitting maintenance on the well. We will move our pairs to that pas ture in the coming weeks. Before bed, I put five pounds of our beef suet in the crockpot to render overnight. We need to restock our Signature Tallow Moisturizer that Dan and I make. We render and strain it four times then add essential oils. TUESDAY, APRIL 8, 2025 We had another very protective mama cow this morning. She was pawing back the ground like a fighting

bull and we weren’t even close yet. They were next to the creek and Dan said, “Drive on down there.” I did and the next thing we knew, the calf went into the water. It is not very deep, and the calf went about twenty feet and was able to stand up. It came to the bank, so we put the side by side along the bank to shield us from the cow. It was dicey but comical too as the mama cow was going from the front to the back of the side-by-side and I am telling Dan so he can go the oppo site way of her. Dan was able to get a rope over the calf’s head, but it took every ounce of his strength to pull the

Hilltop view heading into the ranch.

TOM RAFOLVICH

SUMMER 2025 I 51