Dawn Breitkreutz grew up in a small town in Minnesota, struggled through high school and wasn't sure what she wanted to do with her life. Her mom passed away when she was 15 and she felt lost and in need of direction. A military recruiter visited Dawn's high school, the opportunity to serve sounded interesting, and she was off to basic training in San Antonio, Texas.
"Joining the Air Force was the best decision at that time in my life," said Dawn. "The military was exactly what I needed, and I loved it!"
Dawn served 10 years in active duty and the reserves and was honorably discharged as a Tech Sergeant, serving much of the time overseas in the Philippines as a communications analyst.
"My job required thinking and acting quickly," she said. "It gave me structure and purpose, pride for our country and respect for the military."
When Dawn decided to leave military life after being away for 15 years, she returned home to Minnesota. Through mutual friends, Dawn met Grant and fell in love with his absolute passion for farming.
"I couldn't run a riding lawn mower when I met Grant," Dawn said. "But I would sit on every piece of equipment he ever ran just to spend time with him and get to know him."
Grant and Dawn took over the family farm from his parents in 1997 and purchased a cow herd, starting with 58 Red Angus cows on 450 acres. Both had town jobs, but their dream was to farm full time. They started looking into different farming practices and were drawn to systems that focused on soil health.
The Breitkreutzes pride themselves on their conservation practices, which include no-till row cropping and intensive rotational grazing as well as diversified cover cropping. The diversity helps grow soil health and has helped them deal with weather challenges. Their sustainability efforts were recognized in 2016 when Stoney Creek Farm received a regional award from the Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP).
The ESAP Regional Award made Dawn realize that she couldn't affect change if she wasn't telling her family's story. It pushed her to improve even more and to help other producers incorporate sustainability practices exclaiming, "It is fun to farm in this model!"
The Breitkreutzes share their story by hosting a three-day Soil Health Academy to educate producers about the importance of improving soil health. Dawn boils down the concept into simple terms, explaining that, "It really is about sunshine and carbon."
Dawn and Grant hosted 66 students during the most recent Academy in July. And when their caterer dropped out at the last minute, Dawn cooked for everyone. This extra time in the kitchen helped Dawn keep her mind off the recent loss of her stepmom who meant so much and was a huge advocate for their farming practices.
"Family doesn't always mean a blood relative," said Dawn. "I have a lot of special people in my life from my Legion family to my soil family to my cattle family. Being part of those families means the whole world to me."
With hard work and dedication, the family has grown the operation to more than 100 cows and 1,900 acres. In addition to cattle, the couple raises pastured pork, pastured broilers and egg layers as well as row crops. There are four generations currently living on the farm including Grant and Dawn's daughter, Karlie, son-in-law, Cody, and four granddaughters, along with Grant's parents who remain actively involved with the operation.
Dawn also continues to be engaged with veteran organizations. She is active in her local American Legion Post along with her dad, who served four years in the National Guard during the Vietnam Era. He is Second Vice Commander in the Legion and Dawn is the Post's Finance Officer.
Dawn is proud of her continued service with the American Legion where, a few years ago, she brought Legion members and cattlemen together to raise money for cattle and veteran organizations.
"In bringing these two groups together, I realized the similarities between being in the military and being a farmer," Dawn reflected. "Both help build a healthy country and world."
Categories: Minnesota, Crops, Education, Livestock, Beef Cattle