One of the benefits of farming is the Geislers can spend more time with their two boys, modeling faith and prayer and teaching them the benefits of having a strong work ethic. (Submitted photo)
Jenny Snarski
Catholic Herald Staff
Faith and farming are foundational for one fourth-generation farming family.
Daniel Geisler is a dairy farmer near Bruce. His wife, Grace, formerly Busse, worked at the Diocese of Superior’s Bishop Hammes Center for years before their marriage.
Members of St. Mary’s in Bruce, the Geislers are now raising two young sons in the agricultural lifestyle, living off the land and trusting in God’s providence.
The Geislers’ primary decision to choose farming for themselves, Grace shared, “was so that our kids would be able to grow up in an environment where we all work together … teaching responsibility and work ethic.
“We are both able to spend much more time with the boys than if we worked away from home, which has had a positive impact in a lot of areas of life, including modeling faith and prayer,” she said. “We’re hoping that having a shared sense of purpose will also help encourage our kids to full and joyful participation in their faith as they grow.”
While Grace didn’t grow up on a farm, her parents are in the agriculture industry, so there was some exposure to that way of life. She said, “It was a bit of an adjustment at first, but it’s also amazing to be a part of a team.”
The family milks 37 cows and farms 150 acres, mainly corn and alfalfa. With their young sons (3.5 years and 18 months old) who both love cows, tractors and dirt, Grace admitted, “We think they would spend all day outside if we let them! The older one is able to help with a few of the simpler tasks like bottle feeding, and he loves it!”
Thankful for their “amazing cattle trucker, veterinarian and milk hauler who are all great to be around and make it enjoyable,” the young couple confessed, “We probably wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the support of family, friends, and neighbors.”
Speaking to how a young person can appreciate and be introduced to farming if it’s not in their family, the couple responded, “Everyone is always going to need food.
“Getting into farming from a non-farm background, the best way would definitely be to connect with a local farm. It’s a hard job and life and picture until you’re actually living it, even if just for a few afternoons a week.”
Daniel worked as both a milk truck driver and as a mechanic for Tractor Central before there was an opportunity to buy a local farm. Both jobs were helpful experiences, Grace added.
Daniel’s younger brother, Casey, recently bought their parents’ cows and is enjoying the privileges that self-employment brings. They acknowledged that Jerry and Amy will occasionally help out in the barn and are still doing the majority of the crop work. Daniel’s sister and husband are raising steers.
“It’s really handy to be able to help each other out and share equipment,” they said.
As the oldest of Jerry and Amy Geisler’s five children, Daniel’s exposure to a self-sufficient lifestyle as well as devout Catholicism came from his parents. They both came from dairy farming families and this background even informed their receptivity to, and later teaching of, Natural Family Planning.
Amy told the Superior Catholic Herald in 2014 that Jerry had “all the cows on NFP.” When they first learned the Catholic Church’s stance on responsible parenthood that was open to life, Jerry told his future wife it was “just like cows.” They milked seasonally, breeding their entire herd to calve around the same time, leaving the cows dried off for about six weeks in the later summer.
Grace offered her own experience of Daniel during their birthing classes: “Daniel was definitely comparing it to helping a calf be born. I’m still not sure if that was reassuring or not.”
“The essence of farming hasn’t changed,” they said, “no matter how green the pasture is, the cows are always looking for a hole in the fence, and they only calve when you’re trying to leave for the day, the dog still has to get one more nip at their heels on the way out the barn door.”
The couple affirmed, “Some days just about everything about farming requires faith! But we can see God’s presence and providence in the fact that we’ve been farming for eight years.”
Believing that being so closely connected to creation is “a huge part of it, as you can so clearly see how beautifully God designed everything, even if it doesn’t always work out the way you want.
“He made an amazing world, and we get to work outside in it so much more than most people might get to. It’s a privilege to be a part of the life of animals from birth to death.”
They noted the definite, but rewarding, challenges of trying to turn a profit on the life cycle of plants and animals. “We are very vulnerable to the weather, temperature, rain and wind,” they said. “The Lord gives us what we need.”
From Grace’s perspective with a definite planner personality, it’s tough “never knowing what the day might look like; plans constantly are changing. Calves are always being born Christmas and Easter mornings (in one year, twins), or animals get out at the worst possible time” (while out of town for a siblings wedding). As well, getting everything done on time can be difficult, especially with older equipment, but “getting to the end of the day, knowing you’ve done your best” is its own satisfaction.
Alongside the time spent and shared as family together—immediate and extended—especially watching the boys play in the barn is a life the Geislers wouldn’t trade for anything.
