Hi! I am Sam Vangsness. My husband, Levi and I graze yearlings on grass and are working on building our ranch life and business. I grew up on the outskirts of Mandan active in clubs and many sports. Agriculture was a large influence on me growing up from helping my aunt and uncle work calves in the spring to showing animals at the Morton County fair. My passion for ag came from being a part of groups such as 4-H and FFA. As for Levi, agriculture is very much in his blood. He grew up on a ranch near Walcott, N.D., where he was his dad’s right-hand man.
We live west of Mandan with our two horses (Cowboy & Dog) and our numerous chickens who keep us on our toes. We both work in town. I am an account executive for Clearwater Communications working with various ag groups and Levi is going on his eighth year of being a lineman. He works for Montana-Dakota Utilities in Bismarck.
Levi and our niece Freyja, who loves to come to the farm, ride horse and feed the chickens.
We ranch because it grows us as people. It is an industry that motivates us to better ourselves and our surroundings. It is an industry we can never know enough about. There are numerous questions we are always seeking the answers to:
How can we be more efficient?
How can we be more profitable?
How can we better ourselves, our animals, and our lands?
How can we grow a healthy and sustainable product that the consumer wants to purchase?
If you know Levi he is always reading a book, listening to podcasts, or looking for a workshop about ranching to learn more. It is absolutely amazing the amount of information out there about the industry that others are willing to share to help other producers succeed. We hope that we not only pass our passion and knowledge for the industry down to our children but to all those around us.
Everyone can go on and on with their list of struggles. We have really tried to stay positive and pray, for we know God has the plan for us already planned out. Talking to Levi about this, we agreed that one of the greatest struggles for us as beginning producers has been capital. Starting out in this business takes a lot of capital to just get the ball rolling. You have to be smart and strategic with how you use your capital starting out because your risk tolerance hasn't built up yet. But farmers and ranchers have such an entrepreneurial and resilient spirit. They have what it takes to put themselves out there and grow and learn so they can continue to better their operation year after year. Producers don’t just work day in and day out, they work to build a successful enough business to pass it on to the next generation.
Our horses, Cowboy and Dog, and our chickens.
Let’s get back to the basics. If you have questions, visit a farm or ranch. Talk to a farmer. See where your food comes from, visit with the people who grow your food. Farmers and ranchers are people just like any other. We love talking about our animals, sharing tips and tricks, and helping a neighbor when in need.
Sam and Levi are the District 7 representatives on the NDFB Young Farmer and Rancher Committee.