Farming partnership earns honor for brothers

The family that runs Schaefers Brothers Farms of Conway is the 2019 Faulkner County Farm Family of the Year. Family members include, from left, Kennedy Hancock, James Schaefers, Kyle Schaefers, Debbie Schaefers, Chris Schaefers and Caleb Schaefers. Chris and James raise rice, corn, soybeans, wheat, hay and cattle. Sage, the farm dog, is always nearby.
The family that runs Schaefers Brothers Farms of Conway is the 2019 Faulkner County Farm Family of the Year. Family members include, from left, Kennedy Hancock, James Schaefers, Kyle Schaefers, Debbie Schaefers, Chris Schaefers and Caleb Schaefers. Chris and James raise rice, corn, soybeans, wheat, hay and cattle. Sage, the farm dog, is always nearby.

CONWAY — Chris Schaefers, 47, and his younger brother, James Schaefers, 38, grew up on the family farm. They are two of the four children of Bob and Pat Schaefers who continue to farm in the Lollie Bottoms along the Arkansas River between Conway and Mayflower.

Chris and James formed a partnership in 2003 and now have their own farming operation — Schaefers Brothers Farms. They are the 2019 Faulkner County Farm Family of the Year.

Chris and his wife, Debbie, 45, have three sons — Cole, 23, who is married to Katie and has one daughter, 15-month-old Charlotte; Kyle, 22, who works full time on the farm; and Caleb, 18, who is a senior at St. Joseph High School in Conway.

James and his wife, Brandi, 38, have two daughters — Kennedy Hancock, 17, who is a senior at Conway High School, and Emma, 10, who attends Ruth Doyle Middle School in Conway.

“We never wanted to do anything but farm,” Chris said.

“It was kind of a surprise when they came to us and asked us to be the Farm Family of the Year,” he said. “Our parents were it [twice, once in 2009, when they also received district honors, and earlier in the 1970s], and we were included in that, so we never thought anything more about it.

“Kevin Lawson, [Faulkner County Cooperative Extension Service agent and staff chairman], said, ‘Yes, your parents were honored, but you have expanded and are on your own now and deserve the honor,’ so we accepted.”

James added: “It is quite an honor for us.”

Debbie said that when she married Chris, she really had no idea what farming was all about.

“I thought it was just a job … something you could walk away from now and then, just like any job,” she said. “But it is not just a job. … It’s a way of life. … You have to be there all the time.”

Chris and James raise cattle, rice, corn, soybeans, wheat and hay on 2,760 acres; they rent 1,960 acres and own 800 acres. Their cow/calf operation includes 85 cow/calf pairs, 12 replacement heifers and one registered Black Angus bull; they also lease two bulls.

The brothers produce 7,000 square bales of wheat straw, which is baled and sold locally, and 2,500 square bales of Bermuda-grass hay, which is used on the farm or sold to a few clients.

They store the grain in a 250,000-bushel grain storage facility they purchased recently in the Friendship community.

“This really allows us to market our crops more efficiently and get crops out in a timely fashion,” James said.

The brothers market their grain through Oakley Grain in North Little Rock, Riceland Foods in Lonoke, Riviana Foods in Carlisle and Bearskin Grain in Lonoke. Most of the corn is stored on the farm for delivery to poultry producers,

such as Wayne Farms in Danville and Tyson Foods in various locations. The brothers store 60 to 80 percent of their rice on the farm to improve market strategies and sell it at a better price.

“We grow conventional (non-GMO) soybeans and market to George’s Chicken for a premium price,” Chris said. “A portion of the crop is forward contracted to secure a good profit margin. The remainder of the crop is either held on the farm until prices are favorable or delivered to one of the local elevators (granaries).”

Chris said if conditions are favorable, calves are weaned at 7 to 8 months old, then kept for 40 to 50 days for preconditioning. Then the calves are sold. If conditions are not right, the calves are sold right after weaning.

“We keep approximately 12 replacement heifers every year,” he said. “Five steers are fed out to 1,100 pounds and slaughtered for family and close relatives.”

Chris said this has not been a typical year for the farm because of the recent flooding of the Arkansas River and its tributaries. They farm land not only in the Lollie Bottoms but also around the Toad Suck community in Perry County and in the Friendship community on land that backs up to Cadron Creek.

“We will be extremely late with our crops. Our yield will suffer,” James said.

“We will do good to plant 50 percent of our land … maybe 55 percent, but not near 60 percent,” Chris said. “It’s just Mother Nature. We just have to deal with it.”

Chris and James and their families are part of the Schaefers Barn at Lollie and the Schaefers Corn Maze at Lollie, as are their older brother, Daryl Schaefers, and his wife, Lisa, and their sister, Angela Rawls, and her husband, Robert, and their families.

“Everyone in both families assists with these two operations,” James said. “The Barn has been open five years and is used for a variety of social events.

“It takes everyone to make sure everything runs smoothly.”

Debbie and Brandi work at The Barn, along with their mother-in-law, Pat Schaefers, and sister-in-law, Angela Rawls.

“We do weddings, family reunions, birthday parties, office parties at Christmastime … just whatever the client wants,” Debbie said. “We also work at the corn maze.”

Chris said he and James are responsible for planting and managing the corn.

“I just planted the corn for the maze during the July 4th weekend,” Chris said. “Everyone helps out during the operational hours of the corn maze, which is open in the fall.”

Chris said that depending on the weather, an average of 4,000 people come through the corn maze when it’s open. Several schools also send classes out during the day as part of field trips.

Chris and James both attended college after high school graduation but quickly returned to work on the farm.

Chris graduated from St. Joseph High School and Arkansas Tech University with a degree in agriculture business.

James attended St. Joseph schools but graduated from Conway High School. He attended the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton for two years and received an associate degree in marketing,

“I worked construction during high school,” James said. “That was not really my cup of tea. I always wanted to farm.”

Kyle Schaefers represents the third generation to work on the family farm.

“I graduated from St. Joe in 2015 and have been working here on the farm ever since,” Kyle said. “I hope to see the farm grow.”

Kyle’s dad, Chris, said, laughing, “Maybe Kyle will be the Farm Family of the year in 20 years.”

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