Ron St. John of Trenton, Florida, got his start in the dairy industry like many others: by being born into a farming family. His farm business has taken a long journey from his father’s 67 cows in a small, northern New York town to the herd’s current status as the largest freestall dairy in Florida that may seem unique to some.

“Not all families have family Christmas.” This was how Ron Hanson, farm business succession consultant and professor emeritus at University of Nebraska, opened his sessions on overcoming family challenges in succession planning at the 2018 Pennsylvania Dairy Summit in February.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article stated that Walt Coleman is a dairy farmer and owner of Hiland Dairy. This version has been updated to clarify Coleman’s role in the dairy industry. Progressive Dairyman regrets the errors. There are two major passions for Walt Coleman of Little Rock, Arkansas: dairy farming and football. Coleman was a fifth-generation dairy farmer, part of the Coleman Dairy Company, which became a division of Hiland Dairy Foods – headquartered in Missouri – in 2006. He’s now a controller with Hiland Dairy. Coleman is also a nearly 30-year veteran of NFL officiating, making him the longest current tenured referee in the league. As a result, Coleman has had no shortage of experience working in high-pressure environments – or in being criticized for his actions while doing so.

When 11-year-old animal lover Alaina Janssen arrived at Vir-Clar Farm in Fon du Lac, Wisconsin, with her family last December, she informed her mother she wouldn’t be needing the wheelchair she often used to get around. She wanted to walk.

While daily responsibilities of farm life make it easy to put off planning for the future, an early start and attention to details are critical to creating and implementing a generational farm succession plan, according to Charlie Gardner, DVM.

It’s an elite club, but there is no membership list. According to Cornell Cooperative Extension dairy specialist Dave Balbian, the 7-pound “club” isn’t really a club at all.

Football and farming. For many teenagers growing up on a family-owned dairy, this is a familiar combination. For Doug Mielke, who took over the farm from his father at age 12, however, the balancing act looked a bit different.