Westory Farms
Title: Ranch and Facilities Manager
We are a privately owned historic property that blends traditional and regenerative practices. My wife and I have owned this property since 2015 and are slowly converting it into a regenerative farm. The property is a balance between historical, estate, agritourism, and family friendly recreational. All fields are in various stages of transitioning into a biodiversity habitat, roads lined with recently planted edible vegetation (blackberries, plums, apples, persimmon, pear, etc), wooded areas actively being cleaned for trails and livestock rotations, and we are increasing the number of fenced paddocks each year. We currently own 6 contiguous houses, multiple well managed bass/crappie ponds, and roughly 220 acres of truly breathtaking rolling terrain just outside a small touristy town called Weston, MO.
We are a startup mindset and frankly, we are learning/stumbling as we go (but we are going to get there with your help). This property is our family’s passion and it has grown to a point that it has become too much work for me to happily manage. We are actively searching for an experienced individual or couple to assist in this journey. We currently have a GREAT younger ranch hand who just needs an experienced role model who exudes passion and perseverance to join us for this adventure. His passion/specialty is more with the animals than necessarily with the facilities. We are preparing to enter into a low volume agritourism (events, classes and potentially covered wagon AirBNB’s) but just haven’t found the right team to help us with this so we have not been able to finish this pursuit (we are so close). At the moment, this is meticulously manicured private ranch for our small family and friends. However, we are looking to immediately host more charitable events and find ways to help others create exceptional lifelong memories. We have products almost ready to take to market but are trying to make sure we have quality and consistency of meat, packaging, and branding all perfect before we launch.
My wife and I have two young kids and are constantly looking for ways to expand this property both for them and generations to come. We welcome applicants with, or without families, but whoever we find must be passionate about helping both young and old explore the natural world. Our expectation is that if you see kids running around while you are doing your chores, you get excited to see if they want to join you or take a tour (if safe/realistic). We work very, very hard and have very high expectations of quality. But, we also want you to enjoy the work, take pride in it, and want to share it with not only our guests, but your family/guests. Being realistic… there just aren’t that many properties of this caliber out there. That’s partially because of land, partially because of our proximity to a cute small town and partially because of the level of care we all put into and expect to be put into it. We aren’t looking to be average. We want this to continue to be a place that when a stranger pulls up, their jaw drops, their kids beg to come back, and all guests walk away smiling. It truly is a breathtaking property that is something you would find on a magazine cover. We just need help managing it and taking some load off of myself so I can start to enjoy it again.
Compensation:
- Salary
- Individual: $40,000 – $75,000
Couple: $75,000 – $100,000 - Housing
- First class housing estimated at $2,000/mo – $5,000/mo (depending on which house is selected and number of bedrooms needed).
- Vehicle
- Company truck for use of farm activities
- UTV for onsite work
- Insurance
- Workers Comp
- Health Insurance not provided
- Food
Share in bounty from harvest (eggs/meat/gardens)
Key Responsibilities:
- Maintain multiple houses (rental and personal), ranch facilities, lawns/landscaping, fences, water systems, and general infrastructure
- Manage seasonal labor, third party vendors and contractors if/when needed
- Manage day-to-day animal care (cattle, sheep, goats, hogs, poultry, rabbit and LGD) including feeding, health checks, and rotational grazing
- Oversee planting, irrigation, crop maintenance, harvesting, and soil health of gardens and orchards
- Assist with parties, events, and classes on occasion
- Manage seasonal fluctuations and it’s impacts on all responsibilities listed
- Operate, repair and routinely maintain equipment in first class manor. This includes but is not limited to: tractors, skid steers, various gas and diesel equipment, trailers, and other ranch equipment. This includes having outside vendors perform service as necessary or for efficiency.
- Communicate regularly with ownership and provide insights/suggestions. This includes notify ownership when additional help is needed.
- Guest experience
Non-Negotiable Qualifications:
- Basic Qualifications
- Minimum of 5 years prior ranch experience required
- Must be able to pass a background check
- Comfortable with physical labor (lifting, bending, and working long hours when necessary) in all weather conditions
- Ability to work independently and part of a team
- Common sense
- Agricultural and Livestock
- Strong knowledge of both traditional and regenerative agriculture (we do sparingly use chemical/fertilizer)
- Familiarity with various types of livestock (cattle, hogs, goats, sheep, poultry, bees and LGDs)
- +/- 60 – 100 sheep
- +/- 30 – 60 goats
- +/- 10 to 20 cattle/calf
- +/- 30 – 100 poultry
- +/- 6 – 20 swine
- +/- 20 bee hives
- +/- 4 LGDs
- Basic forestry, welding, mechanical and fencing skills (we use both traditional, hotwire, netting, and poly)
- Mechanical Aptitude
- Basic skills in carpentry, plumbing, welding and electrical
- Ability to self-diagnose and when appropriate, self-perform general maintenance and repairs to both large/small gas and diesel engines
- Firearms
- Comfort with firearms (pistol, shotgun, and rifle) and basic knowledge of maintenance of.
- Driving
- Valid driver’s license and ability to be commercially insured to drive vehicles
- Familiarity with UTV’s and ATV’s
- Ability to operate heavy equipment (Tractor, Skid Steers, etc)
- Experience parking and pulling trailers
- Active CDL or ability to immediately obtain CDL (at employers’ expense) to assist with occasional moving of equipment (close to state line so basic trips require a CDL vs farm exemption due to interstate nature)
- Electronics
- Ability to complete basic tasks with word, excel and email.
- Skills with radio a nice to have but not a requirement
Example of typical day:
- Basic Chores
- Moving animals or animal check
- Harvest vegetables, eggs
- Set fencing
- Check property
- Refill feeders or waterers
- Task
- Shelter improvements
- Basic repairs or maintenance
- Road repairs
- Property maintenance
- Manage supplies or organization
- Coordinate with vendors
- Landscaping Maintenance
- Random owner project or task
Typical Week:
- Invasive weed control via spraying or head clipping
- Pick up or drop off supplies off property
- Prepare house for owner/guest arrival
- Coordinate with tenants and vendors for repairs
- Accept material delivery
- Livestock check
- Timber management
- Property Improvement Project
- Build tree houses
- Create trails
- Plant trees
- Machine maintenance
- Research for equipment or procurement
- Bee hive checks
TO APPLY:
Forward cover letter & resume to our email address.
Visit website here: https://www.westoryfarms.com/
Email
[email protected]
Phone
9132206645
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