Who We Are

We are a small family of three trying to live the American ranching dream. Our story begins well before we ever met. Pull up a seat and lend an ear for this small tale. 

Kelsey Donnell grew up in small town Tuscola Texas. He was the kid everyone loved in school, kids and parents alike. Kind, polite, athletic, respectful, Kelsey was raised by his father who was a Taylor County Deputy, and his mother who is a marvelous hair stylist. He grew up on the 70 acres we currently reside on. Cattle, goats, horses, dogs, they had it all growing up. He moved to San Marcos to attend Texas State University and started his college path with law enforcement in mind. However while he was there his love of agriculture took over, and he switched majors to General Agriculture. (You can take the boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy.)

Stacy Donnell (Wilken) grew up in a small village in northern Illinois just minutes from the Wisconsin border. Population 481, it was a place where everyone knew who you were and who you belonged to. She was raised by her Step-dad, her mom and her dad. She grew up the typical midwest farmer's daughter. Both sets of parents were farmers. Both sets of parents not only were grain farmers but raised a multitude of livestock. Being the oldest of 4 children, she was often left (when old enough) in charge of taking care of the younger children during the summer months when all parents were busy working. All of the kids participated and showed in both FFA and 4-H. After her first year in college she was offered an internship with a cutting horse facility. By the time Stacy left the cutting horse ranch 2 years later, she was officially hooked on cutting horses and had even spent the last year starting the two year olds. She however made the decision to go back to college and pursue her love of photography and graphic design. Upon completion of her art degree, Stacy decided to move to Texas. She applied to Texas State University and was accepted into the agriculture deparment.

It was at Texas State University that Kelsey and Stacy met, their love of agriculture and dancing bringing them together on more than one occasion. Fast forward to 2013 and they agreed to take their relationship further and move to Abilene to start a life together. Their daughter Belle was born in January 2014 and they have never looked back. They have overcome obstacles most others would walk away from, however they continue to lift each other up and push each other to be better every day. If you ask them, they will tell you they cannot survive without the other for they balance each other out. Kelsey, Stacy would describe, is the grounding rock of the relationship. "He makes sure to bring my head back down out of the clouds when I start dreaming of the things we could do and he helps me to recognize the baby steps we need to take to reach those dreams. After all nothing is impossible, if you believe you can do it, you can". Stacy is the driving force of the relationship. She is not one to sit still and do nothing. "She is always up to something trying to help make our lives easier. She is a fantastic mother and a magnificent wife. I couldn't ask for a better partner to spend my life with." If you ask them as long as they have each other and their daughter, there is nothing they cannot accomplish. They are a hard working, driven family that is striving to continue what generations of both of their families have done for years: farming and ranching.