Very little gets accomplished without someone making it happen. Pharo Cattle Company has grown from a very small “mom and pop” business to becoming a major player in the world of seedstock production. That did not happen on its own — and it is not the result of just one person. It is time to give credit where credit is due. I would now like to recognize a few of the most important members of our behind-the-scenes team.

     First and foremost, I need to recognize my wife, Deanna. Deanna does an outstanding job of juggling several different job titles. She is a wife, mother, grandmother, hostess, bookkeeper, secretary, hired hand, EMT and much, much more. There isn’t much that Deanna can’t or won’t do. Deanna is officially responsible for the management of the cowherd on our home ranch. This gets her out of the office on a regular basis — which she very much appreciates.

     The next member of our behind-the-scenes team that I want to mention is our son, Tyson Pharo, who has been working with and for Pharo Cattle Company for the past 11 years. Tyson continues to assume more and more management responsibilities as we all struggle to fully understand the dynamics involved with management succession. He is becoming more and more accustomed to stepping out of his comfort zone.

     The third member of the team is my sister, Kathy Pelton. Kathy is our computer specialist and office manager. Kathy takes raw data from our producers and from our bull work days and magically turns it into something we can use. She spends many, many hours getting our sale catalogs ready for the printers. I’m convinced Kathy has cut the hours I used to spend on the catalog in half. She is also in charge of clerking our bull sales.

     Kathy’s husband, Rod Pelton, has been working with and for Pharo Cattle Company for over six years. Rod has the personality and the ability to do just about anything he sets his mind to — and to do it well. Rod is very mechanically inclined. Among many other things, Rod is responsible for equipment maintenance, the development of our yearling bulls and after-sale bull transportation.

     Jake Unruh started working for Pharo Cattle Company in 2006 when we had over 25 miles of fence to build. Jake is a very talented, self-starting, hard worker. He may be the best livestock handler we have on the ranch. He is very patient and he knows how to read cattle. Jake is ready, willing and able to do whatever needs done — and he never complains.

      The youngest member of our behind-the-scenes team is Glenda Erker. Glenda works part time and is learning how to do some of Kathy’s jobs — because no one else wanted to.

     My brother, Kevin Pharo, has been helping out around Pharo Cattle Company for a little over one year. We refer to Kevin as “The Organizer.” He can organize any mess — no matter how big. Kevin is also a master at tree trimming. Kevin is able to do whatever needs to be done.

     Gary Rhoades continues to be willing and able to fill in the gaps around sale time. He makes and receives hundreds of phone calls. Gary is almost always on hand to help Tyson and me evaluate bulls.

     Weston Walker has been doing an excellent job representing Pharo Cattle Company in Missouri and other parts of Fescue Country. We have started using him as the featured speaker at some of our Herd Quitter meetings. Weston is also willing and able to help customers with our unique Quick Sort program, as well as with sight-unseen bidding.

     In the summer of 2004, we created a Cooperative Producer (CP) Board of Directors. This board is made up of six cooperative producers. I try to meet with them monthly. They act as an advisory board to help Pharo Cattle Company with goals, visions and policy — as well as to help us deal with various problems as they arise. Our 2012 CP Board of Directors includes Toby Foland, Dave Gwyn, Cody McDaniel, Ryan Shay, Garth Lloyd and Al DeWit.

     I learned a long time ago that if you surround yourself with GREAT people they will make you look good. I appreciate all the people who make up our behind-the-scenes team.