C. Wayne Vance, Ray, N.D., is the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association’s 2016 Rancher of the Year.

NDSA District 6 Director Dennis Jacobson says Vance's commitment to the industry and community involvement has served him well not only in developing his own operation, but also in promoting the beef industry.

"Wayne is the kind of person who comes to mind when you think about what this award means to the Stockmen's Association," Jacobson says.

SADDLE UP: C. Wayne Vance, 85, still rides on his ranch where he and his family raise beef cattle and quarter horses.

Vance began his ranching duties when he was 6 years old, when his parents, Carl and Doris Vance, moved onto a 300-acre ranch near Ray. Vance helped with their 30 beef and more than a dozen dairy cows. By age 10, he was farming with four-horse teams. Vance's father suffered an injury cutting ice blocks that led to the amputation of his leg when Vance was 16. The accident put Vance in charge of the ranch at a young age.

"It was a struggle, but we managed to make it," Vance says. "We had cows to milk. You always had your odd jobs. At that time, if you took care of your cows, they would buy your groceries and whatever else you needed. I still had a lot of guidance from my dad, but he let me make my mistakes and learn."

Vance married his wife, Marie, in 1951. The couple set out in the early years of their marriage managing the ranch and taking on work to pay the bills. Vance owned a 1947 2-ton Dodge truck with which he hauled grain and cattle for neighbors. The couple milked cows and raised beef cattle.

Today, they still call the 6,000-acre Red Angus operation home.

Vance has belonged to the NDSA for 53 years. He is currently the chairman of the Ray Fire District Advisory Board; the treasurer and a nearly 50-year member of the MonDak Quarter Horse Association; past president of the Nessen Valley Grazing Association, a 20-year member of the Upper Missouri Valley Fair Association; and a nearly 50-year member of the American Quarter Horse Association, in addition to his membership in the NDSA.

The couple, along with three other families, started the Nessen Valley Grazing Association in 1970, purchasing 5,000 acres. The group worked extensively to maintain the association and their ranches through the high interest rates of the 1980s.

"You get to know a lot of people, and you make a lot of friends giving back to your community," Marie says. "There's a lot of satisfaction in being able to help a community group. If people didn't put in the effort, it wouldn't happen."

The Vances raised a son, John, and three daughters, Arlene, Terry and Connie, on the ranch. Their 10 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren are still an active part in the ranch.

Quality livestock have been the foundation of the Vance operation since the 1930s. Vance continues to train and sell quarter horses today.

"We've got horses that we raised scattered all over the country up here and in Canada," he says. "There's too many to count. I still ride some — not like I used to, but nobody seems to ride quite like they used to."

With water in short supply on much of their grassland, the family built seven dams and developed several springs as water sources in the first year of managing the grazing association land. They also employ cross fencing to allow for better grass management on the ranch.

Vance remains focused on taking care of the land and his livestock, and never doing half of the job.

"I've never had a job where they could fire me, and I've always made a living on my own. People around here look at me, at 85 years old, and say, 'Why don't you retire and go to Arizona?' I like what I'm doing where I'm at, and I'm not willing to quit."

Graff is communications director of the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association.