Age:
Tim: 48, most days I feel older.
Mark: 45, I look younger for age, but I feel older until I’ve had my first Mountain Dew of the day.
Location: Mount Horeb, Wisconsin
Our dairy’s history: Our father bought the present farm in 1960, and he married our mother, Jeanne, in 1961. They bought their first Registered Holsteins in the mid-1960s and started the Kellercrest prefix. Today the second generation is running the farm with Tim and Sandy Keller and children, Andrew and Kimberly, along with Tim’s brother, Mark, and his wife, Kareen. We, Tim and Mark, bought the farm in 1999, modernizing and expanding to the present 320 milk cows.
If I wasn’t a dairy producer, I would be ...
Tim: I would have to be building something. I’ve always liked working with my hands.
Mark: I would be working somewhere in the dairy field. After college, I worked in the ag supply field as a nutritionist and agronomist for 12 years before joining Kellercrest.
I have been a member of the Holstein Association USA for ... Tim for 38 years; Mark for 35 years. We both joined the association at 10 years old because we started owning cattle.
Our favorite Holstein USA representative is ... Several classifiers have been great to work with and have been very helpful with teaching us more about our Holstein breed. Dan Cnossen (retired), Jim Meyer from Illinois and Maureen DeBruin all have been influential.
What Holstein USA does best is ... being a great source of connecting people.
We feel valued as members ... when the CEO of Holstein USA comes to our farm to ask for our input on their programs or to help some of their field reps with programs that we know very well, such as the MultiMate program.
Our worst struggles in dairying have been ... fluctuations of milk prices, high feed costs, new regulations and urban sprawl.
We hope our legacy through the association will be ... to be known as breeders of good, honest cattle nationally and worldwide.
If I were running Holstein USA, I would ...
Tim: Want to be known for being honest with my opinion and listen to peoples’ concerns and input.
Mark: Wouldn’t change much. We have a great association with good people and programs.
My advice to all dairy producers is ...
Tim: Set goals, work hard for them and be proud to be a dairy producer.
Mark: Be proud to be a dairy producer, enjoy your work and continue educating our consumers. PD
Holstein Association USA, Inc.
1 Holstein Place
Brattleboro, VT 05301
(800) 952-5200
www.holsteinusa.com
Year organized....................1885
Number of members............Adult: 19,582
Juniors: 8,464
Types of benefits and activities available to members: Registry and pedigree information for U.S. Registered Holstein cows; a variety of services aside from the registry system including genetic and genomic testing, type classification, production records and other performance information; official ear tags; and provide support to 11 national Holstein shows annually.
A variety of youth programs are offered to Junior members (under 21) that encourage the building of real-world skills, industry knowledge and self-confidence.
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