By Kim Break
Derek and Karen Hall, and daughters Callie, Lanie and Leslie – are honored to be the 2023 Fulton County Farm Family of the Year. The Halls were all smiles when they hosted local media to Lick Creek Cattle Company on June 7. After some health obstacles and loss in the last couple of months and weeks, their positivity and laughter still came through.
Mary Guffey, chairperson for the Fulton County Farm Family Committee was the first to welcome the crowd and congratulate the Hall family on the honor. “We appreciate our farm families and all they do. I think what we saw is just the edge of the hard work you put in and what you teach those kids.”
Lick Creek Cattle Company is an independent operator, farming on a combination of owned and rented acreage which totals over 1,000 acres. It is located in the Heart community, along the banks of Lick Creek, hints the operation’s official name. Derek grew up on a farm just down the road, which they utilize now. Karen’s grandparents had a farm and her cousin’s own one of the last dairy farms in southern Missouri, which is where she worked during high school. She was also active in FFA, earning her state degree. The couple understands the hard work it takes to make a farm successful.
Operating a farm is a full time job in itself, but many farmers will tell you it is an expensive “hobby” and most must work a full time job in addition to their farms. Derek has had the opportunity to meet knowledgeable individuals about farming throughout his career of 10+ years with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. He has utilized relationships he’s built and advice given to him over the years in growing his family’s farming operation.
Karen works at Pediatric Therapy Clinic in Batesville during the week and dispatches for North Arkansas Electric Co-op on the weekends. “Teenagers are expensive,” Karen said. Callie, Leslie and Lanie are involved in many organizations and sports as Salem Lady Greyhounds. The Lady Greyhounds had very successful basketball and softball seasons, which also made for some very hectic times around Lick Creek Cattle Company. Determination and hard work are evident in all five of the Hall family members and it doesn’t seem there isn’t much they can’t accomplish together.
Over the years (so far), they have installed alternative water sources, rejuvenated land (pasture and hay ground), updated fencing, and installed stream bank fencing, all while teaching hard work and many other life lessons to their three daughters. Callie, Leslie and Lanie have turned into amazing “farm hands” as they are lovingly referred to as.
Major crops for the Hall family are forage, hay and timber. The major livestock enterprises include 25 registered angus cow/calf pairs, 75 commercial purebred and crossbred cow/calf pairs, 20 replacement heifers, 15 purebred/registered angus bulls and a variety of smaller farm animals.
Leslie has a fruitful goat herd and they proudly use the Salem Livestock Auction, “the best goat market in North Arkansas”, for marketing goats. They also utilize the goats for multi-species rotational grazing and brush and weed control.
The Halls mostly sell to individuals by way of local advertising, word of mouth and social media. Getting to know the market in the area, they are able to buy/sell breeding stock and replacement heifers and work with fellow farmers to receive optimum premium for steers/heifers. They have repeat buyers, who trust the Halls’ bloodline, whether they continue a bloodline or choose a new direction. They do also utilize the Ash Flat Sale Barn.
Leslie has a fruitful goat herd and they proudly use the Salem Livestock Auction, “the best goat market in North Arkansas”, for marketing goats. They also utilize the goats for multi-species rotational grazing and brush and weed control.
They butcher beef yearly and take pride in selling direct to consumer. Birch’s Butchering in Salem is the family’s “go to” each year. Lanie is trying her hand out at beginning her own herd. She recently purchased her first registered Angus heifer. Callie is keeping her options open, but will possibly have a show gilt and is looking into beginning artificial insemination and hog farming.
Harvesting timber is a practice Derek has been involved with his whole life. His father, Stanley Hall, was a longtime logger in the area. Timber from the property is sold privately to local loggers/sawmill.
In the beginning, goals were to improve pasture, grazing and water systems and to expand, which is also one of the biggest challenges. Purchasing acreage is something more difficult for farmers in the current real estate market. Derek and Karen are very thankful for the individuals who rent out their land for Lick Creek Cattle Company’s operations.
Their cattle started with bottle calves they began raising in 2017. By 2018, Derek said they had purchased 15 commercial pairs. In 2019, the family had an amazing opportunity to purchase 26 registered head to add. Goats were added for multi-specie grazing and brush control the following year.
Like with most endeavors, the Hall family has faced some challenges along the way. When they purchased their first 40 acres, and then began adding rented land along Lick Creek, fencing was an issue. They’ve installed a new perimeter fence on their own property and updated fencing along the rented land. Water gaps are a problem in the area, so they’ve utilized streambank fencing. Solar fencing is another solution they’ve utilized.
Introducing new and improved bloodlines to farmers in the area is a goal Derek discussed. In the last year, they purchased a breeding bull from Conneally Angus and hope to improve registered cattle genetics. He also has hopes to start artificial insemination in two to three years. They hope to retain registered heifers to expand herd and remain steady with commercial operation to provide local quality beef, retain calves for feed out and market at higher weight.
Lick Creek Cattle Company began when the girls were given a baby calf to bottle feed and the family decided, “if we had one on a bottle, might as well have 10.” They bought 12 calves from a family’s dairy, but received 13, as Karen’s cousin had thrown in a freebie. The girls paid for three each and Derek and Karen paid for three. The family also cut and sold wood most weekends that winter to pay for the milk replacer.
The farm life is very important to the Hall family. Though the teenage daughters are involved in several school clubs, in addition to sports teams mentioned previously, have straight A’s, have part time jobs, members of 4-H and are Fulton County Fair Ambassadors; they are solely responsible for their own show animals and care of their own herd. Knowing the value of hard work and remembering where they came from are important values Derek and Karen are instilling in their children at Lick Creek Cattle Co.
