Waseca County’s farmers of the year

Earlier this year the Casey and Natalie Roeker family were recognized as Waseca County’s 2022 Farm Family of the Year and Outstanding Young Farming Family.

This was the first time in Waseca County history when a family won both titles. 

The Waseca County Extension committee selects the farm family of the year, and has been recognizing exceptional local family operations for more than 30 years, honoring farm families from across Minnesota for their contributions to the agriculture industry and their local communities. The sponsors of this statewide award include: University of MN Extension, the College of Food, Agriculture and National Resource Sciences, the College of Veterinary Medicine, and the MN agriculture experiment stations, along with Farmfest. 

And the award goes to…

The Roekers were selected for this year’s award because of their “continuous positive promotion of agriculture and livestock,” the extension office announced. 

Casey and Natalie, along with their children Hadley, Presley and Nash, farm 580 acres of cropland in New Richland, consisting of corn, soybeans, and alfalfa. They also raise replacement dairy heifers for a dairy operation in Rice County and raise feeder cattle. Their farm was deemed a century farm in 2007. 

Casey’s father began farming with his grandfather in 1976 with corn, soybeans, wheat and hogs. In 1994 Casey and his brother became more involved in farm operations. Hadley, 10; Presley, 8;  and Nash, 4, all have farm chores to do to keep the farm running smoothly

Besides his contributions on the farm, Casey works at the UMN Southern Research and Outreach Center in livestock. Natalie keeps the farm, house, and family running, “There is always plenty to do!” she jokes. 

Casey serves as a leader in the couple’s congregation at Trinity Lutheran in New Richland and Natalie is active as a 4-H leader and assists with the county fair. 

“On behalf of Natalie, my kids, Hadley, Presley, and Nash, I want to thank the Waseca County Ag Chamber Committee and University of MN Extension,” Casey Roeker said. “What an honor to receive these awards. There’s a ton of young families that were very deserving. Shortly after I received a call from our banker, Carol Raimann, that we were selected for the Chamber award, I started to reflect on the past 16 years. The first thing that came to mind was how blessed we are to receive it. Again, I am reminded of how many good farmers we have in this county. It’s fantastic to receive this award.” 

“The thing is we get to do this every day,” Casey Roeker continued. “We love it through the challenges, the ups and downs. We’re grateful for the experiences farming has given us. I’m grateful for the people who helped us along the way. The list is really long and I can’t thank everybody. I've got three tables [of people] who came to support us here today and we’re very glad you’re all here. I also want to thank our kids. They’re with us all the way, riding the tractor and combine, helping us with chores. I remember Hadley, she was only 7 years old. I got home from work, the dryer had been running from what I heard and she said, ‘What do you need help with Dad? I want to get in the field.’ Natalie had just picked up calves that day. She helped out a lot. It’s a memory I’ll never forget. 

“To be able to raise our kids on the farm means the world to us. Other than that, I just want to say that we enjoy the problem solving that farming brings to us. To see it all come together and see the results at the end of the year is very rewarding. And finishing up, I just want to express our greatest joy is raising our family on the farm and watching our kids raised in our lifestyle along with us. Thanks again to everybody.”