A Glance at Eastern Montana
Farmers and ranchers are always battling things outside of their control when it comes to their livelihood. Weather, the rising cost of doing business, market price for their goods, and consumer buying habits are just a few of the variables that affect their bottom line. Add to that list, radical groups on the fight against unwarranted environmental and animal care and the battle seems uphill all the way.
We profiled three Montana ranch women that have taken to social media to try and help educate consumers about what it takes to provide food for their families while giving them an inside look at the lives of every day farmers and ranchers.
On three very different levels, these women are each making a difference for the industry.
Whitney Klasna Photography and Blog
Written by Cyd Hoefle
Photography by Whitney Klasna
Lambert, MT
Whitney Klasna and her husband, Dylan are fourth generation Montana farmers and ranchers. They farm and ranch alongside Dylan’s parents, Tim and Kim Klasna, raising Hereford and Black Baldy cattle, farming wheat, triticale, barley, oats, cover crops, and hay. The Klasna family farm and ranch is located between Wolf Point and Sidney, in rural Richland County, near the community of Lambert.
“We’re centrally located in the middle of nowhere,” Whitney laughed.
But being in the middle of nowhere hasn’t stopped this young farm and ranch woman from making an impact in the agriculture community in the state of Montana and, in fact, in the nation.
Whitney is tremendously busy helping agriculturists to be heard at a legislative level, both statewide and nationwide. She’s spent the past nearly two decades working to help farmers, ranchers, and Rural America. From being on the Montana Livestock Loss Board, providing financial reimbursements to producers due to losses caused by predators, to becoming the National Secretary of the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association.
She’s been involved in Women Involved in Farm Economics and served as the State President. She is a graduate of Class I and is currently on the Advisory Board of REAL Montana, a comprehensive two year leadership program offering in-depth education and training in the agriculture and natural resource industries. REAL Montana is a unique public-private partnership between Montana State University Extension and private industry supporters.
She’s currently involved in the planning of the Women Stepping Forward for Agriculture Conference which will be held in Billings October 3-5. Their mission is to empower women involved in all sectors of agriculture through education, collaboration, and networking, to ensure the success of farms and ranches across the region.
“We cover everything from personal development in business to technical skills like pesticide application and calving,” Whitney said. “There’s something for every woman involved in agriculture to any degree, if they are interested.
She’s an influential young woman in her various roles in promoting the ag industry, but her Instagram and Facebook page depict her as a woman who enjoys spending the days with her husband, Dylan, playing with their Corgis, working cattle, and tending to their farm and ranch.
“We all have beautiful stories. And when the common thread we all share is stitched together, it’s a beautiful thing.”
“I want to tell through my photos what living and farming and ranching in rural Montana looks like,” she said.
Whitney posts photos that she’s spontaneously taken of typical farm and ranch scenes and often short videos of the livestock that live on the ranch.
Several of her posts have gone viral including her “Cross Fit Cow,” first posted in January of 2016 of one of their cows head butting a round bale of straw across the snow covered field in their winter pasture.
“I just happened to catch that one on my phone,” Whitney smiled. “I said something about how California cows do yoga to get healthy, but Montana cows do Crossfit. That one went viral!”
Viewed millions of times on Facebook and other platforms, she licensed her video with a viral media company and it has actually provided some income for her.
She’s had others go viral too including a recent photo she took of Dylan on the back of their feed pickup on a -40 degree day in January. He was holding a MSU Bobcat flag in support of the Bobcats in the FCS championship game in Texas between MSU and North Dakota State.
That photo was then photoshopped into dozens of famous scenes across social media and showed Dylan on mountain tops, conquering battles, and leading teams to victory.
“It was fun,” Whitney said. “We didn’t know it would go that far.”
Whitney typically posts things going on in the life of Eastern Montana farmers and ranchers, battling the elements and taking care of livestock and raising crops in extreme weather.
“Whatever I post I think about how it will look to an outsider. I do my best to explain how and why we are doing what we are doing in the caption. But if the photo can’t be explained just by looking at it or there’s a possibility that it could be misinterpreted, I don’t take the chance.”
Her posts are real. They show the young couple out feeding cattle in below zero weather, harvesting wheat in the blistering heat, fighting wildfires, Big Sky sunsets, and their beloved corgis. It’s easy to see she loves her life, and she wants to share it.
“We all have beautiful stories,” she said. “And when the common thread we all share is stitched together, it’s a beautiful thing.”
You can find Whitney on Instagram @whitney.klasna or on Facebook.