My Hero

Agriculture has evolved over the years, in terms of the industry, economics, the machinery, and even the animals. But another thing that has changed drastically is the involvement of women in the business. In years past, women weren't at the forefront and they were just a force at home. While there were always women who were well known along side their husbands, they were not accepted in the role, as in many roles in society. But soon, the discrimination faded away as there were many respected cattlewomen. I am proud to say that my grandma, Leta Wise, was one of those respected cattlewoman in a time of men.

Mimi (the name my sister and I have called her since we were babies) grew up on a ranch outside of Acme, and was the youngest girl out of 11 siblings. Her father, E.J.C. Boake, raised Jersey cattle, until a barn fire wiped out his herd. That's when the family got into raising purebred Shorthorn cattle. At one point in time, they had the largest herd of Shorthorns in Canada. Growing up, they would take bulls to the Calgary Bull Sale, and Mimi would participate in the Baby Beef show for youth, which she won many times. While there was no problem with girls showing with the rest of the kids, they had better be out of sight come night time, so it was not always so comfortable.



Mimi with her Baby Beef steer, 1952

Along with the Acme ranch, my great-grandpa bought a second ranch east of Irricana for summer pasture for the cattle. When he died in car accident, Mimi inherited this ranch. And to this day, we all still live in this beautiful place. Just as Mimi was finishing high school, she decided to apply to Washington State College to study agriculture. But being a women, the college denied her entry, but wrote her letter telling her that they would love to have her in their home economics program.
Despite the disappointment of not going to study what she loved, Mimi stayed on the ranch. She married my grandpa, Berwyn Wise, when she was 21. Grandpa didn't know anything about raising beef cattle because her grew up on a dairy farm, so Mimi showed him her knowledge and brought him into the beef cattle world. Together they ran Boa Kae Polled Shorthorns. They raised many outstanding bulls and females and attended many shows. However, Mimi was almost always the only woman in the show ring; it was just her and the men. Mimi and Grandpa made all of the decisions together, opposed to her father making the decisions for everyone when she was a little girl. Things were changing drastically. Along with these changing times, my grandparents sold all of the Shorthorns in 1969 and began boarding exotic cattle and started a custom fitting service. From 1876 to 1986, they ran a bull test station.They also imported our first Maine-Anjou cattle, which we still have today. Since then, my grandma has run the Wise Maine-Anjou Ranch.



Grandpa, far left, and Mimi, second from right with their
Champion Pair of Bulls

Even in present times, gender discrimination still seems evident. Grandpa passed away in 1996, leaving just Mimi and two of her daughters on the ranch. At this time, there were many people telling my grandma that she should disperse the cattle and simply get on with life. It has been 15 years and Mimi is still raising her Maine-Anjou cattle and enjoying her ranch. Mimi still says she has no intention of retiring. "Retire to what?" she says.

Mimi still says that her life would have probably been much different if she had been able to attend college, but the choice just wasn't there. However, she is proud of what she has done in here years and what the ranch has become. I took a quote from her here that perfectly sums up what it is to "live the dream".
"I feel very fortunate to have been able to live my dream, to see the calves, the foals, the grass, my daughters, and now my granddaughters, grow on the ranch I love. I just love the clouds and the sky and the prairie sunrise and sunset, and the silence."


Mimi and I at my graduation