GrainsWest Fall 2019

Fall 2019 Grains West 30 FEATURE BEST ADVICE TOOTHERS “Talk to your family about returning before you jump back in. Talk about expectations, goals, vision and where you fit in in these areas. Be sure to include a what-if conversation in order to preserve the family relationship if the joint venture doesn’t work out.” BEST ADVICE FROM FAMILY “Find something you are passionate about, love doing and pursue it.” BRENT KONSTAPEL When Brent Konstapel and his twin brother Peter finished high school, they weren’t given the option to stay on the farm. “We weren’t allowed to stick around,” said Konstapel with a laugh. “Dad said to get off farm, get a different job and work for someone else.” Konstapel grew up north of Grande Prairie near Spirit River on the farm that his grandfather and father Gerry started Last year the family established a formal partnership, splitting the farm assets evenly between the couple and Adam’s parents. Coming back to the farm meant setting aside activities Adam enjoyed as a teacher, such as playing baseball. It also meant coming to terms with who he was as a farmer. “Off-farm you get to find your identity outside of your family. You figure out who you are and what your goals are,” he said. “To me, a farmer had to have dad’s skill set. I don’t have that, so part of our conversation was, ‘dad, do you think I can be a farmer?’ He said, ‘you have skills that I don’t.’” “School administration gave me confidence in the management and fiduciary responsibilities, making phone calls, researching, finding resources that can make our farmmore sustainable and productive,” he added. “I love teaching, but I love farming, too. I grew up on it and there’s the challenge of maintaining something that has been built over a century.” when they immigrated from Holland in the 1980s. While he had been a full-time farmer, Konstapel said his father didn’t expect his sons to be. “As far as we knew, the farm was always going to be there, but I didn’t know I’d come back for sure,” he added. He worked in oilfield well testing, but finding camp life isolating, he took a chemical company warehouse job to be closer to home. In both jobs, his farm sensibilities and work ethic served him well. “If there’s something to do, you do it,” he said. “You go to work and you do the job. My co-workers were happy when they saw a farm kid come into the workplace.” He credits this off-farm employment with improving his people skills and preparing him for various professional situations. It also allowed him to have new experiences through travel. Konstapel returned to the farm in 2012 and married his wife Megan the following From left to right, the Adam farm is home to Bryan, Beverly,Walker, Luke, Charlie, Dani andMadison.