Photo courtesy of Altermatt family An Altermatt family photo taken in the fall of 2024.

By Sunni Battin

news@marhsallindependent.com

It’s a day that neither Altermatt sisters Miranda or Kaycee quite envisioned — taking over the family farm near Lamberton — especially at the ages of 20 and 22 respectively.

But in 2012 their father suddenly passed in a boating accident. Then came the question from their grandfather if they wanted to run the farm together. 

“Our dad was the type of person to help anyone at anytime. In farming, you help your neighbors,” Kaycee said. So when their dad died, “neither one of us hesitated, and we both said yes right away,” Miranda added when they were asked to take helm of the 1,300 acre farm. 

Then the learning came, and there was lots of it.

For instance, Kaycee recalls driving a combine for the first time. “I was shaking the whole time and it was absolutely terrifying.”

More and education on the job followed in learning to operate the tractor and the little things like running the grain cart and driving trucks. 

“We never actually managed anything on our own,” Kaycee noted. But “having each other helped,” Miranda explained.  “I know I would never have survived on my own without having her,”

Kaycee agreed. 

For the sisters, carrying on their father’s legacy is a source of pride. From the beginning, the pair decided to farm only corn and soybeans but hope to expand in what they grow but also the amount of acreage. 

“Expanding more and finding the help for the expansion is difficult” Kaycee said. “I think that expansion would come more as our kids get older, if they show interest in it and wanting to take it over. Then really started to expand and to be able to incorporate them into the operation. For now, sustaining and making sure there is slow growth and progress.”

While both sisters assist one another, Kaycee handles more of the finances. Miranda does all of the planting and runs the planter. Besides the massive learning curve, another obstacle is their physical limitations. 

“There’s challenges just in the fact that we’re built differently,” Kaycee said. “Some things take a lot of muscle which we don’t necessarily have. It makes things challenging and we don’t have the fix it knowledge either. Our brains work different. We’re not very mechanically inclined, so when it comes to fixing anything, it that takes a little bit more and we have to ask for help more than others would.” 

Over time, the learning curve the two sisters first had has not been as overwhelming and draining as it was in the early days . Having each other to count on makes it easier and better. 

“With the way that we ended up taking over, we knew from the beginning that neither one of us should do anything exclusively,” Miranda said. “And that we both needed to know every aspect of it, because when our dad died, our grandpa had already kind of stepped back and so when it came to running the combine, Grandpa hadn’t been in one for a number of years. We both decided we should know every part of everything.”