Hard Work Makes Luck: McCurry and Quam on Taking a Chance and Returning Home

It’s not always glamorous but if there’s a will to return home to the ranch, there’s a way. In this episode, the American Angus Association’s two Young Breeder of the Year honorees share their path back to generational Angus operations. 

They suggest there’s more opportunity for young people than ever before and share the opportunities they’ve capitalized on as they’ve come.

“There are people looking for somebody to step up. It’s going to be work and it could be very dirty work, but there will be a reward at the end,” says John McCurry, Burrton, Kan., who joins Cody Quam, Lodi, Wis., for an authentic discussion on how they're making their ways in the Angus business.

HOSTS: Miranda Reiman and Mark McCully 

GUESTS: 
John McCurry, McCurry Angus, Burrton, Kan., says he is “double bred Angus.” His parents Mary and Andy McCurry were two third-generation Angus breeders who met at Kansas State University and started their own operation. Today the ranch operates on 2,000 acres of sandhill pastures near Hutchinson, Kan. Also a graduate of Kansas State, John was an energetic National Junior Angus Association member, actively participating in the show ring and attending national conferences. He capped off his junior career in 2003 as he hung up his green coat for the last time. Today he and his wife, Melody, have three children who compete at the National Junior Angus Show every summer and are capable hired hands during school breaks and weekends. 

Cody Quam, Marda Angus Farms, Lodi, Wis., is a fourth-generation Angus breeder working side-by-side with his family. Cody leads genetic selection and the donor/embryo transfer program as well as sales and marketing. Under his stewardship, the business has earned multiple top honors at the Midland Bull Test. Off the farm, the young breeder stays involved in the cattle industry, as a long-time delegate to the national convention, a graduate of the Beef Leaders Institute and president of the World Beef Expo board. Cody and his wife, Tracy, are raising their two kids, Levi and Paisley, as the fifth generation in the Angus business. Cody was recently awarded the 2024 Young Angus Breeder of the Year award, and he accepted the award at the Angus Convention in Fort Worth, Texas.  

RELATED READING: 
Double Bred Angus
A Tradition of Proficiency  

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