Dear editor:

Wyoming has been fantastic for our family! My adventuresome grandparents homesteaded near Powell in 1918. I was born in Cody in 1949 when my parents were farming on Emblem Bench near Greybull. In 1959, we moved to a farm and cattle operation on Heart Mountain near Powell where I learned honesty, grit, resilience from hailstorms, love, respect for others, and financial skills from my hardworking and visionary parents. My upbringing was ideal for my future food-based nationwide business career and for the raising of our family of 11 children across our beautiful America!

After graduating from Powell High School and college, I served in national management positions in potato, dairy and produce companies while gaining valuable food industry experience. With both successes and setbacks, I’ve never given up on my ideals and goals. After returning to Cody, I decided to launch my eighth grade dream to brand Wyoming beef from Wyoming ranches at age 61. I wrote the business plan in December 2010, and my wife Kristine and I committed ourselves to this vision.

We met in 2011 with Forward Cody (a local economic development group) who connected us with Gov. Matt Mead and the Wyoming Business Council (WBC), which was foundational for our success! For our business to go national/international, we would have to “pioneer” and build the first Wyoming USDA plant. This plant was completed in October 2013 with a WBC grant that paid 90%, along with capital from us and our other investors who shared this vision.

Without the WBC’s truly SIGNIFICANT support and business guidance, we wouldn't have been able to accomplish the following within the very competitive beef snack market:

1. Build the first USDA plant in the state (there are now multiple ones in
Wyoming)

2. Provide $400,000 in payroll annually for our 13 Wyoming-based employees

3. Create significant goodwill for Wyoming through our advertising

4. Bring recognition to our amazing Wyoming cattle ranchers

5. Promote Wyoming Beef from Wyoming ranches across the U.S. and Canada with high impact branded “Wyoming” packaging and marketing direct to consumers and to thousands of retailers nationwide.

It’s been a challenging 15 years! Without the WBC grants and guidance that we’ve received, this entire business — with all the Wyoming jobs and millions of dollars of payroll we’ve created — would NOT have happened. We need the WBC!

David A. Fales

Cody