B I O G R A P H Y

The oldest child of Ray and Shirley Knuppe, Ken, and his brothers and sister grew up on a farm/ranch in rural New Underwood, South Dakota. Ken learned early on the value of hard work and the important role each individual plays in a family-run business.

After graduating from New Underwood High School in 1977, Ken went on to South Dakota State University where he obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Animal Science with a Business Option. Throughout high school and college, Ken developed a strong work ethic along with a spirit of innovation, as he bought and sold cattle, maintained his own spray business, worked for local salebarns and worked on his father's farm/ranch during the summer.

As soon as he graduated, Ken and his bride returned home to Western South Dakota where he began working on a ranch east of Buffalo Gap, S.D., owned by Monica's grandfather Frank Wilson. Just months after Ken was hired, Frank died suddenly and Ken and Monica took over a large part of the place, where they remain today.   In the early years, Ken freelanced for the Farmer's Home Administration and worked for neighboring ranchers to help make ends meet. In more recent years, two movies, Crazy Horse and Hildago were partially filmed on the Knuppe Ranch and neighboring ranches. Always industrious, Ken enjoyed a good working relationship with the movie industry during the filming of each movie as he provided hands-on assistance in the form of machinery, labor and property.       

Ken and Monica's four children, Kendra, Kerry, Clay and Rich grew up trailing cattle horseback with dad and attending neighbor's brandings where they pitched in to help with any task. Each developed an independent spirit and a love for the land. Family ties run deep, and although all of the kids have now graduated from high school and are either attending classes or working in various locations around the country, they cherish the times that they are all back together for holidays, friends' and relatives' weddings or the Knuppe branding in the spring.

Ken joined the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association when Monica's grandmother Julia Wilson bought him a membership in the early 1980s's. Several years later he was asked to serve as a director, and then was chosen to hold the position of Regional Vice President. In 2001 he became the Vice President of the organization, and then served as President from 2003-2005. It was during that time that Ken grew to love working with large groups of people and where he learned that "when people lead, leaders follow." Ken realized that a group is strong when individuals take on responsibility and ownership in the future of the organization, not when one person tries to strong-arm others. The various committees thrived under Ken's leadership, as they were not micromanaged, but encouraged to research their fields of expertise, and report their findings back to the group.

Ken and the organization developed a good working relationship with the state's congressional delegation and many state legislators, as well as countless agency officials on the county, state and federal level during his time as President.

Ken's leadership style gained the S.D. Stockgrowers Association national recognition. Under his leadership as Vice President and President the organization grew from around 650 members to over 1,800 members. The organization was known among its peers as the premier state cattle organization - the group that other state and national organizations looked to for advice, assistance and encouragement. Several neighboring states even patterned new start-up organizations after the Stockgrowers. Ken also served as an ambassador for South Dakota and the ag industry on numerous occasions, traveling to Washington, DC to meet with Senators, Representatives and agency officials.

As President of the organization Ken oversaw a $1 million+ budget and helped manage about 20 full time employees and over 150 part time employees.

Ken helped lobby for Association policy while serving as president. After his service as president ended, Ken served as the main lobbyist for the organization for two terms.  

A committed family man, Ken rarely missed one of his kids' school events, even though they attended high school almost 60 miles away in Custer, S.D. His love and devotion as 'dad' has always overruled any other position he has held. His children have learned from Dad that ranching isn't just chasing cows and checking fence. Operating a successful ranch is no different than keeping any small business solvent. Budgeting, planning, and creative problem solving are needed to make any ranch profitable especially in today's lean economic times. The time and resources Ken has devoted to the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association and the cattle industry have been with the next generation in mind. He hopes one of his children will decide to move back to the ranch one day. He knows he is at a position in his profession that he will likely survive the 'storms' that are to come, but without some changes to the industry, young adults hoping to farm and ranch may not have a fighting chance at a life in agriculture.