By Kerry Hoffschneider
Garth Bullington said his granddaughter Beckett is going to know a lot about driving and ranching before a lot of kids because her mom, Cortney Wright, brings her out to the ranch every day to see Grandpa.
“She is really an inspiration,” said Bullington. “She is my first grandchild. She was born in July.”
Like the path his granddaughter is on, Bullington knows full well what it’s like to be shaped by ranch life in the Sandhills of Neb. He hasn’t known any life but working with cattle and the land, “I grew up in Tryon, Neb., just 30 miles west of where we live right now.”
When asked what memories he had from growing up, he said matter-of-factly, “Someone asked me just that question the other day. All we ever did was pretty much work related. I have always been around cows. I don’t know anything else, so that is what I do.”
During his formative years, Bullington’s parents – Veldon and Alma, raised registered Hereford cows and some bulls. His mom, age 90, still resides in North Platte. His father has since passed away, but Bullington carries on the life of a cattleman that was set forth during his youth.
After high school, Bullington went to work at the Paxton Ranch, a position he was dedicated to for 13 years. He also got married to his wife Jodi six months after going to work for the ranch. He said John Warren, his boss, was a good guy to work for and he did not leave until there was a chance to come back home to his roots.
“I left there when I had the chance to lease my folks’ place. John helped me out with some cows and the folks helped with some rent and that is what started where we are today,” he explained.
Bullington and his wife Jodi had two daughters – Cortney who lives in Mullen and Justy, who lives in Lincoln. Six years ago, Jodi passed away and in October of 2020 Bullington wrecked his pickup after running into some black ice, “I broke my back and severely injured my spinal cord. When all the wheels stopped, I had no feeling in my legs.”
To this day, Bullington still does not have movement from the sternum down. Despite the challenges presented by his injury, he continues to get up each day to run the ranch, “My daughter Cortney comes out daily and brings Beckett with her. If Cortney were not around here, it would be a different story. I have to give her so much credit.”
There are so many others too, he said, that help keep the ranch going. Hesitant to leave anyone out, he credits his neighbors, two nephews – Brett and Cory Bullington and Cortney’s husband, Brad too. He also has much credit to give to himself and his will to continue making a positive contribution each day to agriculture. Bullington is serving an important position as he relays his knowledge and expertise to the next generation.
One way Bullington has been able to continue working is through special equipment. With the help of his mom and sisters, he was able to find a track chair from Minnesota that was gently used, “It’s pretty handy and I can get pretty much anywhere in it. I don’t get stuck in the sand like I do with other ones.”
“One of the first things we also bought when I got home was a side-by-side (utility vehicle). That allows me to go along to check cattle and to help tag cattle. We have put a lot of miles on that since we go it. I even helped the neighbors take cows out to grass with it. We were pretty much a horse outfit before that was purchased. But the accident put a damper on the ol’ horseback riding. With the side-by-side I can do a little something more than sitting around and shouting orders,” he said.
Bullington also found out about the Nebraska AgrAbility program through this journey when he was at Craig Rehabilitation in Colo. Since 1995, the program has helped individuals with disabilities overcome barriers to continue in their chosen agricultural profession. Rod Peterson, Rural Rehabilitation Specialist, has been working with Bullington to secure some more helpful resources, “Rod has been a pretty good advocate about getting stuff and telling me where there are resources I can apply for. They have options that I would not have known about otherwise.”
Peterson was able to connect Bullington with an entity to help convert his pickup to hand controls. Resource coordination by AgrAbility has also helped him secure a hydraulic chute that is on its way to the ranch, “The hydraulic chute is something I can do when we are running cattle through. Otherwise, I can feel worthless out there. I helped a few neighbors that have one and I ran it when they were preg-checking cattle. The hydraulic chute I am getting has controls located lower down so I can manage them when I am sitting.”
Bullington is humble about his work ethic and very appreciative of the resources Nebraska AgrAbility has available to farmers and ranchers. He said it can be hard to ask for help but producers really should look into the program, “It doesn’t hurt to check into it and see what they have to offer. It’s something to help keep you going.”