“Our first sale of the Fall in October is a phone bid- off”, explains Nick, “while online sales have become incredibly popular and are great avenues to sell and market your stock, we like the added personal touch that comes with those phone conversations. When on the phone helping people find their perfect fit, it encourages a dialogue about target show(s), the families’ goals and really how they want us to help them achieve their benchmarks of success for the year. Some families want to win their district show, some have won Junior Nationals multiple times and just want to do it again. These are things we get to learn, early on, and are better able to support and cheer for our families because of our phone bid- off format.” The founding principal of Fitz Genetics is “It Takes a Village”. Having grown up in the cattle industry, as well as currently being
a young family raising children in this industry, Nick and Ashley believe strongly in the values, and blessings that a village plays. While Fitz Genetics enjoys leaning into servicing families across the country, we all know that that can come with extra support needed at the home operation as well. “The Village Fitz Genetics constantly works to build is of course at the shows with our families, our crews, those that have been part of the calf’s journey to the show. But there is also a village needed in the daily grind of chore schedules, calving checks, and sometimes a well-placed Pizza Hut order,” says Ashley. An operation founded on a passion learned from generations of ranch life passed down, it’s no surprise that the Fitzsimmonses are unrelenting advocates for family time in the barn.
Lander (6) and Layne Grace (4) were recently overheard telling friends they couldn’t make it to a birthday party as it was “ranching practice” day on Saturday and they couldn’t miss it. This foundational upbringing is one of the many things that both Nick and Ashley are thankful for as the reflect on what spurs the passion to continue to expand and adapt Fitz Genetics with each changing year, set and family they work with. “We love being able to work with families to help them achieve their show ring goals,” says Nick. “But also to watch them grown and learn together in the barn. There is nothing more valuable to the future of our industry than families that truly immerse themselves in that barn time and win, lose and learn as a family.” Fitz Genetics has been very fortunate to have raised, sold, and been part of numerous National and State Champion females
since their inception almost a decade ago. Winning is, and always will be, an important part of the equation of any show cattle operation. However, winning at any level is only a portion of the importance of the show ring. The true benefits and scope of the positives the show ring bring to our youth, our industry and beyond is feeling of a big win,” says Nick. “That prayer I know we’ve all sent up of ‘Dear God, just let us do that one more time’ at each passing show. What’s so amazing and humbling about this sport we play and industry we live in is knowing that for every win, there’s a loss; with every champion banner, there’s the one that just never got the break we wanted her to. That resilience and drive of stock show families is what truly makes this life the very best.” ● truly immeasurable. “It’s hard to beat that
221
Powered by FlippingBook