Among the winners of the Kansas Farm Bureau Association's Kansas Farm Family of the Year Award were Colby Community College equine program director and head equestrian team coach Shanda Mattix and her husband, Caleb. The distinction highlights families' participation in Farm Bureau programs and providing leadership, civic service, and exhibiting good farm operation management.
The family represents the northwest district and received one of 10 awards across the state. They run a commercial cow-calf operation of primarily black Angus cattle, retaining replacement heifers to continue the growth of their herd and improve genetics. Over the past two years, they have retained a portion of their calf crop and feed them to harvesting weight. The Mattix's state-inspected facility offers their ranch-raised beef direct to consumers through a processing partnership with ZD's Meatz in Oakley.
A graduate of Colby High School and Colby Community College, Shanda was raised on a commercial cow-calf operation in northwest Kansas. She showed quarter horses and competed in barrel racing and horse judging contests as a child. In college, she rode for the CCC and Kansas State University varsity equestrian teams and was a regional qualifier all four years.
Shanda started at CCC in 2007 as an assistant equestrian team coach and became a full-time faculty member in 2009. Her success in the classroom earned the Tangeman Award for Teaching Excellence in 2020. She serves on the Kansas Farm Bureau Collegiate Task Force and and is a board member for the Kansas Horse Council and the Certified Horsemanship Association for Region 9 and Kansas. As a lover of western fashion and punchy home decor, she runs Barnwood & Bling out of the family barn.
Caleb grew up in southeast Kansas and worked on his grandfather's hay operations and for local farmers and ranchers. In his youth, he stayed active in FFA and the Montgomery County Farm Bureau. He owns and operates Caleb Mattix Portable Welding, emphasizing agriculture construction, welding, and concrete. Since 2014, he has been a Thomas County Farm Bureau board member and has filled all officer roles. He and Shanda each served on the Kansas Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers committee for a two year-term representing their district.
Married since 2009, the couple has two children, daughter Morgan, 8, and son Rawlins, 4.