Know your farmers

Most people know us as the Parkers, but for those of you who don't, WELCOME! We're glad you stopped by! We are Ryan and Christen Parker, from the not so little anymore town of Mt. Ulla, NC. This town sits on the very edge of Western Rowan County, right outside of Mooresville, NC and is still full of rural agriculture, even with all the development going on around us.

​

Ryan, a Mt. Ulla native and known to most as Speedy is a 4th generation farmer, but also a retired career Marine. Anyone who has met him knows farming is ingrained into his DNA and his passion for it started from a very young age. As a boy, if you couldn't find him, all you had to do was look for a moving tractor and chances were very high that he was there, riding along and learning.... and somehow always finding the throttle so they could go faster. As he got older, he was given the opportunity to help in the fields and also helping to feed the calves. After high school, he chose to proudly serve our country and enlisted into the United States Marine Corps where he faithfully served for 21 years. If you ask him what he would rather do, farm or serve, he's going to choose farming every time.

​

Christen, a native of Woodleaf didn't grow up farming, but her family did raise a variety of animals ranging from chickens to cows, but they also had pretty green thumbs and worked every year to have a great garden and preserve what they had grown. While she enjoyed taking care of those animals and being in the garden, her passion fell more on taking care of dogs and showing them. Even though she doesn't show dogs anymore, you can rest assured, there will always be a dog around, following close behind but most likely you'll find her buried in the garden, planting, harvesting, canning or the worst job of a garden, weed pulling.

​

Ryan and Christen met at the end of 2009 and well the rest is history. Marrying just 6 months after knowing each other, the road definitely hasn't been easy one but has been by far the most rewarding. They have been blessed with 3 wonderful children, 1 grandson and a granddaughter due to arrive early 2027! After spending several years helping with the day-to-day operations of the family's dairy farm, they decided to start their own herd, on the beef operation side of things. There have been many trial and errors, but they have started to find the groove and work together as a husband-and-wife team, building a legacy their kids will hopefully carry on.