In the foothills of the Arbuckle Mountains, near Springer, Oklahoma, sprawls the Double C Cattle Company Ranch. Operated by fifth-generation ranchers, Ruth and Chuck Coffey and two of their three children – Aaron, Seth, and Sarah – live on the property with the next generation. Ruth’s family worked a portion of this land through her childhood. However, for most of her adult life, she and Chuck worked as educators before dedicating themselves to ranching full-time.
They have grown the family property into its current 25,000-acre cow-calf operation. Their children all pursued educational paths that allowed them to specialize in areas crucial to the family operation: Agribusiness, Rangeland Management & Fire Ecology and Animal Science.
Deep Commitment to Sustainability
Land stewardship is at the forefront of their approach in regenerative management of their pastures in a drought-prone area. They couple grazing management with prescribed fires to promote native perennial grass biodiversity and improve groundwater resources. The prescribed burns help with the property’s infestation of an invasive species Eastern redcedar. One cedar tree can take up as much as 30 gallons per day which can reduce groundwater amounts and hydration for the grasses.
Their daughter-in-law, Havey, describes that “seeing that water come back where maybe those cedar trees have been taking it up but now the creeks are flowing again shows how much of an impact we can have here.”
They also developed 20 solar wells and added watering points to move their herds around the property, giving the grasslands time to rest between grazings. These climate smart efforts in sustainability were recognized when they won the 2019 Leopold Conservation Award from the Sand County Foundation, a Farm Credit partner, and they were the 2020 National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Region IV Environmental Stewardship winners. To diversify their operation’s income, they also have wind turbines and offer recreational hunting on the ranch.
Strong Leadership
Ruth is passionate about supporting women in ranching and is the past President of the American National Cattlewomen, which serves over one thousand members. In this role, Ruth focuses on advocating on Capitol Hill and supporting the next generation of women ranchers. As part of this leadership position, she served on NCBA’s Executive Committee. She has also served as a past president of the Oklahoma Cattlewomen’s Association.
Ruth shared “Working with generations of cattlewomen is a great honor for me, and a capstone experience to my lifetime work in education whether in the classroom or on the ranch. It is a lifetime desire to assist women seeking career opportunities in agriculture to reach goals beyond what was available to me at the outset of my early years.”
Chuck served as chair of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board, and President of the Oklahoma Society for Range Management, and was chosen as OCA’s Cattleman of the Year in 2020. Through leadership, the Coffeys work towards helping educate and empower the next generation of ranchers.
Farm Credit Partnership
The Coffeys started working with Oklahoma AgCredit in 2013 with the purchase of a new property, and the relationship has continued to grow over the years. They credit working with Oklahoma AgCredit as what has enabled them to expand their operation and to help bring the next generation into the business with them.
