Meredith Ellis considers herself a life-long student and her ranch is the classroom.

Time away from the ranch— careers spent in offices, cities, and far from cattle— prepared these producers to elevate their family operations to new heights.

Absence has the tendency to make the heart grow fonder. And sometimes it takes being away from the farm or ranch, pursuing other goals, to realize just how special it is to be a cattle producer and steward of the land. Spending years in a profession not directly related to beef production offers an abundance of knowledge, experience and exposure, preparing producers to commit whole-heartedly to improving the operation and honoring the heritage established before them.

Cattlemen and women balance fresh, innovative ideas with rich history and family legacies. Generations of producers use knowledge from their ancestors, coupled with their own experiences, to advance the industry, remain profitable, and provide a sought-after product for consumers.

Logan Pribbeno with Wine Glass Ranch in southwest Nebraska spent 10 years off the ranch before he could return— this was a requirement from his father, Jeff. Upon graduating high school, Logan packed his bags and moved to Southern California, where he studied economics at the University of California Santa Barbara. For more than five years, he worked in the San Francisco Bay area for a consulting firm. Starting out as an Initial Public Offering( IPO) readiness consultant, he helped prepare startups to become publicly traded. However, when the 2008 economic crisis hit, Logan learned the importance of adaptability and shifted into an accounting and finance role for the firm. In 2012, Logan and his wife, Brianna, traded the Sierra Nevadas for the grasslands of Nebraska.

“ On our operation, my dad and I act as the CEO and CFO, and we spend most of our hours in the office analyzing what we did right, what we should have done, and what we are going to be doing. With that approach to ranching, it was nice to have worked at a firm where I had that structure and framework. It has been a blessing and gave me the business skills to ensure the ranch is profitable,” Logan said.

While he may not have learned riding or roping skills in the Silicon Valley, Logan was developing management techniques and learning financial tools that now help him make business decisions. As a self-proclaimed“ grass

Left to Right: Prairie, Pearl, Logan and Briana Pribbeno

12 NATIONAL CATTLEMEN DIRECTIONS 2025