My family has been selling country ham in central Missouri since the 1920s, when my entrepreneurial grandfather started selling a few country hams for a bit of extra money. He ultimately constructed our original facility, the “Ham House,” in 1952, and with the help and support of his family, the business was launched. My father, along with other G2 family members, built upon that foundation to significantly scale our Evergreen business, Burgers’ Smokehouse. Today, we operate two facilities and employ 350 people, producing a wide variety of cured and smoked meats and other foods for customers throughout the U.S. and southeast Asia.

I am one of nine third- and fourth-generation family members working in the business, and all of us are keenly aware of our role as stewards of a gift that has come to us through the energy and vision of those who came before. Our shared Purpose is to perpetuate the organization to benefit employees and our community and to create value for family shareholders—indefinitely over many generations to come.