Logan County native Jim Peifer inducted into the United Suffolk Sheep Association Hall of Fame

 

[December 30, 2021] 

November 15, 2021 was a bittersweet day for Angie Peifer as she and family members celebrated a huge accomplishment by her late husband Jim Peifer.

Peifer, a Logan County native and life-long farmer was honored at the United Suffolk Sheep Association Hall of Fame along with his business partner Kurt Birky. Jim was there in spirit only, as he had passed away several years prior in 2013.


Angie Peifer and Kurt Birky

Peifer and Birky were actually selected to be inducted in the Hall of Fame in 2020. But when the coronavirus took over the world that year, the Hall of Fame ceremony was cancelled. Therefore, the two nominees representing Illinois and three other nominees from other states had a year to digest their accomplishment before attending the official induction ceremony in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2021.

Recently Angie spoke to LDN about the induction. “We were notified in mid-2020 that Jim and his partner Kurt would be inducted but due to covid the 2020 recognition dinner was cancelled and postponed to 2021. I felt so proud of Jim and so honored to have him recognized for his hard work, but in some ways, it was bittersweet as he isn’t here to enjoy this.”

At the same time, knowing her husband as she did, she had a vivid picture of what the honor would have meant to him. “He would have been ecstatic - and surprised. I can just imagine his smile at getting this news and how he would have enjoyed every minute of the recognition dinner.”

Jim Peifer began raising Suffolk sheep in 1987. As a Logan County farmer, he had decided that he wanted something to occupy his time during the winter months when the soil lay dormant awaiting spring and the new growing cycle. He started out with what he called a “hobby flock.”

During those early years he spent time with his neighbor Dale Steffens who raised Hampshire Sheep. He learned from Steffens and began perfecting the trade and felt the influence of his friend and neighbor helped him get off to a good start.
 

Ten years into his ‘hobby’ Jim met up with Kurt Birky who had been raising sheep since he was 11 years old. Birky joined Peifer in the sheep breeding business in 1997 and together they established a goal for the herd. Those goals were to, “compete at the national level, to raise a "clean" flock, and to sell and be the "go to" flock for top breeders.” The pair met those goals and more. By the time the partnership dissolved in 2008, Peifer Suffolks were well known throughout the industry.

To get the start they needed to achieve those goals, Peifer and Birky turned to another top Suffolk breeder, Steve George. They acquired six top stud ewes and leased two ram lambs from George, and gained some good leadership and advice as well.

Taken from the biography presented at the Hall of Fame: “Once the flock was established, it consisted of 30 to 35 ewes most years. The most impactful sire during this partnership was George Brothers 3915. Through his son Doc and his daughters and granddaughters, their impact continues on today in pedigrees around the country. The most impactful ewe family was George Brothers 3898 and her daughter Peifer 1015. His ewe line goes back to George Brother's great Bertha ewe and this line does not miss.

From the left, Steve George, Jim Peifer and Kurt Birky

“The most shining moments in Peifer Suffolks success were their four Louisville Champions: Stroker Ace - 2002; Cracker Jack, a Stroker Ace son - 2004 for Tom Burke; Strokin' It, another Stroker Ace son - 2005; and Alpha - Champion Ewe in 2006 whose sire is 1186, son of 1015.

“During their partnership, they also had multiple champions and reserve champions at the Illinois and Iowa State Fairs, the Ohio Suffolk Sale, and at Sedalia.”

Angie Peifer said that the partnership was very successful and that the show circuit yielded many several champions. She shared one photo of Jim and Kurt from the show days and noted that the photo included Steve George who was a great help to the two men throughout their show days.

According to their biography, Peifer and Birky had a business plan that included the time in their career that they would retire from the sheep business. However, in 2008 the men had an opportunity to “disperse” their flock. While it was sooner than they had anticipated, it was perhaps the best time to do so. It was just one year later that Peifer was diagnosed with frontotemoral degeneration, a type of early onset dementia. Peifer’s illness became progressively worse and in 2013 Jim passed away.

Birky had moved on by then and is now working mostly with Ruby Mountain Sheep Company in Spring Creek, Nevada. Birky is enjoying much success working with owner Cynthia Huckins much the same way he did with Jim Peifer. He advises her on breeding and genetics and helps to fit and show her sheep around the country.

Noting that Jim and Kurt had established goals for their sheep breeding career, Angie was asked if being inducted into the Hall of Fame was something that the Jim had aspired to.

“I really don’t think he ever considered that,” she said. “He was in the business because he loved doing it - taking care of his mama ewes and baby lambs; watching them grow and develop into beautiful show and breeding animals; going to shows and connecting with other Suffolk breeders who became his friends and coming home from those shows with trophies that recognized his hard work; welcoming prospective buyers and showing off his flock at the farm - and then depositing those nice checks when they bought.”

In November, Angie Peifer and family members traveled to Louisville for the Hall of Fame Banquet. She said that it was a very meaningful event for her and noted that it was a celebration of Jim’s life.

“It was a blessing to be there. The induction dinner occurred a few weeks after the eighth anniversary of Jim’s death and for me it turned that anniversary into a celebration of sorts. I had an opportunity to see and visit with some of the Suffolk sheep people that Jim had so enjoyed knowing and working with and to hear their warm and funny memories of him. I felt their love for him in their stories. And the evening was made more special in that I got to share it with Jim’s brothers Tom and Bob and my sisters-in-law Patty and Michelle.”

Angie along with Jim’s brothers and sisters-in-law returned home with a couple of mementos acknowledging the special event and Jim’s accomplishments during his sheep rearing career. But what they really brought home with them was a memory, a warm feeling of love and acceptance from those who were Jim’s peers in the industry, and stories from that event that will be shared throughout the generations of the Peifer family.

LDN thanks Angie Peifer for sharing this with us and allowing us to share it with our readers. While Jim may no longer be of this world, it is obvious that his life was one well lived, and well worth remembering for years to come.

[Nila Smith]