Kleeman receives Pioneer Award

Longtime Miller cattleman receives highest honor from state association
 
A local cattle producer was recently honored by the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association for his nearly six decades of work in the beef industry. Leon Kleeman, owner of Gleonda Angus Farms in Miller, was presented with the Pioneer Award at the MCA’s 53rd Annual Missouri Cattle Industry Convention and Trade Show on Jan. 9, 2020 in Cape Girardeau. The Pioneer Award is the most prestigious that the MCA can bestow on one of its members.
Because the fact he was going to receive the award was supposed to be a surprise, Kleeman almost didn’t go to the convention this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but his family pulled an elaborate ruse on him to make sure he would attend.
“My daughter and Traves (Kleeman’s grandson) dreamed all this up,” he said. “They said that he (Traves) was going to get an award, and they wanted us to go up there and see him get his award.”
 From the beginning
Kleeman began raising Angus cattle about 60 years ago. According to a narrative on the Gleonda Angus Farms/ website, he got his start at the age of eight when his father “gave him a bucket calf from an Angus-cross cow.” From there, he would go on to show cattle during his high school years and beyond.
Though Kleeman didn’t go to college, he has acquired a great deal of knowledge about raising cattle from what he called the “School of Hard Knocks.” He said his method for acquiring knowledge was pretty straightforward.
“You tried, and if it worked, you used it, and if it didn’t, you’d scrap it and go on from there,” he said.
Over the years, Kleeman has developed a strong reputation as a quality cattle breeder. A Facebook post from the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association congratulating him said Kleeman’s brand of Angus cattle is recognized statewide, and many cattle breeders will come to him for advice.
“The commercial breeders come to us to find out the stock and how they’re bred, and … the information on each one of them, if they’re easy-calving bulls or easy calving heifers, and also into the meat quality on them.”
Kleeman also has a small store on his operation, called “The Farm Shop.” At the Farm Shop, people can buy various cuts of Angus beef, as well as other items. Kleeman said the shop helps people unfamiliar with the cattle industry to better understand how beef is produced.
“They understand more the quality of the meat and the grade of the meat, and they understand exactly where the meat comes from,” he said.
Kleeman said he’s seen a lot of changes in how cattle are raised, mainly in the form of the mechanical technology used in the industry. He said it has made a lot of manual labor easier, but has also created some new headaches for cattlemen.
“It’s probably easier physically, but mentally, it’s harder,’ he said. “We have to keep up on all the news that’s coming out.”
However, Kleeman said, there are also some aspects of raising cattle that never change.
“You still have to take care of (your cattle),” he said. “You can’t abuse them; you can’t starve a profit out of them. You have to keep them in good health. The health thing has really changed, but you still have to maintain and take care of your cattle.”