Dan grew up in Tillamook County on a small beef and timber ranch. Throughout his childhood, he tagged along with his father, a true "desert rat," into the Owyhee country whenever they had the chance. They shared a love of the desert country and those trips fostered the beginnings of a dream Dan would pursue his entire life — a dream of ranching in the Oregon desert. Dan paid his way through college at Oregon State University by logging in the summers in the tradition of his father and grandfathers. After graduating in 1965, he went to Vietnam for 2 years to make his stake as a construction engineer for Morrison and Knutson of Boise, Idaho. After returning from Vietnam, he invested in several business ventures in the Salem area; one of them being a beef ranch near Scio.

Dan's first ranching venture east of the Cascades came in 1978 with the purchase of the T. Wilson ranch near Dufur. Ten years later, he and his family made their permanent move to the interior desert region when they purchased the historic Imperial Stock Ranch near Shaniko. Since then, he and his wife Jeanne have been widely honored for their sustainable production practices and their conservation ethic. They have been leaders in the nationally acclaimed Buckhollow Watershed Project.

Today Dan sits on the Board of Directors of the State Department of Agriculture and the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. He and Jeanne are also at the forefront of the farm-to-consumer direct marketing movement. They are successfully marketing their lamb, beef and fiber products to a consumer that values food quality and sustainable production methods on the land, above merely price. Dan sees a very bright future for agriculture producers who can sustainably produce, deliver their product, and tell their story to our ever changing society.