Now entering his second year as a director of the New Mexico Beef Council, Bruce is a lifelong rancher. He now serves as vice-president and treasurer of the historic CS ranch where he grew up.
“My parents Les and Linda Davis encouraged us all to participate as soon as we could get horseback,” he says “It was fun growing up with five brothers and sisters, and we’re all still involved in the ranch.”
Bruce attended Cimarron schools through the ninth grade, then went on to New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell. After earning his BS in agriculture business management at New Mexico State University, he spent a year on the ranch. He then went to work as a market analyst for Cattle-Fax in Denver. “That experience broadened my perspective,” he says, as he learned the relationships between all aspects of the cattle business.
While he was in his mid-20s, he began marketing the calves for the ranch. “Dad took the chance, and he let me make my mistakes,” Bruce recalls.
He returned to the ranch in 1986, then, in June, 1989, married Trina Rankin, a civil engineer from Las Cruces. They have two sons, John, 12, and Ben, 18, a freshman at Patrick Henry College in Virginia. Both their sons are home-schooled. Bruce and Trina operate their own cattle stocker company, Pi Diversified, Inc.
About 2-1/2 years ago, Bruce and a small group of fellow NMSU ag econ graduates purchased Clayton Cattle Feeders. “That’s been a good thing,” Bruce says. “The business was in mothballs, and we made it a going concern again.”
In addition to being active in First Baptist Church in Raton, Bruce has served on the board of directors of New Mexico Cattle Growers and belongs to the Northeastern New Mexico Livestock Association.
“I’ve been blessed to be able to work in an industry I love and do business with people I love, where a handshake still means something. I enjoy being able to work with my family, to be outdoors, and to work with the livestock every day. ”
“I would encourage anyone who has an interest in the industry to pursue it. There are ways to become involved, and there are opportunities in marketing and management. My next step, which I became aware of at the US Beef Academy is to share what I know with younger folks who might be interested in a career in the industry.”
In July, 2012, 18 students interested in pursuing ranching and other agricultural careers attended the first-ever US Beef Academy at Valles Caldera National Preserve for an in-depth week of hands-on study and demonstrations. Bruce represented the NMBC at the event.
New Mexico Ranch Life 