Located on the rolling hills and grasslands of South Dakota’s Prairie Coteau, Neil Bien’s family ranch is home to not only cattle but also diverse wildlife thanks to the family’s efforts to preserve wetlands and native grasslands.
A third-generation Veblen rancher, Bien enjoys welcoming friends to enjoy the beauty of the ranch. And when they arrive, he gives them a unique welcome thanks to a bell from the old Trondhjem Lutheran church.
In this In Your Own Words segment, Bien shares how the bell and its welcome came to be a tradition on the Bien Ranch.
“This bell was in a country church that was built in the 1880s about two-and-a-half miles north of here. And in 1969 the membership had dropped to a point where they could no longer support the church. So it was abandoned and torn down and this bell came out of the church and lucky enough, I was able to get the bell for $35 on the sale. In fact, the bell costs $2,500 in 1925 when they bought it,” Neil Bien said.
“Here were two ropes that came down through the various levels of the steeple and back down to the floor. This one had a lighter rope on it and as small children coming to Sunday School or Bible School we could ring this one because it's basically just a hammer softly or it can be rang harder,” Bien said.
“So, we thought it should be close by so the people that were in the church and their members could still enjoy it. And then we got a little idea that why don't we ring it every time some friends come or it's it doesn't get to ring for church anymore but it can ring for a good occasion when people come that we know and enjoy in our friends, so we ring the bell and now it's become a tradition people look forward to it. So that's the thing, we use the bell to replace the church welcome with our ranch welcome.”
