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A Christ-centered Cattle and Equine Ranch
About
The Cruise Family
In 1998, Robert and Jennifer merged their cattle and equine endeavors into what is now known as C Bar M Cattle and Rafter 7C Ranch. Robert continued the cattle program he and his father began when he was young.
Jennifer, a graduate of the University of Findlay’s Western Equestrian Studies degree, began teaching riding lessons. Together they also trained a number of horses for reining, cutting, ranch work, and many other disciplines.
As their cattle herd and business of riding lessons and training horses grew, so did their family. After their third daughter was born, Robert continued the cattle program while Jennifer took a break from riding lessons to raise their family which grew to include five daughters.
While working on getting started again with riding lessons in 2018, another setback occurred when the Cruises lost their home in a devastating house fire. Their home was often called “The Refuge” by the many youths who found refuge there. With the focus being on God as our refuge, the Cruises began to rebuild in 2019.
Finally in 2021, with the entire family including all five daughters working together on the ranch, Robert and Jennifer restarted the riding lesson and horsemanship camp program under Rafter 7C Ranch. The brand symbol was developed with a Rafter symbol (depicting the Refuge) over the 7 members of the Cruise family in honor of God’s provision as their refuge.
In 2020 C Bar M Cattle also expanded their cattle facilities to better enable them to feed and care for a wide variety of cattle needs from brood cows to replacement heifers and stocker calves. Robert and his brother-in-law, Chris Miller, operate the cattle program with the rest of the family working alongside them. With both families, Cruises and Millers, tending and caring for the cattle, the ranch is truly a multi-family affair which allows for excellent care to be provided for every animal every day.
Today, the two programs work side by side. The cattle end allows the two families to work together to provide quality beef. The riding program builds on the foundation of solid horsemanship skills with a goal of connecting riders to Jesus Christ through horses. With Christ at the center, the desire of everyone involved is to see Jesus glorified and others drawn to Christ through their blessings.
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