About Dan & Lacey
Until recently, Dan and Lacey were two corporate professionals that never thought they would be spending the vast majority of their time outdoors, feeding, fencing, fixing and fatigued. But the two are happier than they have ever been, filled with a sense of passion and a commitment not to give up on what they believe is crucial in many ways.
Lacey grew up in small town East Texas and has never met an animal that she doesn’t love (with the exception of snakes and spiders). She finds peace and sanity outdoors and savors every sunset she can find. After working to put herself through school at Texas A&M, she gathered a diverse set of professional skills that eventually led her to lead human resource initiatives with start-up tech companies in Austin.
Similarly, Dan grew up in rural Central Texas, traversed several degree plans at Texas A&M and an equal number of roles in commercial banking and wealth management, before retiring in 2022.
Dan began raising cattle with his Dad, Dr. Tom “Doc” Connolly at an early age. While his time spent on the ranch might have been motivated by the opportunity to drive tractors and trucks on the backroads of Caldwell county, the lessons he learned as a working ranch hand are crucial today. Doc generously gave Dan full responsibility of the ranch in his thirties and he did the best he could over time to maintain operations while juggling responsibilities as a professional, a parent, a performing musician and sometimes an idiot. He mimicked what he saw around him as a rancher; opened gates for cows to selectively graze, sprayed fertilizer and weed killer necessary for hay and mono-crop pastures, and sent trailer loads of calves to auction every year to be sold to feedlots for less than fair market value. As we like to say in our house, “the math never mathed”. That combined with a bout with cancer and time on his hands during quarantine, there was a lot of uncertainty around the ranch as recently as 2021.
After lots of discussion, research and consideration, Lacey and Dan collectively decided to leave corporate life. The transition has taken time, but they are both now fully dedicated to the purpose and success of Doc’s Green Earth. It’s not always easy, but they get to share a sense of purpose, neither has felt before.