We come from resilient stock.

Not every family knows about their lineage, their identity, the good, the bad, the ugly. But we do. And that speaks volumes to the kinds of lessons we’ve learned and the lens through which we see the future.

The Stegman family can trace our story back before America was even born, in a tiny province of what would be one of the last outposts of the Holy Roman Empire. That’s where the Stegmans survived the aftermath of the Seven Year War in Germany.

Hoping in the promises of Catherine the Great’s Prussian expansion plan, they immigrated through Lubeck to Volga, Russia. The empress’ promises were a bust, and they survived on little more than sheer perseverance through theft, lies, disease and abuse.

They dug homes into the earth to survive those first Russian winters. And then just as they were able to sustain a living on wheat, rye and barley, Russia passed a law in 1874 drafting immigrant men away from their families and into military service.

In response, a scouting group of five Volga delegates were sent to the United States to look for a new settlement. They reported back favorably. On October 22, 1875, 10 families left for America and eventually arrived in Topeka, KS.

Among them was Christopher Stegman. Later waves of families would include other Stegman families as they settled in Pfiefer, Kansas and later Offerle, Kansas.

Honestly, little has changed in our lineage.

We still face incredible obstacles beyond our control.

Fortunately, the Stegman tenacity and faith is alive and well in 5th generation farmer, Colby Stegman, his wife Kimberly and his three sons as they continue to farm the family homestead.

FAQs

We are based in Offerle, Kansas. Being local in the Midwest allows us to stay connected to the regional grain economy and our community of bakers.