BHSS Premier 2026 | Remembering Troy Thomas

This year, the cattle industry mourned the loss of one of its greatest sons. Troy Thomas passed away unexpectedly Aug. 19, 2025, in a ranching-related accident. Troy was a son, brother, husband, father, and grandfather. He judged every major cattle show in the country and his cattle graced Supreme Row on the largest stages of the industry – including the Black Hills Stock Show last year.  

Beyond the heritage he leaves with his family, a wider legacy remains in the organizations influenced and in the young people that he mentored.  

In the wake of his sudden passing, those closest to Troy – his wife Veabea, daughter Cally (Clint) Kindred and their children, and his parents Harry and Kay – are navigating next steps for the future of their operation while honoring the memory of the kingpin of Thomas Ranch.  

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What Troy Wanted 

“Our world was turned upside down, very unexpectedly,” said Cally. “We are kind of in the regrouping phase trying to figure out where to go and what’s best.” 

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“We’re going to be full steam ahead, trying to keep all the things going.” 

Kindred asserts that there is no possibility of Thomas Ranch going out of business or making drastic changes.  

Thomas Ranch hosted a cow sale in December, but Kindred said that the necessity of the sale had been in the works for years prior to Troy’s passing.  

“We were starting to get too many cows. And so, we had actually been talking about it for probably three or four years. We just hadn’t made it happen,” said Cally. 

A month after the funeral, the family deliberated about having the sale. Ultimately, it was decided that there were more cows than they were set up to calve in the spring, help was available, and the time and market was right.  

“We started calling friends and said, ‘I know we’re behind schedule, but can we get this pulled off? And of course, we had everybody say, ‘What can we do to help?'” 

The family hosted the Lifetime of Production Sale at the ranch in Harrold, South Dakota, Dec. 11, 2025, offering quality Angus and Charolais cows and bulls, as well as select embryos and semen. 

VeaBea recalls a recent conversation she had with Troy after someone they knew passed away.  

“I kept saying to Troy, ‘What are the first five things I should do if you die?’ I mean, these are things people should think about. And this was his answer: feed the dogs and check the grain bins. That’s it. That’s all I ever got,” VeaBea said. 

Luckily, one of their hired men, JW, feeds the dog and VeaBea knew how to check the grain bins with a tester after doing it with Troy.  

Still, the moving parts of an operation such as Thomas Ranch are innumerable. VeaBea has been able to call on the help of family, friends, and neighbors.  

“The first time I go up to check the grain bins to test the temperatures in them, one was hot. And I’m like, what do I do? And [I stopped and thought,] ‘Who would he call? Who are your people?’ And there’ve been a lot of people like that.” 

“We have great employees here, and they can do the physical things, and I’ve been able to carry on the office work. People have been very gracious and kind and helpful,” VeaBea said.  

The ranch may simplify certain areas of the operation, like turning some farm ground back into grass to ease the workload day to day. Much of it will still be used to farm, as the feed is grown for their cattle.  

Following the cow sale, the family may get a chance to breathe.  

“Everything this year is already set in motion as far as the bull sale [in April]. The calves are already on the ground now; they’re getting fed and ready for the sale. I think this first year we just go forward, and we’ll be able to work with the same people we have been. The cattle are already in motion, and the cows are already bred back. So, we’ll just try to get a handle on everything and then hopefully we should be able to keep it going in the right direction,” Cally said.  

The Early Days 

Troy and VeaBea attended Sully Buttes High School together, being a part of the same friend group. VeaBea remembers seeing him in the cattle barns during the State Fair, thinking that “picking up poop behind cattle” all day was a silly way to spend time.  

“When we started dating, I never dreamed that’s what my life would turn into,” she said.  

At that time, Troy showed horses and cattle. However, he won a decisive show in his youth, and VeaBea said that win changed the course of his career.  

“I think when he won that show in high school, he gave up the horse thing because he could definitely see there was more money in the cattle and the clipping cattle and helping other people get ready for sales.” 

They were married in 1985 and the couple dove in headfirst together.  

“In the eighties, things weren’t good,” she said. “When we first got married, we clipped bull sales all over the United States. Anything you could do to make some money. That’s just the way it was.”  

The couple welcomed two daughters; Taylor in 1987 and Cally in 1990. Sadly, Taylor preceded her father in death in 2001. 

The same year Cally was born, in 1990, the family moved to Cimarron, Kansas, where Troy led the Dewey Charolais program. “[Deweys] are still some of our very, very best friends,” said VeaBea.  

After five years, Deweys decided they had achieved all of their goals in the Charolais breed and dispersed the herd. Troy moved back home and VeaBea stayed behind to finish the final months of nursing school.  

“We just started showing cattle,” VeaBea said. The family grew their business and reputation from their home base in a trailer house on the ranch.  

Growth  

“Everything [Troy] did was business-driven,” said VeaBea.  

Cally said, “Both him and his dad, Harry, were very progressive in their thinking and their planning, and they weren’t afraid to do some new things or try some new things and give it a go. Harry was one of the first people to AI in the state of South Dakota. 

“They were pretty progressive when it came to flushing cattle and trying to be on the cutting edge as far as new genetics and incorporating the best genetics into your program.” 

Like his father, Troy knew the importance of relationships and paying it forward. 

“They always made time to visit with people and make those connections and try to help them get the best that they could for whatever amount of money they had. And I think that’s just served them well going forward. A lot of people that still really value their relationship that they had with my dad,” Cally said.  

Above all, Troy was an excellent marketer – a skill he passed down to his daughter.  

“Troy was a good marketer, and [Cally] got that from him,” VeaBea said.  

When the famous gray mare, TR Dashing Badger “Dolly” showed promise, it was Troy who pushed her to be campaigned. Later, the family got embryos out of her before the practice was common. 

Their horse program is built off of a mare – another practice that is more common now than when the Thomas Ranch implemented it.  

“We’ve prioritized [the female] for a long time. It’s always been about having good cows or having good mares. I think everybody is maybe starting to pay a little bit more attention to that kind of stuff now,” Cally said. 

They now stand a full brother to Dolly, TR Illuminator Cash, and a son of Dolly, TR Radley.  

Troy expected excellence from all facets of the ranch and nothing less. 

“When there was a job to do, he expected you to do it correctly,” said VeaBea. “Eighty-five or 95 percent wasn’t good enough. If there was something to be done, he wanted it done correctly. He very much instilled that into Cally. She’s a perfectionist like her dad.” 

Troy and VeaBea made a great team. “We each had our own role, and I think we worked well together. We did a lot of things together and pretty much everywhere we went together,” VeaBea said.  

Legacy 

Troy Thomas signed his will Aug. 19, 2024. He died exactly one year later.  

VeaBea is grateful his affairs were in order. “But there’s still so much to do,” she said. “We’re going to try to keep doing things the way we think he would want them.” 

“We’re trying to be good stewards of the land. Troy had been working on putting some of our land out in west Sully County back into some conservation programs, and I am moving forward with that,” VeaBea said.  

The principles he instilled in those around him ensure his legacy will remain.  

Cally recalled the most important ones. 

“He taught me from a young age that we might be showing cattle, but the main thing is about having a program that you’re proud of and having cattle that you want to represent.” 

The most important aspect of the industry to Troy was the people.  

“Winning is great, but there’s a lot more to it than that,” said Cally. “To him, it was way more about the relationships we make. It is about the people. 

“I think he, even from a really young age, saw what those relationships did for him. And I just think it was kind of full circle. When people started coming out at the funeral or sending condolences, we really saw how many people were affected or touched in a good way by something that he did – some small thing here or there along the way.” 

Troy intentionally invested in youth. “He loved doing things with kids,” said VeaBea. “Judging, steer shows, working with the kids. He really loved to engage with young people and pick their brains and get them thinking.” 

Troy and VeaBea Thomas were honored with Stockmen of the Year at the Black Hills Stock Show in 2018. The couple just celebrated their 40^th wedding anniversary.  

Troy dedicated countless hours to local and national boards including the American International Charolais Association, SD Angus Association, Black Hills Stock Show, SD Beef Breeds, and Farm Services of America. 

He was named Charolais Herdsman of the Year and was invited to judge some of the most prestigious cattle shows across North America, including events in Houston, Red Bluff, San Antonio, multiple Junior Nationals, Mexico, and the Supreme at Canadian Agribition.  

Troy will be inducted into the Charolais Hall of Fame during the National Western Stock Show Sale in January 2026. 

Beyond any accolade or banner, being a grandpa was the light of Troy’s life. Cally’s son Tee and daughter Tyler were most precious to him.  

“I think he would want us to carry on and keep this ranch here for Tee and Tyler, if they want to come back,” said VeaBea.