As a kid, he knew that all he wanted to do for the rest of this life was to be horseback, out on the land.   He spent his childhood cleaning stalls and working hard around a barn outside the city so that he could ride the horses. That was the place he felt his true connection. As a teen he started breaking and training horses. 

At 16 he was introduced to rodeo and started riding bulls and broncs.  He rode bareback broncs for some years and then in 2006 at 21, Ashanti had an opportunity to move out west to apprentice and learn from Bobby Mote one of the best bareback riders of all time and now hall-of-famer. He traveled around riding broncs until 2011 when he rode his last bronc and started farming with his sweetheart Sarahlee Lawrence at Rainshadow Organics.  

Ashanti was a big part in the expansion of the full-diet at Rainshadow Organics.  Sarahlee was hellbent on eating from the farm and he believed that should include sustainably raised proteins.

Getting back in the saddle as a cattleman felt like a much bigger purpose.  Ashanti loved the selfless work of feeding the community around him with the best meat possible.  When Rainshadow Organics expanded their CSA to offer meats, the demand kept Ashanti and his cattle busy.  In 2015 the farm store was built with the farm-to-table kitchen and the full-diet program and Ashanti and his team made sure the Rainshadow Organics farm family and customers were well stocked with beef.

Ashanti is fortunate to have the opportunity to work with really good men that have a passion for the movement, just as he does.  Sky Sharp, Alex "Wes" Ross, and Shaine "Big Country" Hartmann work and learn together at the Pitchfork-T and make it all possible.