Barbara Mazurek may be 80 years old but she’s still working to keep her family’s Texas ranching legacy alive.

Mazurek run the Mazurek Family Ranch in the western end of Bandera County. She lives and works by herself raising goats for their meat and hair.

Mazurek says her children are a big asset; they have jobs outside the ranch but come back to help on projects – like shearing – when they can.

“During the week, I primarily do my own chores, morning and night,” Mazurek says.

She learned the trade growing up as the eldest daughter of a rancher. When she lost her husband to a farm machine accident, she retired from 38 years as a teacher to take over running the more than 100-year-old ranch.

Mazurek says ranching is in her blood. “I love livestock, I love to try to improve what we have, it’s just part of my life,” she says.

Mazurek was recently featured on “FarmHer“, a TV show celebrating women in the agriculture business.

Post by Betsy Joles.