When Myron Ropp retires at the end of the month after spending over 50 years working at the John Deere dealership, he isn’t going to miss the paperwork. But he’s going to miss the people, especially his customers.

“I love that more than anything,” Ropp said about the daily interactions.

“That’s going to be the hardest part for me to leave this business. And our employees, because we’ve had employees from the Farmers Supply world for over 50 years.”

The Ropps sold Farmers Supply and Sales to Sinclair Tractor in June of 2019, joining a network of 13 stores across Southeast Iowa.

Myron became the location manager.

The long-time family business focused on the customer experience, and acquainted Ropp with some wonderful people.

“We had lot of people backing us,” he said.

“You know when you can come to work and work with people that you know care, everybody around you cares. That’s part of this culture. I mean, you better come to care and you know why you’re here – to take care of your fellow worker and your customers.”

Up next, Ropp plans to follow the advice of his spouse Vicki, who preceded him in retirement. 

“I’ll do what my wife said,” Ropp chuckled. “she said ‘whatever I want to.’”

He intends to spend more time visiting grandchildren in Chicago, Dallas, and Denver. He loves biking, RAGBRAI, and getting out on the golf course.

“I’ll probably get to play a little more golf this summer,” Ropp said.

Ropp joined the business full-time in 1973, after starting in high school, working summers and part-time for a while.

“I started by setting up equipment in the back, I went to the parts department, then to the sales department and then ended up and being sales manager.”

His father, Ernie Ropp started the business in 1953 and later passed it on to his three sons. The oldest, Phil did the books in the office. Myron handled sales, and his younger brother Warren led the service department.

Ernie loved the business, loved to go to auctions, and he loved tractor pulling. When he passed away from a heart attack in 1994, Myron lost a beloved father as well as his advisor and mentor. He realized later how his dad had prepared him for the challenge he faced.   

Early on, Myron would survey equipment for trade and ask Ernie what he thought they should do. But later, Myron’s dad would ask him, ‘what do you think?’

When Ernie passed, people wondered, “how’s this business going to survive,” Ropp said. “But we just went right through, never missed a lick. It just kept going.”

“That’s called on the job training – not even knowing it. You’re not getting that at the time. I didn’t think about that until later. He said you do it. That’s what he did.”

Farmers Supply was the second to last independent dealership in the state of Iowa. Only one still remains that isn’t part of a larger network.

There will be a retirement open house for Myron Ropp on Tuesday, February 23 from 2-5:00 p.m. at Sinclair Tractor in Kalona.