Many of you have gotten to know Dace in your time at the Ranch. Officially, he’s the General Manager who focuses on the staffing side of the business. Unofficially, he’s the do it all guy. Both at the ranch and on his off time, Dace is a guy with surprising skills and interests.
Raised on a farm in rural Illinois, but just an hour or so from Chicago, Dace had an innate love for nature and solitude, but a taste for culture and the arts. He grew up with 2 younger sisters and 2 older brothers, and stays close to all of them to this day. In fact, Dace is the proud and fun-loving uncle of 8 nieces and nephews with another arriving soon.
After leaving Illinois to attend college at CU Boulder, Dace essentially never looked back. He discovered guest ranches in Colorado as a wrangler during his summer breaks and that relationship extended well past graduation as he helped manage and run a well established Colorado guest ranch for years.
Next up, Dace attended Biola University in California for his Masters in Organizational Leadership while also working at the Disney Grand California, for a different angle into the world of hospitality. It was shortly after that Dace ended up learning about the opportunity to come be General Manager at Vista Verde Ranch. He and Ben both interviewed for the job and agreed that it would best be approached by them sharing the role and each having their own focus.
Where things get interesting about Dace is to understand the various layers of his passions. An avid sports fan, Dace is currently rooting for the Chicago Black hawks to make their first run at the Stanley Cup. But, taking a break from that, he moves into his studio upstairs (pictured) to work on some of his paintings that he is considering submitting for an art show this Spring. You’ll not only find a guitar in Dace’s office for singing around the campfire, but he plays often at home. Time away from the ranch has taken Dace to China to be a speaker on hospitality, to visit family and explore places like Mackinaw Island, Puerto Rico and the southern states.
Right now Dace is finishing up the hiring for the summer season. He has all positions filled except for the last fishing guide. I’m sure he’ll be celebrating when he fills that last spot! We hope you get to meet Dace if you haven’t already. And if you have, know that he’ll be waiting by the campfire with his guitar for you next time you’re out this way.