Vickie Ference returned to her hometown of Ord after college with two businesses, a growing customer base and a vision for her community.
At 23, Ference owns Vickie’s ExtraORDinary Pork, a family-raised pork business, and Grateful Adventures, an event décor business serving customers celebrating milestones ranging from weddings and baby showers to funerals and celebrations of life.
Ference started Vickie’s ExtraORDinary Pork at the end of her freshman year at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Growing up showing pigs through 4-H and FFA, she wanted to stay connected to the livestock industry while attending college. With encouragement from the Engler Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program, she began building a business of her own.
“I was missing home,” Ference said. “That’s actually how I got started.”
She worked with her father to raise pigs while attending college, developing a schedule around school and the animals. Over time, she built a customer base that allowed her to expand beyond whole and half hogs to individual cuts and bundles. She opened a storefront in Ord on May 29, her 23rd birthday.
Her second business, Grateful Adventures, came from an opportunity to purchase a downtown building that previously housed wedding décor. Although Ference initially intended to focus on pork, she decided to continue the event business after brides began contacting her about upcoming weddings.
Today, Grateful Adventures provides decorations such as backdrops, centerpieces and table runners. Ference also works with customers planning other important events, including celebrations of life.
Both businesses reflect what she sees as her purpose as an entrepreneur.
“My biggest thing though is all of my businesses are tied into one thing bringing people together,” Ference said.
Beyond building her businesses, Ference has invested in downtown Ord by purchasing two older buildings, one built in 1911 and the other in 1932. Maintaining older buildings has brought unexpected expenses and work, but she values the opportunity to contribute to the community’s downtown.
Her decision to return home also reflects the importance of rural communities encouraging young people to build their futures locally. Ference said invitations from people in Ord helped her see a place for herself after graduation.
“I got friends who told me they’re like, why did you go back? I was like, I got asked, and they’re like, I would have loved to get asked,” Ference said.
She believes young people should have the opportunity to leave home, gain experience and learn from other places before deciding where they want to settle. Her own college experience, including studying abroad in Spain and France, helped shape her perspective on entrepreneurship and community.
Ference credits the people around her, including family, mentors and fellow entrepreneurs, with helping her move forward. Through the Engler program, she learned to recognize how fear can hold business owners back and how the right support system can make a difference.
Now, she is building her future in the same community that helped bring her home, growing two businesses while creating opportunities to bring people together in rural Nebraska.
