A family Matter

DELANO, Minn. — Nestled among housing developments in Delano, the Matter family spends their days milking cows, making maple syrup and raising livestock at Matter Family Farm. While the land surrounding their farm is ever-changing, the Matter family has spent more than 150 years maintaining their way of life.

The Matter family, Paul and his wife, Aumori, and their children, Ben and Alex, farm with Paul’s dad, Dan. They milk around 65 cows in a tiestall barn and farm around 400 acres of corn, soybeans and alfalfa.

This year, Dan passed the farm onto Paul and Aumori. Paul grew up on the farm, and now Ben and Alex are the seventh generation to live on the farm.

“I do all of the milking,” Paul said. “My dad is still here every day helping; together we do most of it.”

Continuing to operate their dairy farm through the years has not been an easy task, Dan said. Despite challenges, the family’s efforts have not gone unnoticed as they have been recognized as the 2025 Wright County Farm Family of the Year by the University of Minnesota Extension.

“It is a huge honor,” Aumori said. “It’s important for Dan’s hard work over the years to be recognized as we’re going through a transition year.”

The farm was originally homesteaded in 1856 and has remained in the family ever since.

Aumori works behind the scenes doing paperwork and billing, working with customers and running their website. She also homeschools Ben and Alex and has an off-farm job.

The Matters are also assisted in their farming and maple syrup ventures by Paul’s brother, Jeff Holovnia, sister, Laura Matter, Laura’s daughter, Hailey Sims, and Aumori’s brother, Jeremiah Johnson. Holovnia and Johnson do most of the field work for the farm.

“We wouldn’t be able to do this if we didn’t have everyone’s help,” Paul said. “It would be impossible.”

Along with operating the dairy aspect of the business, the Matters have ventured into maple syrup. Eight years ago, Aumori wanted to begin making syrup from trees on the property. Paul said their goal the first year was one gallon of syrup.

“After the first year, I said we could do 100 gallons a year,” Paul said.

Currently, the farm produces more than 500 gallons of maple syrup annually. The Matters also make specialty maple syrups, such as cinnamon-infused, whiskey barrel-aged, coffee-infused and others.

“We have 1,100 trees on a vacuum system,” Paul said.

The system works by having tubes installed into each tree, which gather sap into a larger tube. The sap flows down the tubes for constant collection.

The syrup is sold online, in local stores and at vendor markets.

The family also sells beef directly to consumers.

While the family is busy managing the livestock and syrup businesses, they also take time to help others as well. The farm hosts tours throughout the year, showcasing the process of making maple syrup and overall farming operations.

“We live somewhere that a lot of people don’t have farming experience,” Paul said. “Those kids that come out here are our future, so it’s important to teach them.”

The Matter family is excited about the future. Paul said they are investing time and money into improving equipment, infrastructure and the dairy herd.

“The goal is to amplify the dairy side without expanding too much,” Paul said. “This is a growth year, that’s for sure.”

The family spends time planning, preparing and working for their future, but they also make it a priority to remember where they came from. Dan said the family prides itself on continuing down the path their ancestors paved for them.

“They didn’t have equipment,” Dan said. “This was all woods and they cleared it all out by hand. I couldn’t be the one to lose the farm after they did all of that.”

Dan grew up on the farm, and said he has seen many changes throughout his life. Many of the neighboring farms have been sold off, as the metro area encroaches on their property.

“There aren’t many farms close by anymore,” Dan said.

As the Wright County Farm Family of the Year, the family will be recognized along with other recipients of the award from other counties at Minnesota FarmFest in Redwood Falls Aug. 5-7.

“Dairy farmers are some of the hardest-working people on the planet,” Paul said. “We’re proud to represent them.”