Our Rancher Partners: Tim and Jessica Harjo
Jessica Harjo loves that her kids think having Buffalo is “normal.”
“It should be normal to see more bison and we hope there can be more Native-owned, micro-herds in the near future in Oklahoma,” she said. “Our kids are growing up learning about bison, being connected to land, harvesting, ranch life and the work that's involved. They like driving the truck out in the pasture and helping to feed the herd best. I always love seeing the wind in their hair, in the back of the truck, being chased by the herd. These will be memories they will always have.”
Tim (Chiricahua Apache, Comanche, and Seminole) and Jessica Harjo (San Carlos Apache) of Sovereign Buffalo Ranch in Apache, OK have been Tanka Fund rancher partners since 2024. One of the biggest reasons the Harjos became Buffalo ranchers was to reconnect their children with the culture and traditions of their heritage. After living in California, they returned to Apache in July 2022, where Tim grew up, to build that future at home.
Today, the ranch has grown well beyond its humble beginnings in mid-2024. They've welcomed six new calves this season, with a few more still possible, bringing their herd to 20 Buffalo on 80 acres. They're preparing to expand again this fall by hopefully adding another 10–20 animals.
They had to keep herd numbers low while building the fencing needed to support a larger pasture. For Buffalo ranchers, infrastructure like fencing is one of the biggest hurdles to starting and expanding a herd, with costs that can easily exceed $10,000.
"So happy we're almost across the finish line," Jessica said.
Infrastructure is one of the ways Tanka Fund helps rancher partners build the foundation needed to responsibly grow their herds and return Buffalo to Native lands. As Jessica put it, "Tanka Fund to the rescue. One of the last standing support structures we can rely on.” And since becoming Tanka Fund rancher partners in 2024, the Harjos have shown how Buffalo restoration reaches far beyond the pasture. Today, they're paying that investment forward by welcoming youth, families, and community members to experience Buffalo firsthand.
"One of our most fulfilling experiences is hosting youth, families or community at the ranch... We all pile into the back of the ranch truck and take cubes out," Jessica said. "The bison know us as family now. Witnessing Native joy, the smiles, and curiosity is absolutely priceless."
In addition, the Harjos hope to demonstrate how a micro-herd and co-op model can be replicated on other Tribal lands while helping Native people reconnect with themselves, their culture, the land, and Buffalo.
"More importantly our vision is for Native people to find relationship with themselves, their culture and the land through bison," she said. "We want to be a living demonstration that we have a synergistic relationship with bison and that bringing bison back is a benefit for all life."
That vision has already begun taking shape on the Harjos' ranch. This year marked the family's first time experiencing the full circle of raising Buffalo from birth to harvest. Their oldest daughter harvested her first Buffalo, a milestone that reflected the very connection Jessica hopes to pass on to the next generation.
“It was tough and emotional for her to take the life from this incredible animal. She was able to bless it and pray over it with the help of her medicine man, but it was still very hard for her and she cried.”
They were grateful for that experience, and the Buffalo meat fed their local community at her daughter’s Coming of Age ceremony. The Buffalo went on to feed family and the local community during their daughter's Coming of Age ceremony. This year, the Harjos experienced another milestone when six calves were born on the ranch.
“This time I cried! I told Tim that the day we have calves is the day the bison tell us they are good, they feel safe and cared for by us,” she said. “The bison are always giving and we're all living in that circle of reciprocity with them.”
