Manitoba auction industry loses an industry leader

Jul 27, 2023

Bill Klassen passed away suddenly

By Denise Faguy
Farms.com

On Monday, July 24, 2023, the auction industry in Manitoba and Canada lost Bill Klassen of Bill Klassen Auctions Ltd. in Blumenfeld, MB. Bill Klassen held his first auction on July 23, 1968 – 55 years ago. That same year he flew to Kansas City to attend at two-week auction course at the Missouri auction school.

On the "About Us" page of the Bill Klassen Auctions Ltd. website Bill told the story of how he grew his business. Near the end he wrote, “Over the years many real nice people have been a real asset into making what we are today, and of course it’s the people who do the work that make this auction company function to the satisfaction and often the praise from our clientele.”

“In the last years we have started internet bidding, my nephew James a electronic buff, took on the challenge of bringing this service to our bidders; because of him we were the first Manitoba company to bring live video from a farm auction site to the world's kitchens and home computers.”

Bill was an advertiser with Farms.com, this week he placed an ad in the Farms.com prairies newsletter that thanked western canada for its great support over the years.

Bill said he enjoyed being on the board of the new Manitoba Auctioneers Association when he served as its president for 3 years.

The family has said that auctions that have already been booked will continue as planned, and then they will take things day-by-day to determine the plan forward.

Bill Klassen’s Memorial service will take place on Sunday July 30, 2023, at 4:00 pm at the Bethel Bergthaler Mennonite Church.

If you are interested in sending a donation in Bill’s memory, donations may be made to the Church of Believer's (Kenya). For more information, visit the company website: https://www.billklassen.com/auction/bill-klassen-memorial-fund/.

Video: A Farm Song (Busy) | Parody of A Bar Song (Tipsy) by Shaboozey

Lyrics:

My days begin with workin’, Alarm’s at 5 o’clock,
I Fill 5 gallon buckets, The feeders and the troughs,
This five to nine ain’t workin’, why the heck do I work so hard?,
I can’t worry ‘bout health problems, I can sleep in when I’m gone,

One, here comes the two to the three to the four,
Tell em’ ‘buy another cow, we need plenty more’,
Blue jeans are gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
There’s another flock of sheep that still needs feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

I’ve been working pretty stressed but,
I ain’t changing for some cash,
Lord knows that I’m very blessed (More chores),
But I gotta say it’s hard,
Workin’ outside gettin’ charred,
Living out here on the farm, (more chores)

One, here comes the two to the three to the four,
Tell em’ ‘buy another cow, we need plenty more’,
Blue jeans are gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history
There’s another 20 chickens that still need feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Everybody on the farm getting’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Fun, here on ranch that’s what you can’t ignore,
Might be pretty hard but I love it to its core,
Flannel’s gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores (Tell ‘em sing with me)

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
There’s another flock of sheep that still needs feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
Watching cattle in the dark, don’t miss me,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
(Yeeeeeehaw)
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
It’s the best bro, go get yourself a farm