Founder of Bruna Implement Dies at Age 98

Jan 08, 2026

Wilbur “Butch” F. Bruna, 98, of Hanover, Kan., passed away Friday, December 19, 2025, at the Hanover Hospital in Hanover.

Butch was born July 13, 1927, at his parents’ farmhouse near Bremen, Kansas, the son of Joseph and Eleanor (Nespor) Bruna. After graduating from Hanover High School, he worked as a welder in Hanover. Near the end of World War II, he was drafted into the United States Army and later released. He was drafted again during the Korean War and later returned home.

In 1947, Butch and his brother Floyd purchased the Case farm dealership and welding shop in Hanover, establishing Bruna Implement. In 1949, they were offered the opportunity to become an International Harvester dealer. Short on capital, they were joined by their brother, George, and the three became equal partners. In 1964, the business expanded with a second location in Marysville, followed by a third location in Washington in 1980.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.