Feb 16, 2026
By Rick McNary
I have a special place in my heart for Laurie Bruce of Bruce’s Bullseye Farm. I watched her grow up in my hometown of Potwin and when she married her husband, Joel, she asked me to officiate the ceremony since I was the pastor of the Christian Church.
If there is ever the perfect couple to illustrate what it means to “pick yourself up by the bootstraps,” Laure and Joel would fit the bill. They were teased as children about being poor and growing up on the south side of the tracks. She in Kansas, he in Arkansas. When they were dating and early in their marriage, they dreamed of one day owning their own farm and ranch. Now, 34 years later, they do.
Through education, hard work and pinching pennies, they finally purchased land near Augusta. The land came with a horse named Bullseye, so they named their farm, “Bruce’s Bullseye Farm.”
The challenges for beginning farmers are numerous, such as the cost of land and equipment. Like any business, it takes five to seven years to see any kind of return-on-investment. The Bruces wanted to own their land debt-free, so they scrimped and saved for 25 years to be able to do so.
One of the many challenges for the Bruces was to determine the direction of the farm. Almost by accident, Laurie discovered a market for which they built the basis of their farm around: homemade jelly. A friend who owned the local Apple Jack Pumpkin Patch invited her to bring jelly to sell and she sold out immediately.
Laurie discovered converting fruits into jams and jellies — also known as “value-added” products — was key to taking a fruit that had an extremely short shelf life and creating a much longer shelf life as well as a national market.
Laurie researched what she could and could not produce in their kitchen at home. They learned about cottage kitchen laws and which products you can make out of your own kitchen like jams, jellies and quick breads..
Over time, the Bruces have grown their business so much that they needed a commercial kitchen so they could expand their offerings. While an important part of a local food system of production, processing and distribution, there aren’t many commercial kitchens available for lease in the state.
They found a building they could remodel in nearby Leon. The local Bluestem public school has a learning farm for its elementary students. Students do farm chores each day to take care of the livestock as part of their curriculum. In addition, the school began a grocery store to carry local products. It was an ideal place for the Bruces to grow their business.
Besides using the facility for their own business, the Bruces intend to lease it out for others who want to create their own value-added products. Laurie attributes her success to people helping her along the way and she wants to pay that forward.
When Joel was a child, his favorite after-school activity was grabbing a biscuit from the kitchen, then roaming the hills and hollers of Arkansas.
Now, thanks to Laurie, he has jelly for that biscuit.