Sixty years of revisions to crop insurance have left the program looking little like its former self. However, there’s a name associated with the crop insurance program that remains familiar even with the passage of time.

Lyle Opland of Minot sold his first crop insurance policy in 1954 at the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service. He was paid $5 a contract. Today, Opland, who turns 90 in June, still sells crop insurance part-time at Opland Insurance Agency in Minot.

Started in the late 1930s, the crop insurance program has grown to be much more complicated than the one-sized coverage that farmers could take or leave in the early years. These days farmers have less flexibility about whether to take coverage, but they have choices about the percentage of coverage and the revenue protection they want to insure.

“At the present time, it doesn’t even look like crop insurance in the beginning,” Opland said of the policies he sold in 1954. “At that time, you were guaranteed seven bushels six and half if you didn’t harvest it.”

In comparison, Ward County’s average yield now is 40 bushels, although farmers can go higher by establishing their own historical averages. Opland attributed the change to fertilizers and pesticides that weren’t available when he began farming.

“I started fertilizing in 1949. Up until that time, the way we farmed was to summerfallow half. We had no control of weeds except though summerfallow and moisture management so it wasn’t easy to grow a crop,” he said.

Opland, who has lived most of his life on the farm south of Des Lacs, farmed with his father.

After selling insurance for a time, he moved on to part-time crop adjusting for the government for $2.09 a hour, with 7 cents mileage. He worked his way up to a supervisor’s position.

Opland said he enjoyed adjusting because he always felt welcomed.

“Anybody who has a loss, they want to see you,” he said. But he also added, “It’s fun work … because every claim is different. Every farm is different.”

Most of his work was in North Dakota but he also traveled to Minnesota to assist when needed.

In 1977, Opland was appointed to a national training team. One of 17 selected in the country, Opland attended meetings in Kansas City to learn to train others on the crop insurance program. As a lead trainer in his region, Opland worked with a team of adjusters to educate others in the agriculture and insurance industries.

The crop insurance program wasn’t attracting farmers as the government thought it should, though. So in 1980-81, the transition was made to privatize aspects of the program.

In 1981, Opland moved to Jamestown to become office manager for National Ag Underwriters, serving North and South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana. He held that position for 10 years. During that time, he purchased an insurance agency in Jamestown and hired Shirli Nenow in 1985 to run the office. He later sold most of his ownership interest to Nenow, who continues to run Opland Nenow Insurance.

Nenow credits Opland for teaching her the business and encouraging her when it seemed difficult.

“Lyle has always had faith in me that I could do it,” she said. “You couldn’t find a better boss as far as his trust in me, and I trust him.”

Opland earned Nenow’s trust through his insurance knowledge and his character.

“Lyle is one of the most honest businessmen you are ever going to find. He’s a man of his word,” Nenow said. “I wouldn’t be here if it wouldn’t be for the kind of person he is.”

Opland left Jamestown in 1992 to return to the Minot area, where his sons had kept the farm going. His son, Mark, currently farms with his son and also is involved in Opland Insurance. Another son, Craig, helps with the agency’s computer work.

Lyle Opland opened the Minot agency about 20 years ago, specializing in crop insurance. He is a member of the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents.

In the last several years, farmers have taken the initiative to become more educated on the details of crop insurance, Opland said. His agency, like many others, provides training meetings for farmers.

One of his long-time clients, Gary Neshem of Berthold, said even with the information available to farmers, crop insurance can be confusing. It requires a good agent who can get you the right answers, he said. The other real test of insurance agents is how well they respond when claims are filed, he added. Opland has been the type of agent Neshem plans to hang onto as long as he can.

“I have a lot of respect for Lyle,” he said. “I get hit up every year to change my crop insurance, and I am sticking with Lyle.”

His family’s close relationship with the Oplands goes back more than 50 years.

“Lyle is kind of like a second dad to me,” Neshem said. “He’s as honest as the day is long. You couldn’t find a better person, I think, than Lyle.”

Opland’s heart never quite left the farm despite his involvement in insurance. Although he’s not actively farming anymore, he still observes, and he maintains just enough of a financial interest to keep him happy. Opland said he surprised everybody, including himself, when he moved off the farm to pursue an insurance career.

“The chance was there. I just happened to take it. I am glad I did,” he said.

The farm is where he and his wife, Esther, raised their four sons. Opland said he couldn’t have managed the farm and insurance jobs without the help of his wife, who milked the cows, and his children, who helped on the farm.

The Oplands also have 11 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

Opland’s love for kids has been apparent. He drove school bus for 19 years. He is a former 4-H leader and coached a 4-H softball team and Babe Ruth baseball. He taught Sunday school for 25 years.

At one time, he also played clarinet in a four-person dance band that performed at venues around Minot.

It’s his desire to stay active that keeps him working at an age when he could be retired. He jokes he tried golfing, but when that didn’t work out, he gave up on retirement. Instead he starts his day with a Sudoku puzzle before setting off for his office, located next to a sandwich shop where he takes his coffee break each morning. He’ll spend four or five hours processing paperwork and visiting with the farmers who stop by. Back at home, it’s a good evening when he can sit back and watch Minnesota Twins baseball on television.

When he looks back at the past 61 years, he has no trouble identifying the highlight.

“It’s meeting all the people,” he said. “You find the good in people. That’s what I enjoyed most was the good in people.”

(Prairie Profile is a weekly feature profiling interesting people in our region. We welcome suggestions from our readers. Call Regional Editor Eloise Ogden at 857-1944 or Managing Editor Kent Olson at 857-1939. Either can be reached at 1-800-735-3229. You also can send e-mail suggestions to kolson@minotdailynews.com.)