Mary and Brian started their family in Menlo Park (in the SF Bay Area) where Mary grew up. Brian was an attorney at a big law firm and Mary had started her own businesses in the area.

When they purchased Sharps Gulch Ranch in 2013, they never intended for it to be life changing, but here they are seven years later working hard everyday as cattle ranchers in the mountains and sharing their meats with customers around the country.

In 2014, they moved their family of six (four daughters, all with the first name Mary) to Siskiyou County in far Northern California and jumped in to becoming full-time ranchers.

Their ranch features two houses and the family lives between both. Situated just a few yards apart, the smaller cabin style home, affectionately called the Little House, is their primary residence as they continue to remodel the vintage farmhouse known as the Bunkhouse or the Big House. Built in 1868 the Big House continues to be a work-in-progress including the recently completed, Five Marys Test Kitchen. To see more of the renovation process, follow Mary and the #m5bunkhouse and #m5testkitchen on Instagram.

I am a 6th generation californian with a passion for creativity and bringing big ideas to life.
I was raised in silicon valley and became a cattle rancher just 7 years ago with my husband and four daughters, all named mary.

MEET MARY

Rural Revival Podcast

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE TO HEAR MY STORY

Mary's Business Story

READ MY STORY ABOUT
BECOMING AN ENTREPRENEUR

Watching my girls Rodeo

6. weekend activity

Sleeping in 😴

5. Guilty pleasure

Doing the splits!

4. Secret talent

Bourbon Sidecar

3. Cocktail order

☀️ & fresh air

2. Vacation

Steak & potatoes

1. Favorite food

Just a few of my favorite things....

get to know me.

6

# OF GENERATIONS MY FAMILY HAS BEEN TIED
TO AG IN CALIFORNIA

12k+

# OF POSTS TO
MY INSTAGRAM
ACCOUNT

04

HOW MANY DAUGHTER'S
WE HAVE NAMED "MARY"

2013

The year WE BOUGHT THE
RANCH

20+

BUSINESSES I'VE
STARTED

Numbers

By the

HOW MARY & BRIAN MET

Brian and I met at a Rebuilding Together "Dreams Happen" charity event on June 4, 2005. It was the Playhouse Auction at Stanford Shopping center and I had received an email at the last minute from a client that they were looking for volunteers to help out so I signed up for a bartending shift from 9pm-midnight. Brian is on the Board for Rebuilding Together and was there without a date that night (thank goodness!) I was walking around with three bottles of wine in my arms pouring tall glasses for the auction bidders. Brian and I started talking and I couldn't tell if he was single or not... I finally asked if he was going to buy a playhouse and was relieved to hear him say "What would I do with a playhouse?!" We couldn't stop talking and I forgot all about my bartending duties! He asked me if he could take me out sometime and I don't think I hesitated a second before I said yes! We ended up dancing (yes Brian was dancing) and talking until the end of the event when his friend/neighbor Mark Ryan pulled him away to take him home.

This photo is from our third date, to the "polo prom."

It’s a question we get a lot. And yes, all four of our daughters are named Mary! The four girls were all named Mary after strong and memorable grandmothers and aunts on both sides of the family and each carries the middle name of that grandmother or great aunt.

Each daughter goes by a nickname, based on their middle name: MaryFrances is "Francie"; MaryMarjorie, "Maisie”; MaryJane "Janie or JJ"; and MaryTeresa, "Tessa.”

We didn't know what we were having when I was pregnant and I was sure it was a boy (but so thrilled when SHE was a girl!) and we named her MaryFrances Borchard after Brian's grandmother who had just passed away, her name was Bernice Borchard (and apparently did not like her first name!) but had a sister named Frances and my great grandfather was also named Francis. We loved the name and decided to call her Francie honoring strong family members on both sides of our families and Francie is just that.

Then Maisie came along - another surprise girl! and we named her MaryMarjorie Sheehy after my grandmother Mary Sheehy who died before we were married and her sister, our favorite Great Aunt Marjorie Sheehy. Aunt Marge cries every time she sees Maisie saying how much she looks just like her late sister, my mom's mother who was such a great lady! Maisie is lucky to have inherited the Sheehy girls pretty petite looks and sweet and loving personality too.

We kind of figured we'd have a boy next by the odds of it- but nope, along came another girl! Good thing we still had lots of Marys in the family to pick from. Janie is named after my Dad's mom MaryJane Simonson but we gave Janie my middle name so she's MaryJane Regan. I never met my dad's mom, she died young but I know she had a strong and sassy personality just like her namesake.

The fourth baby had to be the boy right? Tessa surprised us again rounding out our gaggle of girls! She is named MaryTeresa Katherine after my Aunt Tere (Teresa), Aunt Kathy my godmother who died and is greatly missed and Great Aunt Kate who died when I was pregnant with Tess. She's been affectionately called "Tiny" since birth or Tiny Tess which suits her small frame and huge personality well though!

And that's how we ended up the Five Marys 😊