By Jenn McKeogh, senior manager, GM News
Hillary Lange isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty – on the clock or off. Her day job as plant manager at the General Motors Brownstown Battery Assembly Plant in southeastern Michigan is just one of her full-time roles: she also manages a 150-acre farm.
Both Lange and her husband Rob – a GM calibration engineer who works in diesel and thermal systems – have a passion for the outdoors. While her husband’s family were “Ford people,” Lange grew up fully immersed in GM culture, with her family owning a Pontiac, Buick, and GMC dealership in Michigan’s upper peninsula.
“As a kid I would help out at the dealership on Saturdays,” she says. “It was great to get to see all the cars and be involved.”
Lange’s husband grew up on a family farm in Michigan, harvesting grain and raising livestock. But Lange says that she “never in a million years thought she'd actually live on a farm.”
A family affair
A little over 10 years ago, the Langes decided to relocate to a rural area of Michigan near where her husband grew up, purchasing an old farmhouse and 75 acres of land.
“I won’t lie, I was super reluctant at first,” she says. “But in the decade since, I’ve grown to love it.”
The Langes started farming with the intention of growing and selling grain. But they’ve evolved their farm to focus on hay production, including a recent 80-acre expansion. Today, the Langes have 125 acres for hay and 25 acres of woods with the goal of using it for future livestock.
Lange says her initial role on the farm was to handle the paperwork, but she also literally gets her hands dirty with some of the day-to-day tasks of running the business. It’s a family farm – and the whole family is involved in the operation.
“My oldest daughter drives the truck and collects the hay bales, while my son runs the tractors and my husband runs the baler,” she says. “I help pallet and tarp the hay, and all three of my kids can operate our backhoe to move hay and perform odd jobs.”
Farm to factory
Before diving boots-first into farming, Hillary’s first love was manufacturing – something she discovered early in her career. Prior to joining GM, she had an internship with Rolls Royce Aerospace.
“I really wanted to get back to my family roots in automotive, even though I loved the aerospace business,” she says. “With so many businesses inside of GM, I know I can always grow and learn.”
Lange leads the team at the Brownstown Battery Assembly plant, where GM produces electric drive units and battery packs for the Corvette E-Ray and battery packs for the Cadillac CELESTIQ, while also developing batteries for future products. Before heading south to Brownstown, Lange was the launch operations manager at GM’s Factory ZERO in Detroit-Hamtramck, where she supported the launch of the GMC HUMMER EV, Chevrolet Silverado EV, GMC Sierra Denali EV, and Cadillac ESCALADE IQ.
“Everything I’ve worked on at GM has been in the EV and AV space,” she says. “My diverse experience with many product launches helped prepare me to sit in the seat I’m in now.”
What’s next
So, what’s next for the Langes? Hogs and cattle.
“Long-term, we intend to leverage the fruits of the farm to feed cattle to run a self-sustaining operation,” she said. “My daughter also started doing 4H last year, showing and selling hogs at the local fair at the end of July. Now my son wants to show hogs as well!”
Lange has grown to love the family benefits of farming and has no intention of slowing down – and the results of her and her husband's efforts have been well worth it.
“The goal is for my kids to grow into amazing problem solvers and great team players,” she said. “I’m so grateful to be able to give them this experience on the farm as a family – that’s our real passion behind all this.”
Off the clock explores the outside interests of GM employees. To nominate someone for this series, drop us a line at news@gm.com.
Check out more from the series:
Hillary Lange isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty – on the clock or off. Her day job as plant manager at the General Motors Brownstown Battery Assembly Plant in southeastern Michigan is just one of her full-time roles: she also manages a 150-acre farm.
Both Lange and her husband Rob – a GM calibration engineer who works in diesel and thermal systems – have a passion for the outdoors. While her husband’s family were “Ford people,” Lange grew up fully immersed in GM culture, with her family owning a Pontiac, Buick, and GMC dealership in Michigan’s upper peninsula.
“As a kid I would help out at the dealership on Saturdays,” she says. “It was great to get to see all the cars and be involved.”
Lange’s husband grew up on a family farm in Michigan, harvesting grain and raising livestock. But Lange says that she “never in a million years thought she'd actually live on a farm.”
A family affair
A little over 10 years ago, the Langes decided to relocate to a rural area of Michigan near where her husband grew up, purchasing an old farmhouse and 75 acres of land.
“I won’t lie, I was super reluctant at first,” she says. “But in the decade since, I’ve grown to love it.”
The Langes started farming with the intention of growing and selling grain. But they’ve evolved their farm to focus on hay production, including a recent 80-acre expansion. Today, the Langes have 125 acres for hay and 25 acres of woods with the goal of using it for future livestock.
Lange says her initial role on the farm was to handle the paperwork, but she also literally gets her hands dirty with some of the day-to-day tasks of running the business. It’s a family farm – and the whole family is involved in the operation.
“My oldest daughter drives the truck and collects the hay bales, while my son runs the tractors and my husband runs the baler,” she says. “I help pallet and tarp the hay, and all three of my kids can operate our backhoe to move hay and perform odd jobs.”
Farm to factory
Before diving boots-first into farming, Hillary’s first love was manufacturing – something she discovered early in her career. Prior to joining GM, she had an internship with Rolls Royce Aerospace.
“I really wanted to get back to my family roots in automotive, even though I loved the aerospace business,” she says. “With so many businesses inside of GM, I know I can always grow and learn.”
Lange leads the team at the Brownstown Battery Assembly plant, where GM produces electric drive units and battery packs for the Corvette E-Ray and battery packs for the Cadillac CELESTIQ, while also developing batteries for future products. Before heading south to Brownstown, Lange was the launch operations manager at GM’s Factory ZERO in Detroit-Hamtramck, where she supported the launch of the GMC HUMMER EV, Chevrolet Silverado EV, GMC Sierra Denali EV, and Cadillac ESCALADE IQ.
“Everything I’ve worked on at GM has been in the EV and AV space,” she says. “My diverse experience with many product launches helped prepare me to sit in the seat I’m in now.”
What’s next
So, what’s next for the Langes? Hogs and cattle.
“Long-term, we intend to leverage the fruits of the farm to feed cattle to run a self-sustaining operation,” she said. “My daughter also started doing 4H last year, showing and selling hogs at the local fair at the end of July. Now my son wants to show hogs as well!”
Lange has grown to love the family benefits of farming and has no intention of slowing down – and the results of her and her husband's efforts have been well worth it.
“The goal is for my kids to grow into amazing problem solvers and great team players,” she said. “I’m so grateful to be able to give them this experience on the farm as a family – that’s our real passion behind all this.”
Off the clock explores the outside interests of GM employees. To nominate someone for this series, drop us a line at news@gm.com.
Check out more from the series: