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Eric had a wide creative streak and enjoyed making something out of nothing.

Eric Dean Rapp, 67, was born in Kansas City, Kansas on February 10, 1959, and died September 25th, 2026, in Wichita after a 12-year battle with cancer. He was preceded in death by his parents, B.J. and Marilyn Rapp, and brother Larry Rapp.

Growing up in the Kansas City area, his family ultimately moved to Valley Falls, Kansas, during his high school years. Always a hard worker, Eric and his father took great pride in cleaning up their fixer-upper farm and turning it into a showplace. Eric had a wide creative streak and enjoyed making something out of nothing. When learning his new high school did not have a mascot, he fabricated the first mascot costume and was the first mascot for the school.

After high school, he attended K-State and studied animal science.He then attended welding school and ran his own welding shop for a time.

Working for and with a series of farmers in a vast range of crop and livestock enterprises gave him a broad range of skills and experience, and there was nothing he could not fix, fabricate or figure out.

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He always enjoyed beautifying the farm, and spoiling his wife with special things like her Meditation Garden.

His experience with swine production ultimately led him to Princeton, Missouri, to work with the newly founded Premium

Standard Farms, where he met his wife, Callene. The two were married in 1993.

In 1995, they relocated to Leon, KS, to be closer to family, and purchased a bare 40 acres. Eric turned his time and energy to creating a working farm there. In addition, he worked for 13 years at the Sedgwick County Zoo, managing the Guest Service and Security departments.

Eric and Callene discovered a passion for heritage breeds of livestock and began working with The Livestock Conservancy in the early 2000s. In 2003, they founded The Rare Hare Barn, a rabbitry which featured endangered breeds of meat rabbits on the Conservancy Priority List, and allowed Eric to return to a passion he had shared with his family as a young man. This rabbitry grew quickly to be the largest Heritage Breed rabbitry in the US and shipped rabbit fryers all over the country.

His attention to detail and dedication to his rabbits enabled him, with Callene, to write what would become his legacy, the book Raising Rabbits for Meat, which has become a well-known resource in the meat rabbit world.

Ultimately, the passion for Heritage Breeds spilled out of the rabbit barn and the farm became home to the critically rare Palmer-Dunn strain of Pineywoods cattle, and - while Eric swore

he never wanted goats - the critically rare Arapawa goat soon also called the farm home.

A lifelong Kansas City Chiefs fan, even through the rough years, he was thrilled to be able to experience the Mahomes era. He always enjoyed beautifying the farm, and spoiling his wife with special things like her Meditation Garden, and continuing to build more goat pens. He also could make a mean batch of nachos.

He is survived by his sister in law and two nephews, his wife, Callene, their dog Addie and a host of animals who miss him very much. A celebration of life will be planned at a later date, and memorials in his honor can be sent to The Livestock Conservancy.