The year is 1980. William "Bill" Stanton is a farmer. Together with his wife Marianne and their three children, BJ "Bill" Junior, Emily, and Rose, and their family dog Flash, they manage the crops on Stanton Acres. Since the mid-1800's, the early Stanton pioneers have farmed in the Salmon Creek Valley near the Western Foothills. William Stanton loves routine and hates risk, and he is obsessed with outer space. The Salmon Creek Valley, Bookerton, Waddington, Ironwood, and Carona City, complete the image of authentic rural life. Until a space probe crashes into the Stanton barnyard. Life becomes stressful for William Stanton as he has to deal with the weather, crops, nosy townsfolk, and the mystery surrounding a crash site, and marital anxieties. The Pioneer is a heart-warming story of determination, conflict, resolve, and mystery. But, just when everything seems to come together again, the story ends with an unsuspected and dramatic turn of events that borders on disbelief. The ending is a complete surprise.