“It’s not something that happens overnight, it’s a gradual transition. We started making our own bars of soap, I started making my own tallow, I started doing all these little things gradually that are creating a more holistic home, but it definitely takes time and you appreciate everything you have a whole lot more.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of talking to Kerissa Payne of Covey Rise Farms. Kerissa shared about her journey building her farm operation with her husband in Ohio and then moving their operation to Kansas. As you can imagine, that process did not come without a few bumps in the road, but Kerissa and her family have settled into their new home and are working on expanding their business. Kerissa also delved into how she started making things from scratch and how going without some things, like their dryer, doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

“What you feel like in the moments when it is a hard season is real and even in your mind you know in a few years it’s going to be easier but that’s a few years away. I feel like I try to let myself feel those feelings and for me, writing is how I process a lot of that and remembering that it’s ok to feel hard but just know it’s not going to last forever.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of talking to Stacy Bronec. While not having an ag background, Stacy has taken to farm life and raising a family on the farm. Stacy shared about what she loves about farm life and some of the struggles she has encountered, like loneliness as a mother and farm wife. Stacy uses writing as an outlet, a way to process aspects of life, and to find community. Be sure to check out some of her essays and listen to the end of the episode to hear about Stacy’s wild third birth story!

“The mindset of I do belong here. I belong here. Never underestimate your roots and where you came from and just try to find your place.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of talking with Liz Fiedler of Sunny Mary Meadow Farms. Liz shared how her flower farm got started as a farm stand and the many different ag operations were run on her late husband’s family farm. Liz also opened up with us about losing her husband unexpectedly and her grief journey so far. Liz is more than just a flower farmer and business owner, Liz is also a nurse practitioner and she noted how the two have some commonalities. One other hat that Liz wears is a coach for other people wanting to start their own flower farms or operations. She has learned a lot in her journey to get where she is and wants to help others by sharing her knowledge and experiences.

“Recognizing the season and what actually is important in that season, I think, is the most important thing you can do.”

In this episode, I wanted to talk about a topic that many followers have asked me about, time management and how to manage all the irons in the fire as a wife, mother, farmer, and business owner. Sometimes it is hard to adjust your expectations to the season you are in, but once you do and set realistic, achievable goals, it will help you stay on track. I use tools like Google calendar to help me with time management. I have adopted the philosophy that there’s a home for everything in your home, business, and even digital material. That has really helped me stay organized and be more productive. An important tip I talk about is finding support systems to help guide you and achieve your goals, as well as support you on your journey!

“Use veterinarians for our knowledge base. We worked really hard for that degree and it matters.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of talking with Dr. Lauren Mack. Lauren shared her insight on what it is like moving to rural Kansas and buying a veterinarian practice right after graduation. After having been the new person in a small town, Lauren spoke about some ways she likes to get the community involved in welcoming an applicant or staff member. Being warm and welcoming to new members of the community is a topic we spoke a lot about and is important if you want your community to thrive. Lauren also talked about how to build a relationship with your vet as well as the importance of veterinarians to set boundaries for themselves to protect their mental health.

“The cattle industry is such a long game. You just have to plan for 10, 20 years in advance all the time.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of talking with Meghan Gates. Meghan has a lot on her plate as a mother, rancher, and a business woman. Meghan dove into her background in agriculture as well as how she and her husband started their own cattle operation and selling beef shares. On the side, Meghan also has a western apparel online shop and a soup cookbook! Meghan suggested, if you’re interested in getting started in homesteading but aren’t sure where to start your journey, try the kitchen. Meghan shared where she got her inspiration for her cookbook and some techniques for cooking she wishes to pass on to others.

“It’s different every day, which I love. That was one of my difficulties with an office job; it was a little bit of monotony and boredom. You’re not going to get bored on a farm.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Gabe Spurgoen from South Baldwin Farms. Gabe shared about his career as an architect and how he didn’t feel fulfilled. What started as a way for Gabe to get away from his office desk by planting some peach trees quickly evolved into Gabe joining his father-in-law on the family farm as a fruit farmer. Gabe expanded on their peach and apple orchard operation and the seasonal employees that have now become like family to him. Gabe also discussed what it’s like to be an employee on the farm and talk about the farm succession and the future of the farm.

“I like animals and I like being a steward of animals and having a pragmatic purpose for having lots of animals.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Matt Brechwald, host of the Off-Farm Income podcast. Matt shared about his childhood and how he first got interested in agriculture. Matt also shared about his journey in the ag industry that eventually led him to start a farm with his wife and host the Off-Farm Income podcast. Matt explained the challenges he sees with the urban sprawl in his area. Matt gave some insight into the marketing around the lab-grown meat and where the funding is coming from. Matt has plenty of stories to share and was kind enough to share a Christmas story from his childhood.

“There’s help out there. Like there’s a resource or somebody for you.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dawn Krees. Dawn talked about her podcast Harvesting Her Way, her coaching, and what her clients are wanting to learn more about. Diving deeper into Dawn’s coaching, she explained that it is important to work with your body and as a woman, work with your cycle. Dawn also explained Human Design and how she uses that tool to help her clients understand their personalities and motivations. One great piece of advice Dawn shared was to trust your instincts in food and movement.

“I think a lot of farmers would like to not rely on the bank or the government, but unfortunately the system and the path we’re heading down today, we rely too heavily on those practices.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of catching up with Shane Meenen. Shane and I covered a lot of ground in our chat, from A2 milk to insurance. Shane talked about the rules and regulations around regenerative agriculture. Shane discusses government involvement in agriculture, PPE loans, crop and livestock insurance. Shane also advocated for not following tradition if it is no longer serving you or your operation.

“Probably one of the top three reasons the sheep industry is slowly dwindling is just the amount of work that goes into it is a lot, like you don’t really get paid for that. I wish that was something that, I would still have gotten the sheep anyways, but I wish I would have known that going into it.”   

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Charity Epperson. Charity and I cover quite a few topics in this episode. Charity had the unique childhood experience of growing up on a preserve in rural California and Charity shares what that was like as well as living off-grid. Charity explains why she chose the breeds of sheep and pigs that she raises with her husband and son as well as why she chose to get into ranching. Living in rural, serene California does not come without its challenges, like getting vet services or other services to come out to their home and ranch. Charity dives into that more and some of the ways she’s had to be creative to overcome some obstacles. Charity talks about her new ventures with the sheep wool and pig lard and where you can find those products from her ranch.   

“Financially right now in agriculture, it’s so expensive to get going. I have no idea how first-generation people do it and I have nothing but respect for them and what they go through to get going.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Kendel Hofer. Kendel is the third generation on her family ranch and keeps it going with help from her husband and two boys. Kendel dives into her family history of the ranch and how her father was able to expand it with hard work and help from her grandfather. Kendel shares about what the transition to owning the farm from her father looked like. Kendel talks about the financial feasibility of farming and ranching and how difficult it can be to get into agriculture. Kendel also shares about some methods they use on the ranch, that aren’t without challenges to figure out and overcome.

“Flexibility pays more than what you can ask for in a salary.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Calli Williams, or you may know her as the Millennial Rancher. Calli shares about her family’s cow/calf operation, how Calli met her husband, Tate, and how they are combining their cattle operation knowledge and making their own cattle operation thrive. Calli said that her involvement in FFA and 4H really shaped her life and who she is today and hopes that her boys want to get involved in those organizations as well. Calli talks about the benefits for her and her cattle operation to be able to work from home, but it doesn’t come without its own challenges. Calli shares what methods she uses to successfully work from home to utilize her time well. Calli and Tate are expanding their operation by offering straight to consumer beef from their own cattle. Calli shares how they started that business venture and what she hopes the future holds for the business.

“I have developed actual relationships with my customers because it is farming. It is such a small world at the end of the day and all of my customers are either friends or family to me at some point in time. Even customers from previous banks, we still talk and we still have that relationship because you’re in farming and I feel like everybody’s the same in the agriculture community. They’re good people and they’re honest people and they want to help everybody. And I think that’s just agriculture in general.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Kaitlyn Niemeyer Burks. Kaitlyn is Head of Ag Lending at a bank in Missouri. At home, Kaitlyn is a 4th generation farmer and she shares that being a banker and having farmers as customers, while wasn’t her original plan, it is her way of helping her family farm and staying connected to agriculture and people in the ag industry. Kaitlyn gives some insight on new trends she is seeing in younger generations of farmers as well as some tips for starting farmers. Kaitlyn also shares about her passion for helping her customers throughout their farming journey.

“I learned a lot about who I was and who I was capable of being and that was just an awesome experience.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Camarie Roorda. Camarie and her family have been involved in agriculture and the rodeo industry for years and Camarie shares about her journey in rodeo. Camarie’s experience in rodeo helped spark her two businesses, the Performance Pony Company and RodeoKids. Camarie explains why she finds it important to invest in kids and help cultivate their passion for ag and rodeo.

“I think that it’s important for consumers to know that when you are in a rural area you cannot receive the same products, sometimes at all.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Ashley Comeau. Ashley and her husband, Adam, are the current owners of Brant’s Meat Market in rural Kansas. Brant’s Meat Market has been in operation for over 100 years and Ashley talks about the history of the store and the Brant family and the processes they had in place to run the meat market. While still wanting to hold and honor traditions of the family and the store, Ashley and Adam also want to expand their customer reach and opportunities the meat market is able to fulfill. Ashley also shares about opening a second location and the highs and lows that came with a second store. Ashley and Adam love working with their community to provide high quality meat as well as local meat.

“That is where when you are starting a new business, you have those challenges. You have to think around the corner. You have to think, ‘I know what I want, now how can I explain it to someone who’s never met me?’”  

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Brad Fourby of Leafy Green Farms. Brad’s farm is unique and innovative. Situated in Southeast Kansas, Brad is able to grow his leafy green vegetables year round using climate-controlled shipping containers. Brad shares how his farm got started and the challenges he faced, like getting the bank to believe in his vision like he did. Brad also shares about ventures getting small farms like his into schools to not only help the students but their families and the community as well.  

“So there’s a fine line and balance that needs to happen and I know that Texas is good about having those conversations and cattle raisers are active in those conversations and trying to make sure that both sides win and come out with what they need, but that we’re preserving this heritage of these families that have put countless hours and generations into feeding not just America but the world a lot of times.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jana Earp. Jana and I covered quite a few topics in our conversation. Jana talked about her efforts to educate students about where their food comes from. Jana also shared about posting her outfit of the day online. She had lots of corporate wear and wanted to dress in more western clothing and how she incorporates some corporate attire into her everyday western, comfortable outfits. Jana also opened up about her health tragedy that happened and how she needed to go back to the farm to slow down because of what happened.

Don’t forget to join our Facebook group, Farming On Purpose, to enter for our one year anniversary giveaways, check out our merch for the podcast, to share your stories, and support other farmers and ranchers.

“It’s a balancing act of just being your authentic self and figuring that out. As humans we are always evolving, interests change, stages of life change, all of those things. If you look at what I shared 6 or 7 years ago, it’s still the same basis of agriculture but I have changed a lot myself.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Andrea Flemming. You might know Andrea better as That Fit Agvocate. During our chat, Andrea opened up about her mental health and how fitness started out as an outlet for her anxiety and stress, but evolved into a new lifestyle and career. Andrea also shared about adding more to her plate like adding apparel to her website and doing brand collaborations, and transitioning to a full time fitness coach, then shifting to agriculture advocate. One of Andrea’s passions is farming and ranching with her family, and she talked about what that looks like for her as well as how hard it is to expand the farm with factors like land prices hindering growth.

Don’t forget to join our Facebook group, Farming On Purpose, to enter for our one year anniversary giveaways, check out our merch for the podcast, to share your stories, and support other farmers and ranchers.

“I think it’s all just a balancing act and just trying to put a pencil to it. We do a lot of penciling because we’re new at this, we’re figuring it out. So what works for our neighbor may not work for us because they’re in a different situation than we are and that’s ok.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Jess Trask of Perigo Hay and Cattle. Jess shared about her experience on her family’s hay farm and why they decided to get involved in the cattle industry. Not having a background in cattle, Jess had quite the learning curve to figuring out how to manage their cattle operation. Jess also talked about the importance in learning and always being open to learn new things and adapt. Getting stuck in traditions or how things are always done can be dangerous for a farm or ranch’s success. Jess dropped an exclusive look into a new project they have in the works!