The Storytellers Porch

“I can look to the seasons, and I can look to the controlled burns and the growth that comes up a week later and use that as a reminder: that nature, and the seasons, and those cycles have been here long before we have and will be here long after.

And I think that's really all the hope I need .”

- ­Gracie Jenkins

In our last adventure out to Stockport Farm, Jill talked about the intentional burning of her barn, to keep the land and the surrounding area safe. In today’s episode, Jill and her co-host, Gracie Jenkins, discuss a far more tragic burn... an unplanned burn created by nature and the dry lands of Kansas that took out the farm’s freshly planted tree line and almost took out the farmhouse.

As Gracie reminds us, sometimes we must burn the old to start anew. What did Jill find when she went back to the farm a week after everything almost burned to the ground? Listen in to find out!

To find out more about Gracie Jenkins, follow her on Instagram @graciejenkinss and find her fabulous book of poetry, She Spoke Like Poetry, here: https://www.amazon.com/Spoke-Like-Poetry-Gracie-Packard/dp/0692368043/

Find out more and see Jill's pictures of the transformation of her farm at:

The Storytellers Porch on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellersporch

The Storytellers Porch on Instagram, @thestorytellersporch, https://www.instagram.com/thestorytellersporch/ Behind the scenes information from the Stockport Farm https://www.facebook.com/StockportFarm

Thank you joining us on The Storyteller's Porch this week! Make sure you check us out at https://thestorytellersporch.com/, and subscribe and follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you don't miss a single story with us on the Porch. And we’d be honored if you give us a 5-star rating if you enjoyed this episode!

If you have a story about farming, ranching, or growing up in rural America, we want to hear your story and help you share it! Those stories are what bring us hope in difficult times. Get in touch with Jill at The Storytellers Porch website at https://thestorytellersporch.com/apply/ or send us an email at [email protected].

Always drink responsibly, don't drink and drive.

“Every time we started to go to school, the old gray mare would wait till we got out on the road, right by our house, and then she'd go back into the ditch with the buggy that she was hitched to and head for the barn.”

Welcome to the Storytellers Porch!

Today, Jill is joined by Mrs. Barbara Ewing and her daughter Jacquie. Mrs. Ewing (who just celebrated her 100th birthday... on a motorcycle!) will be telling us stories about her childhood growing up in the farmlands of Kansas, riding a horse to school that always got spooked, and the dirt storms and the grasshoppers that plagued the farmlands.

This episode is a special one and quite different then our normal shows. The goal of this season of The Storytellers Porch is to help people understand what it is like to grow up in Kansas. Through the coincidence that tends to happen in close communities, Jill found out that her Aunt Nova that used to teach grade school in the one-room-schoolhouse in Kansas just so happened to teach right alongside today’s guest, Mrs. Ewing! Throughout today’s interview, you will continue to hear many connections between the Ewings and self-proclaimed city girl Jill (who is learning she has quite a bit of farmer in her too).

This episode is longer than our others as we did not want to cut any of the stories Mrs. Ewing, Jacquie, and Jill had to share today. We hope you enjoy all that is shared and are inspired to sit down and record your family story.

Find out more and see Jill's pictures of the transformation of her farm at:

The Storytellers Porch on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellersporch

The Storytellers Porch on Instagram, @thestorytellersporch, https://www.instagram.com/thestorytellersporch/ Behind the scenes information from the Stockport Farm https://www.facebook.com/StockportFarm

Thank you joining us on The Storyteller's Porch this week! Make sure you check us out at https://thestorytellersporch.com/, and subscribe and follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you don't miss a single story with us on the Porch. And we’d be honored if you give us a 5-star rating if you enjoyed this episode!

If you have a story about farming, ranching, or growing up in rural America, we want to hear your story and help you share it! These stories are what bring us hope in difficult times. Get in touch with Jill at https://thestorytellersporch.com/apply/ or send us an email at [email protected].

Always drink responsibly, don't drink and drive.

Join Jill Davis on The Porch where she shares what inspired her to create this show.

Today’s episode of The Storyteller’s Porch begins with a signature drink to honor our host’s Jill Davis’ “daddy”, peppermint schnapps. (Check out the show notes on The Storytellers Porch blog page at https://thestorytellersporch.com/mom-said-it-was-a-pickup-but-it-was-also-a-love-story/ to see some exclusive pictures of Jill’s parents and the farm!)

Jill’s dad, Jim Davis, was 91 years old when he passed away in November of 2018. One thing that remained true for Jim throughout his entire life is that he LOVED peppermint. Jim was known to end his day with a nice shot of peppermint schnapps. In fact, this habit went so far that Jill’s sister once snuck in a bottle of peppermint schnapps to Jill’s dad while he was recovering in rehab from a broken hip.

Jill’s dad was a couple of years younger than her mom and that’s almost all we know about how they met. They were in the same state and around the same age as one another. Though Jill and her siblings asked many, many times to hear the details of their love story, the full details were never divulged. Jill’s mom, Sue, just always said... “well... it was a pickup.”

Eventually, Jim moved to Leadville, Colorado where he worked in the mines. At the time, Climax Mines was mining molybdenum. While Jim lived and worked in Colorado, Jill’s mother remained on the farm in Kansas with the children. They kept up this way of life for a long while. With Jill’s mother not knowing how to drive, seeing one another was completely dependent on Jim. During this time, tragedy struck when Jim and his wife lost their two daughters in an accident.

Following the accident, Jill’s parents relocated once again to Colorado Springs, which is where Jill was born. Jim started a construction business in Colorado Springs and the tides began to turn.

In the ‘70s, Jim’s business became very successful. By the ‘80s, when Jill had grown and moved away from home, Jim was offered to become part owner of a local bank in Colorado Springs that specifically catered to and supported small businesses.

Sometime during the time of Jim’s business growing and the bank coming into the family’s life, the farm in Kansas went out of the family. In the late 80’s, the family that purchased the farm land reached out to Jim and let him know they had given the farm a go but to no avail. The family was at a loss and asked Jim if he wanted his family land back.

By this time, Jim was well off and in a solid position to repurchase the land so he did so for $14,000.

Sue did not want to move to the land and so the family stayed in Colorado Springs and Jim went back and forth each season to help farm the land. Eventually, Jim had tenants on the property to care for the homestead and the building for him. Longtime family friends, the Kresses and the Bursches, continued to grow crops on the land.

Though Jill’s parents never lived on the farm again, the few years that they did are a symbol of the power of love, showing respect for one another’s needs, and working through life as one half of a partnership.

We would love fort you to share your story with us! You can submit your stories here to be featured in a future episode. We look forward to hearing from you and can’t wait to share a signature drink with you.

Find out more and see Jill's pictures of the transformation of her farm at:

The Storytellers Porch on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellersporch

The Storytellers Porch on Instagram, @thestorytellersporch, https://www.instagram.com/thestorytellersporch/ Behind the scenes information from the Stockport Farm https://www.facebook.com/StockportFarm

Thank you joining us on The Storyteller's Porch this week! Make sure you check us out at https://thestorytellersporch.com/, and subscribe and follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you don't miss a single story with us on the Porch. And we’d be honored if you give us a 5-star rating if you enjoyed this episode!

Always drink responsibly, don't drink and drive.

“The reason my great-great-grandparents came over here was for freedom and hope for their family. To start this generation and to give generational hope and freedom of living.

Some place like here.”

- Deb Nyenhuis, today’s guest onThe Storytellers Porch

Following the trend of last week’s episode with Dr. Mark Wright on The Storytellers Porch, Deb Nyenhuis and Jill talk today about life growing up on a farm. In a slight contrast to Dr. Wright’s childhood, who was a frequent visitor of his grandparent’s farm but didn’t live there, Deb lived her life on her parent’s farm in South Dakota until she went to college.

So much can be learned from life on a farm, as Deb and Jill discuss today. From a hard work ethic, to recovering from a huge financial hit (Deb’s father lost $70,000 on his farm in the ‘70s!), to self-sustainability... while these stories may be decades or even centuries old, the stories told and the lessons learned are just as, and maybe even more, relevant today.

Perhaps Jill sums up these lessons best, with a reminder we all need:

“My collective impact today is to just hold onto hope, no matter what. Human beings are strong, and smart, and inventive, and innovative, and capable, and we will make it through whatever is next, because we have hope and we have community .”

Find out more and see Jill's pictures of the transformation of her farm at:

The Storytellers Porch on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellersporch

The Storytellers Porch on Instagram, @thestorytellersporch, https://www.instagram.com/thestorytellersporch/ Behind the scenes information from the Stockport Farm https://www.facebook.com/StockportFarm

Thank you joining us on The Storyteller's Porch this week! Make sure you check us out at https://thestorytellersporch.com/, and subscribe and follow us on your favorite podcasting platform so you don't miss a single story with us on the Porch. And we’d be honored if you give us a 5-star rating if you enjoyed this episode!

If you have a story about farming, ranching, growing up in rural America, or any thoughts from today’s show, we want to hear your story and help you share it! These stories are what bring us hope in difficult times. Get in touch with Jill at https://thestorytellersporch.com/apply/ or send us an email at [email protected].

Always drink responsibly, don't drink and drive.