Learning the Charleston with Harry Slick
The Storytellers Porch
“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...
info_outline
Peace, Solitude, and More Lessons Learned on the Farm
The Storytellers Porch
“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 on Following the trend of last week’s episode with , 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...
info_outline
Lessons Learned on the Farm
The Storytellers Porch
Trigger warning: This episode contains dialogue of life on a sheep farm, which includes mentions of hunting and the death of animals. No animal cruelty is discussed. “When somebody walks in my practice, they're in my house. I want them to be at home.” - Mark H. Wright, DDS, today’s guest on The Storytellers Porch Today’s story on The Porch at The Farm is a unique one, in the best way possible. Jill chats with , who spent a lot of time growing up at his grandparents sheep ranch and currently resides in the city of Colorado Springs, CO. Dr. Wright doesn’t consider himself...
info_outline
Life Continues after Loss
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.” - 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...
info_outline
A Little Bit of Whiskey and a Lot of Community
The Storytellers Porch
What do you do when you get a call saying you have to fix your 130-year-old barn that is falling down and causing a hazard to your neighbors? You grab some friends, some beer, some food, and some love and figure it out. In today's exciting episode, Jill Davis and Emily Chase Smith talk about the hardship that came when Jill had to say goodbye to the family barn at the family farm. After having been in the family for 130 years, taking down the barn was an incredibly emotional moment for Jill and her family. Her brother perhaps surmised the emotions best: "It's like we're burning down dad."...
info_outline
A Daughters Love and a Brownie Camera
The Storytellers Porch
This episode of the Storyteller’s Porch begins with our host Jill Davis and her daughter, as they open a discussion about life growing up, Jill’s parents (Gracie’s grandparents), and much more. Our drink of choice for the porch this episode is made by Gracie’s girlfriend who is a barista at Dutch Bros. Previously, we’ve dived into the stories of Jim and Sue Davis, known to Gracie as Grandma and Grandpa. Gracie’s earliest memory of the farm is from a time when Jill and the kids were staying in Kansas at a hotel and there was a tornado warning. It was the first time Gracie...
info_outline
Mom Said It Was a Pickup but It Was Also a Love Story
The Storytellers Porch
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 at 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...
info_outline
Sometimes It Was Pretty Hard to Pay the Taxes
The Storytellers Porch
Iced water and bubbly in hand, our host Jill Davis and Emily Chase Smith walk through the history and genealogy of the sprawling farm inherited in Kansas. The farm began as a homestead in 1888. , Jill’s great grandfather, George Albert Henery elected for the 160-acre option allotted by the law and tended to the land for the seven years mandated in order to gain ownership. The land became known as Stockport Farm and even to this day, you can still see the lettering painted on the side of the barn that commemorates the town in which George Henery was born (Stockport, Ohio). George...
info_outline
So You’ve Inherited a Family Farm… Now What?
The Storytellers Porch
We begin season two of The Storytellers' Porch with a story that takes us to the beginning of Jill’s journey with her family’s farm in Kansas. In this episode, we discover how our host navigated the process of inheritance of her family farm and the history behind how her family came to own such a sizable property.
info_outline
Season 2 Trailer
The Storytellers Porch
Welcome to Season Two of , where we will be hearing tales of the Farm, with your host and storyteller, Jill Davis. These are the stories we share around the dinner table, tell in front of the campfire, and listen to on our porch. This is a place where tales are told and stories are heard. Grab your tea, your coco, your Wild Turkey Whiskey, your wine, and settle in to hear some stories of Kansas, the Farm, family, and friends. To learn more about this season’s storytellers, and to catch past episodes of The Storytellers Porch, visit us at To make sure you hear every exciting episode with...
info_outlineWe begin season two of The Storytellers' Porch with our host Jill Davis and her long-time friend and co-host, Emily Chase Smith.
Jill Davis has been helping people identify their dreams, tell their stories and share their ideas with the world for the past 30 years. She is a coach, speaker, author, as well as a mother of four and grandmother of two, living a life of joy in the beautiful Colorado Mountains.
Jill's time as the lead speaker coach for TEDx Colorado Springs inspired her to create The Storytellers’ Porch, a podcast showcasing personal stories with collective impact.
Our co-host Emily Chase Smith is an attorney, So Cal native and lover of VW buses. She’ll be joining us for the entire season as we explore Jill’s journey to owning an incredible, 300+ acre farm in rural Kansas.
Today’s story takes us to the beginning of Jill’s journey with her family’s farm in Kansas. Growing up, Jill never spent time at the farm but her father, who left the property to Jill when he passed away in 2018, visited at least once per year to help his employees with harvest season. All throughout her life, Jill heard stories about the farm through her dad but was far removed as she grew up in the city lifestyle of Colorado Springs.
Following her inheritance, Jill took solace in the knowledge that her father had set up his will to allow Jill 5 years to decide what to do with the property and how to manage it. Farm hands lived on property at the time and were there to handle it all for her until the time came to make a decision.
Through a series of unexpected events, Jill was forced to move much faster than she had planned. In this episode, we discover how our host navigated the process of inheritance, the people she met along the way, her findings about the remote Kansas county (population 2,200) in which the farm is located and the history behind how her family came to own such a sizable property.
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!
We'll see you next time where we'll be sharing more personal stories with collective impact. What drink will you bring?
Always drink responsibly, don't drink and drive.