Hear what past participants had to say about their experience…
Madison Frye
“Having a broad range of interests, I spent the first couple years of college jumping between science majors until landing on Environmental Science with a Pre-Vet emphasis. Even then, unlike my friends who seemed to passionately pursue their academic niche, I struggled to determine what I found most meaningful to pursue as a career. One day towards the end of my senior year while flipping through the New York Times, I came across an article discussing the ever-increasing role of women in ranching, with a link to New Cowgirl Camp. I signed up on nothing more than a whim. The camp opened my eyes to the world of holistic management and regenerative agriculture and redefined what it meant to have a career in the field of environmental science. The experience I gained in those five days motivated me to find an opportunity to learn and practice regenerative ranching methods firsthand. Attending New Cowgirl Camp and experiencing Sandra and Beth’s passion undoubtedly solidified my desire to make regenerative ranching my life’s work. Sandra and Beth’s enthusiasm for their work is so inspiring and I can only hope to feel the same about my work one day.
One of the most valuable (and memorable) things about New Cowgirl is simply the connections I made with other campers. All of them are such strong, wonderful women with a diverse range of experiences. And I was especially lucky to meet Julia Mitchell who manages ROAM Ranch just an hour outside of my hometown of Austin, TX. Since camp, I have had a number of opportunities to hang out with her and get a taste of ranch life.
Camp not only helped guide me to my passion but helped give me a better understanding of how my other passion, working with horses, should fit into my life. I have never felt in my element more than on our outing to the roping practice. The feeling I got while helping move the cattle down the chute solidified the fact that no matter what kind of work I do in the future, horses MUST be involved!
Since New Cowgirl Camp I spent a couple months working at a dressage training and rehab facility in Virginia. However, I am now on the hunt for something more focused on regenerative ranching. Given we are at a pivotal moment in the state of our environment, I am eager to work on the front lines to create positive change and hopefully be one of many women in such an important movement to better our food system and our environment.”
Kate Gundry
“When I decided to attend New Cowgirl camp I didn't know what to expect, but I assumed I would get practical tools and tips that I needed for the future ranching endeavors I sought to pursue on our land. What an underestimation that was. What I ended up being exposed to was a reverence for land and animal and plant life that I didn't even know was possible, or know that I needed to identify in my own heart. I learned that being a steward is a role everyone can have, but it's also not something to be dabbled in. Every decision we make has an impact. Our place in our systems is a giant cascade and it's something to think about and account for each and every day. As the women of our program all came to their own realizations over the course of the program there was emotion in each of us, and support across our whole. As women we are natural caregivers, and at the program we were reminded of the eye-opening responsibility of caring for the earth and her flora and fauna. I left knowing that this is a commitment of a lifetime and it was a joy to commit to that with the incredible class of women I attended with. The support, lack of judgment, openness, honesty and love of our group was something so rare in today's world and I wish everyone could feel the warmth of this experience. It's given me the confidence to truly plan better so that I can be the best possible steward I can be for the rest of my life."
Alex machado
“I came to New Cowgirl Camp (a birthday gift to myself) with some working animal husbandry experience, but I had little knowledge of Holistic Management, and wanted to immerse myself in the opportunity to learn with the goal of developing my own farm business. I wanted to explore management intensive grazing practices and apply them to my own farm but I felt stuck on the finer details and found myself in a rut. It wasn't until participating in Beth and Sandy's exercises and presentations that things really clicked into place for me. We got hands-on with biological monitoring, worked sheep using low-stress livestock handling techniques, created sample grazing plans, practiced fencing repairs (There's not a day in my life when fencing knowledge doesn't come in handy), and spent hours delving deep into meaningful conversations about conservation, food systems, and animal impact. I walked away from Cowgirl Camp with a fire in my belly. A little over a year since attending, I am seeing real progress in my development, not only on a business level, but as a land steward and shepherdess too. Since then, I have developed a Holistic Context, evaluated my farm enterprises, put my first ever grazing plan into action, and even began a summer internship with Sandy at Matheson Farms working with cows and yak. I believe greatest gift of all was walking away from camp, feeling emotionally supported by New Cowgirl friendships and bonded by our fierce love for the planet. Thank you Sandy and Beth for all the great work you put into New Cowgirl Camp.”
Camas davis
“New Cowgirl Camp was life changing for me. I went in expecting I would learn a little something about grassland health, grazing, and pregnant cows. I left with a completely new mindset about my work and my life. I ended up making pretty huge changes in my life after New Cowgirl camp, all for the better, and I am now moving forward with a very new and different sense of what matters: quality of life, health of the planet, listening to nature, and building community. I love the way that this camp seeps into each attendee on the practical, the philosophical, the economical, and the spiritual and emotional level, perhaps without even meaning to. Beth and Sandra are such wonderful guides and mentors, with so much knowledge, skill, and passion to draw on. "New Cowgirl" has a very different meaning for me now-- to be a "new cowgirl" means being a part of a gritty, scrappy, intelligent, intuitive, curious, hard-working community of women who all hold the potential to become change agents within our food system, and within our ecosystem. New Cowgirls gonna save this planet."
Jenna Johnson
"I feel quite lucky to have started my journey down the path of regenerative agriculture at just the moment in time that Beth and Sandra came up with the vision for the New Cowgirl Camp.. I leaped at the chance to join the first cohort, I was just in the infancy stage of my learning and felt the need to see it in practice, learn from experts and test ideas.. Came into with a lot of online learning and very little practical experience .. I got to see two exceptional Ranchers in action, and learn in a tough environment landscape with limited rain, just how much the right management practices could positively impact the land, the animals and the ranchers as a whole. It was eye opening and inspiring.
I came back feeling invigorated and inspired in this path and with an amazing new group of women that I could call friends and I feel honored to be able to say I know.
I highly recommend this camp, this community really, to anyone that shows an interest in learning more about reading their land, heal their soil, support their community through agriculture in whatever form it takes. No matter what the path is, I think there is value for anyone interested in learning about holistic management, regenerative agriculture, intensive rotational grazing, soil health, reading your landscapes, understanding what it takes to put food on the table. Can't speak highly enough about these two women and the valuable work they do."
Ruby Hopkins
“I think for me, what Cowgirl Camp did more than anything else was affirm that I can ranch, and that I have the passion and drive to make regeneration my path forward. I don’t know everything, and I never will, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be a tough-as-nails cowgirl who can figure it out along the way.
Getting a scholarship meant so much to me. Being able to participate despite not being able to afford the camp on my own allowed me the feeling of belonging in this world. It’s so discouraging when I can’t take classes or afford to learn something, and it sends the message that you only belong if you have money. Cowgirl Camp made sure I felt welcome as I am. I think it also affirmed a path for my life that I was already starting to walk on, but I didn’t really know how to speak about. I didn’t really have expectations when I came, but I got so much more out of the week than I could have expected.
The biggest thing that has continued since camp is that I’m burning to work as a rancher, as a teacher, as a steward of the future.”
Cece Bloomfield
“Attending the New Cowgirl Camp was my transition moment. It propelled me from aging stay-at-home mom to an inspired entrepreneur, armed with new knowledge and a network of believers and supporters. I'm now pitching business ideas to investors, writing grant applications alongside university researchers, and facilitating collaborative initiatives. Magic happens when you bring together a group of women who care about the environment, animal welfare, and future generations. Thank you Beth and Sandy for your brilliant vision and execution!”
Paige Patillo
“A giant bowl of chicken soup for the ecofeminists soul. My week with Beth, Sandra and the rest of the new cowgirl attendees filled my cup to the brim. I still find myself calling upon my memories of the sisterhood built that week to reignite my confidence and solidify my vision as I work towards implementing holistic management practices back home. Beth and Sandra were such a wealth of knowledge and presented it to us in a way that seemed to dissolve barriers and move us from theory to action.
I was fortunate enough to be given scholarship assistance to make attending camp possible and I will be eternally grateful for this opportunity.”
