In this special, off-script episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast, host Haylie Shipp flips the mic and interviews Megan Torgerson, founder and host of Reframing Rural, an award-winning documentary podcast that centers the voices and lived experiences of rural people and places. Now in its fourth season, Reframing Rural is focused on succession planning, an issue deeply important to ranching families and to the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance. Haylie and Megan talk about how Reframing Rural got started, Megan’s background growing up on a farm in northeast Montana, and why rural stories are so often misunderstood or oversimplified in mainstream media. They also dig into the emotional realities of succession planning including family dynamics, communication, legacy, and the weight of passing the baton. Following the conversation, listeners are invited to hear Episode 1 of Season 4 of Reframing Rural, an intimate and powerful story featuring Howie Hammond and his daughter Andrea Lien near Malta, Montana. The Hammond family are longtime supporters of the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance, and their story is one we hold especially dear. In This Episode You Will Hear: How Reframing Rural grew out of Megan’s academic work and lived experienceWhat mainstream media often misses about agriculture and rural lifeThe real statistics and realities around farm and ranch successionWhy emotion, vulnerability, and storytelling are essential to succession conversationsThe diagnosis that accelerated the Hammond family’s succession planningThe emotional weight of legal and financial meetings when time feels shortA daughter's fear of being the generation that loses the ranchWhy “equal is not always fair” and why the ranch has to come first Guest Bios Megan Torgerson Megan is the founder and host of Reframing Rural, an award-winning documentary podcast sharing nuanced stories of rural people and places. She grew up on a farm and ranch near Dagmar, Montana, and began the podcast in 2019 to challenge oversimplified narratives about rural life. Reframing Rural is now in its fourth season. Howie Hammond Howie has farmed and ranched for more than 45 years in Montana’s Milk River Valley near Malta. Alongside his wife JoAnn, he built a family operation spanning thousands of acres of rangeland and cropland. Following a rare muscle disease diagnosis, Howie became a vocal advocate for early succession planning and mentors families across Montana. Andrea Lien Andrea manages Hammond Ranch with her husband Wyatt and her parents Howie and JoAnn. After earning a business degree from Rocky Mountain College and working in finance, she returned home to continue her family’s agricultural legacy. The Ranchers Stewardship Alliance (RSA) is a rancher-led, grassroots organization, dedicated to improving the quality of life for rural communities throughout the Northern Great Plains. Through collaborative conservation projects, rancher education events, and local community outreach, RSA works to strengthen our rural community, economy, and culture for generations to come. For more on the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance, head to www.RanchStewards.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Your feedback is always welcome. Email info@ranchstewards.org. Want to support our mission? Visit https://ranchstewards.charityproud.org/Donate.
