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Our commitment to provide the ultimate in private aviation experiences stretches back 25 years and yet each day, our team works diligently to refine every detail. From the personalized attention to our commitment to providing the highest quality aircraft to the Most Refined Set of Private Flyers, the NICHOLAS AIR team is solely focused on one mission--- yours.
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It may seem like just a flight, but it is far more than that. Each journey is the culmination of careful planning, flawless execution, and an unbridled passion to provide the best in world-class customer service. It is in each friendly handshake with the industry’s best pilots and it is in the calm that takes over as you settle into your seat aboard a perfectly appointed aircraft, all Owned and Operated by NICHOLAS AIR.
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6 - FALL 2022 | PORCH + PRAIRIE Magazine TABLE FEATURESCONTENTSOF 22 BEST DEFENSE FOUNDATION Volunteers with Honor 30 IT'S A FAMILY AFFAIR Rock Island Auction Company 40 SONGWRITER SPOTLIGHT Parker McCollum 46 WILD MUSTANGS OF UTAH: What They Teach Us About Ourselves 52 YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 150 Years of Untamed American Heritage 68 REMNANTS ON THE PRAIRIE by Matt Khamsihong 78 DANCEHALL ON THE PRAIRIE by Edgar Castillo 86 THEBEHINDPROFESSIONAL:THELENS Scott Slusher 96 DOVE IN THE WILDERNESS by Leslie Alan Coates 104 SHINING HOPE Project Hope Foundation 108 A LOUISIANA ABSTRACT ARTIST Charissa Owens 120 EXPERIENCE THE MAGIC OF THE GREAT WEST Virginian Lodge 40 Parker McCollumVirginian Lodge 120Wild Mustangs 46
10 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR 12 CONTRIBUTORS 14 PAGES 16 PLEDGE 18 FRONT STEPS Abby Carlton 20 PASSING THROUGH Cameron Riser 28 FOOD Veteran Owned Bars 76 SPORTDOG YourRetreiverGet-Ready-For-FallChecklist 102 PERSPECTIVE Kevin "ManagingMartoneStress to Up Your Game " 116 PEN & POET Kelsi McKee How to Write a Haiku 128 BACK PORCH Peder von "Wealthy."Harten SideBar 68 Scott Slusher 52 Yellowstone
MAGAZINE FOUNDER / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Peder von Harten CREATIVE DIRECTOR Todd Malone ASSOCIATE EDITOR Abby Carlton CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Kurt Miller, Kelsi McKee, Robin Young, Kevin Martone, Abby Carlton, Edgar Castillo, Leslie Coates, Lyle Steinman, Cameron Riser PHOTOGRAPHERS Scott Slusher, Mike Clingan: Montana Outdoor Imagery, Chis Kleinmeier, Lee Thomas Kjos of Kjos Outdoors, Matt Khamsihong, Edgar Castillo, Rich Stigall, Travis Burke, Samantha Sheppard, Robert Linder, Donald Giannatti, Jonas, Neil Cooper, Leon Lee, Yin Meina, Lydia Williams, Niketh Vellanki, Andre Benz, Karen Martinez, Dan Cutler INTERESTED IN PARTNERING? advertising@porchprairiemag.com TO SUBSCRIBE visit porchprairiemag.com/subscribe Porch + Prairie is published four times a year by Flying V Media, LLC DBA Piper Ranch Media,Oxford, MS 38655. Subscriptions are for one and two years (4 issues per year), Postmaster: Send address changes to P.O. Box 587 Oxford, MS 38655 SUBMISSION GUIDELINES To offer stories and /or photographs to be considered for publication in Porch + Prairie,email them to todd@porchprairiemag.com. Emails should include full contact information. We reserve the right to edit submissions for clarity, brevity and print quality. Porch + Prairie may not be reproduced or photocopied without permission of the publisher Flying V Media, LLC or Piper Ranch Media © Flying V Media, LLC 2021. Proudly Printed in the USA #PorchPrairieMag • contact@porchprairiemag.com SUBSCRIBE ONLINE PORCHPRAIRIEMAG.COMATWATCH Spring EQUINOX ENDEAVORS Summer SUMMER RETREATS FALL THE GREAT OUTDOORS winter WINTER ESCAPES
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Dear Friends, I remember the first conversations we had about starting Porch + Prairie Magazine. It was early Fall of 2019 and while blissfully ignorant to the future changes the world had in store about six months later, myself and a team of wide-eyed folks laid the template for what our pages would hold, what they would mean to our readers, and the impact that we hoped that each issue would make. From the very beginning, this was about inspiring our readers to go beyond the conventions of what they read in the mainstream and instead, go venture to places they’d forgotten or maybe never heard of from the “You’rebeginning.crazy!”they said. “Who in their right mind starts a print publication in the middle of the media industry moving away from the print format?!” Well, for starters, if anyone ever thought that my mind goes in the same direction as the masses, they are very much mistaken. And yes, perhaps I am a little crazy, but I felt that there is still something great about tucking a magazine into the briefcase and enjoying it on a long train to work, or tossing it into the beach bag to enjoy seaside, or perhaps it is best enjoyed with a bourbon as the last sun fades. To go completely against the tide of convention, Porch + Prairie had to be different. Nearly three years since those early meetings and more than two years since we published Issue #1, I like to think that Porch + Prairie has proven its merit as a printOurpublication.readers,many of whom reach out privately to us after they get their current issues, speak to how an article was the catalyst for them to do something--- take a trip they saw in our pages, follow an artist they’d read about, or best yet, support a Veteran-owned business they were introduced to through a feature we’d written. Reading those notes from our readers and then finding out what they want us to feature in future issues has been incredibly rewarding.
PvH FROM THE EDITOR Peder von Harten - Editor-in-Chief
To those who felt we should have never started, we’ve heard you too, and we’ve used some of that naysaying to fuel the fire to be the best storytellers, photographers, and collaborators that we can be in hopes to someday win you over as well. That day will come, perhaps soon, because it has to. There is no dividing line that I can think of that should ever limit someone from telling the stories about what makes America an amazing place.
Spend as much time on the road as I do and you quickly find that the landscapes and possibilities are endless. In the span of a few short years, we’ve learned that under every water tower, there’s a story to be told. I’m delighted to tell those stories in P+P, and for those who keep coming to us to read about them every issue, the best is yet to come.
LETTER
Kevin Martone balances a busy professional life with his passion for the outdoors. A nationally recognized expert in mental health and the Executive Director of a national non-profit, Kevin’s business travels enable him to enjoy the local culture and landscape in states throughout America. From Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, to New England and across the South, Kevin creates opportunities in the outdoors whenever and wherever he can. Kevin spends his personal time hunting, fishing, trail running, and enjoying sunsets with his wife, Sasha, on the dock of their family pond.
CONTRIBUTORS
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Abby Carlton was born and raised in Alexandria, Louisiana, where her and her family never shied away from a road trip or flight to a new city. She loves exploring new places she’s never been before and creating traditions around spots worth returning back to. Whether it’s making someone smile or laugh, or spending a little time out of her day helping others out, Abby is always appreciating the little things that help her choose joy each day. Abby currently lives in Oxford, Mississippi and enjoys traveling to visit her family on the Mississippi Coast and back in Louisiana, which will always be home.
Edgar Castillo is a recently retired law enforcement officer for a large Kansas City metropolitan agency. He also served in the United States Marine Corps for twelve years. Edgar was born in Guatemala, and when his family came to the U.S., his father, a new bird hunter himself, would take Edgar afield in search of roosters and bobs. Edgar’s passion lies in the uplands as he self-documents his travels across public lands throughout Kansas and the U.S., hunting open fields and prairies, walking treelines, & bustin’ through plum thickets, in a never-ending chase to hunt wild birds in wild places. You can follow his adventures on Instagram at @hunt_birdz
Kelsi McKee has been writing poetry and stories since she was old enough to scratch words on paper. She completed her first novel when she was 18 and continues to write while balancing a full-time job in the news industry. Originally from Northwest and a graduate of Texas A&M, Kelsi has enjoyed adventuring across the country and making her way to her current home in South Carolina. Away from pen and paper, Kelsi enjoys her time on the golf course and of course, cheering on her Aggies.
Charissa Owens is a Louisiana-grown abstract impressionist, wife, and mom to 3. She has always loved art since a young age, drawing inspiration from the colors and the textures in the world around her. Charissa has art that can be seen in galleries all over Louisiana and outside of its borders, in juried shows, and special pieces for Oschner Medical Center and the Acadiana St. Jude Dream Home. In between her full-time teaching job and spending time with her family, you can find Charissa in her in-home studio or art studio in Alexandria in the evenings and on the weekends.
Matt Khamsihong is a Kansas native, born to Laotian immigrants. His desire to travel and explore led him to serve in the Marine Corps, where his duty assignments afforded him great opportunities to see the world and meet new people.
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Robin Young is a senior pre-law student at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, MS, majoring in Criminal Justice with minors in Psychology and Intelligence and Security Studies. She is an adventure-lover at heart with a passion for the outdoors and wildlife of all shapes and sizes. In her free time, you can find Robin spending time with her dogs or her two horses named Izak and Too, hiking in a new city, playing the acoustic guitar, or at the gym. Robin is an active member of the Chi Chapter of Delta Delta Delta and the Ole Miss Equestrian Team.
Matt’s passions and hobbies include history, photography, firearms, and the outdoors. Matt has also become an adultonset hunter with the encouragement of fellow veterans and like-minded outdoor enthusiasts. It is becoming very easy for him to blend one interest with the other when he isn’t at work.
Cameron Riser, A coffee enthusiast, dog lover, and considerable sports fan, she stayed in the south pursuing a B.A. in Journalism from The University of Mississippi. She is not a twin but a triplet, born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas. In her free time, you can find Cameron on the tennis courts or with a camera in hand, snapping pictures at whatever fancies her eye.
Photo by Robert Linder
PORCH + PRAIRIE magazine | FALL 2022 - 17 I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
PassingThrough by Cameron Riser
Samantha Sheppard by
Photo
Best FoundationDefense
It's a Family Affair: The Legacy of Fine Arms Photos courtesy of Rock Island Auction Company
Magnificent Gold Plated Presentation Winchester Model 1894 Deluxe Takedown Fancy Lever Action Rifle Factory Engraved and Signed by Master Factory Engraver John Ulrich
PARKER McCollum
WildofMustangsUtah:
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of Untamed American Heritage By Kelsi McKee YELLOWSTONENATIONALPARK 150 YEARS
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Photo by Tim Peterson
Sometimes you just need a voice. A voice that has been there before. A voice that has weight. A voice that has built successful businesses. And a voice that stand up for and fight in of fair business. Our strength, and weight, need it, we’ll be there for
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How to Write a Haiku
written by Kelsi McKee photo by Karen Martinez A Haiku is one of the most beautiful, traditional forms of poetry in the world today. While most poems have no particular structure and allow free reign for the writer, a haiku follows a very specific structure, style and philosophy. Haikus originated in Japan as early as the 9th century and since their inception, famous poets from around the world have stunned readers with the “complicated simplicity” of their own haikus.
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