Having a Blast at the Homesteaders Conference

I had been looking forward to speaking at the Homesteaders of America Conference ever since my good friend Amy Fewell first reached out to me about doing it. Well, the time to attend finally came this past week and let me just say, it was everything I thought it would be! Getting to speak was fun, of course, but seeing all the wonderful people who I’ve been interacting and collaborating with here on the blog and social media made the whole trip worth it. What a pleasure it is to have all your smart, kind, hardworking, and amazing friends all in one place together! I want you to meet these folks too!

As expected, the event was packed! I was super excited. People from Canada, Indiana, Pennsylvania, California, and not to mention all over the Southeast had shown up to see the homesteaders, hunters, gardeners, and experts of all kinds. But the most surprising part is how many people lined up to see ME! I couldn’t believe it. Thanks for all of you who came up to say “hi” to me. You made my whole trip.

Stacy Lyn Harris speaking at the Homesteader's of America Conference in the Lehman's Barn

I was super blessed have most of my family with me. Only my two oldest boys had work and school to attend. Really, nothing I do today would be possible without them. Our family bond is crucial to me, and priceless.

Stacy Lyn Harris and family with the parents of Creek Stewart, survival expert with a show on the Weather Channel
The Harris Family meeting up with the parents of our friend Creek Stewart!

I arrived a day ahead to help Joe, the producer from Rural Heritage, film the workshops for his show on RFD-TV. Don’t forget to watch! I’ll be appearing on quite a few upcoming shows. He had the event pretty well covered, so I left a little early for a short excursion into Washington DC with the family. We visited the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian and Mt. Vernon just up the road there in Virginia. I didn’t expect to have such an extraordinary day, but I did!

The workshops back at the conference  were chock-full of crazy amounts of information on everything from fermenting, cheese making, and yarn-making to harvesting animals and keeping predators at bay. I had an awesome time sharing my own knowledge about the things I love most! I even had a few people join me from the audience to cook up on stage!

Stacy Lyn Harris seated between Joel Salatin and Eustace Conway on the Q&A panel at the 2018 Homesteaders of America Conference
They sat me right in between Eustace Conway and Joel Salatin during the Q&A! Yikes, talk about pressure!

To top it all off, it was a great honor to sit among such incredible minds during the Q&A. Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, Eustace Conway of Mountain Men on the History Channel, Ann Accetta-Scott of A Farm Girl in the Making, Connie from Urban Overalls, Doug and Stacy from Off Grid with Dough and Stacy, Justin and Rebekah Rhodes of Abundant Permaculture, and Jason Rehr of Big Bear Homestead.

Stacy Lyn Harris with Joel Salatin from Polyface Farms

Joel Salatin was super, as usual. Doug and I cut up a bit and did a really fun video once we met. Eustace was an extremely nice and smart, as was the entire panel.

Penny and Brittany from Happy Days Farm with Stacy Lyn Harris

Penny and Brittany from Happy Days Farm are amazing! They are exactly how I envisioned they would be before I met them! Did you know they just published a children’s book? It’s called True Tales from Happy Days Farm. You should check it out!

Stacy Lyn Harris with Janet Garman from Timbercreek Farmer and Ann Accetta-Scott from Finally a Farm Girl

I was so happy to meet Janet from Timbercreek Farmer and Ann Accetta-Scott of A Farm Girl in the Making! They are so cool!

Stacy Lyn Harris with Jason Rehr of Big Bear Homestead
Meeting up with Jason Rehr from Big Bear Homestead!

I want to give a huge shoutout to Amy Fewell! She is the reason that this conference exists! She is a really talented blogger over at The Fewell Homestead, go check out her work!

Stacy Lyn Harris and Amy Fewell, author at The Fewell Homestead

The conference wouldn’t have been possible without the sponsors too, so thanks to all of them! All of my events were in the Lehman’s Barn! It was an awesome set-up that I’m extremely grateful for!

All in all, I had a wonderful time. I hope you will all be a part of the conference next year.

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