We dashingly showed up. Ballpoint penned out. And country Western won for Milledgeville, Georgia. My brother, Edward Morrow, and I rounded up international awards at the Outdoor Writers Association of America’s (OWAA) 2024 conference held in El Paso, Texas, from Sept. 20 to Sept. 22. “I was like ‘Oh, wow,’” said Edward when the award letter came through his inbox. “Tara Moore of equestrian design agency Farm & Fir Co. really captured the gist of how I wanted to introduce my arboriculture work and brand-new, sci-fi book series online. I’m thankful to OWAA for recognizing what we created together.” With nearly 700 entries in the Excellence in Craft Contest, Edward brought home his first-ever award in the open contest category for new website edwardthearborist.com, which went live in 2023.

I wrangled a first-place win in creative direction and people photography for a 2023 nature campaign I led in Austin, Texas. Achieving my third consecutive first-place award with OWAA. This 2024 prize tallies Cowgirl Candace’s overall media awards to 10 in my now 18-year editorial career. Paired with Edward’s win, our rural home of Edward Hill Farm holds 11 communications awards. We both served as judges in this year’s competition as well. Edward reviewed stiff talent in the newspaper/outdoor adventure and blog/gear/technical categories. I reviewed submissions in the newspaper category, which is where I actually started my journalism journey.

Regardless of where we roam, we represent family elders and our cowhand parents Steve and Vanessa Morrow. These international honors salute the rural South grace and grit fostered by these original stewards of the Hills-Morrows centennial homestead. Named after our great-grandfather, livestock farmer, and land conservationist the late Edward “Dolly” Hill. “We’re extremely proud and blown away to have two of our five children in a pool of that size come away with two global recognitions,” said Daddy when I phoned the surprising news. “Any parent would be ecstatic about these accomplishments, and that’s 100 fold for us.” A Daddy’s girl moment I absolutely adored with my version of Clint Eastwood and John Wayne.

To bring you up to Deep South speed: Edward and I grew up in the saddle. Literally. Alongside our parents, sisters, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, we participated in the family’s 300-acre dairy and beef cattle operations that established by Great-Grandpa Dolly in the 1960s. During the 1980s onward, Daddy trained horses: American quarter horses, appaloosas, and mustangs. Some steeds Daddy acquired traveled from Beaver Dam Farms – former Colbert, Georgia, home of the late Country Music Hall Of Fame inductee Kenny Rogers. Once instruction concluded with these smart additions to our legacy tree, Daddy taught our entire farm family how to herd cattle, compete in local rodeos, and wave to the people at hometown holiday parades.

When my siblings and I left home for college life, the farmland traditions, survive-and-thrive lessons, and unconditional love came right along with us. To every internship. Job. Conference. Speaking engagement as our professions sharpened. The more we leaned into our authentic agriculture lifestyles in America’s Black Belt Region the more brands (naturally worn and tested on the land) partnered with us to help amplify our conservation efforts. Welcoming Edward and me to retell our honest story from Smalltown USA. Connecting us with similar digital communities who appreciate and want to preserve rural living.

Online, Edward and I pioneered space for our moonlight magnolia drawl, Southern hospitality, and Georgia colloquialisms to take center stage. A tree doctor, Edward continues to educate rural and urban audiences about his specialized work in arboriculture (the cultivation and care of tree life). An International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)-certified arborist, he provides tree assessment services primarily in Georgia but travels nationwide. He’s also an ISA public speaker, inspiring ag crowds and brands like Tree Care Industry Association and the Georgia Arborist Association to engage in thoughtful conversations about the business of tree care.

Meanwhile, I rode my digital horse onto the online scene as a rural journalist, brand storyteller, and creative director. Building organic relationships with fellow cowgirls and cowboys on marketing teams for Justin Boots, Durango Boots, Wrangler, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Visit Fort Worth. This summer Edward and I received the rare privilege to serve as capstone speakers for National 4-H Council’s True Leaders in Equity Institute in Washington, D.C. In partnership, we’ve been able to celebrate our ancestors’ American South narrative and the Black Belt Region’s collective contributions to exploring the American West.

Our ag sustainability triumphs have been featured in EBONY Magazine and Condé Nast Traveler. We spend the majority of farm days producing impactful, educational content about trailblazing people, places, and advancements in agriculture. So younger generations have a roadmap to digital economic success in rural communities. Multigenerational experiences and wisdom from Edward Hill Farm have allowed us to knit any age group into our storyline. To the future of farming for our survival. To the unforgettable agritourism narratives and experiences that live in our backyard fields.

We’re both active members of OWAA. For nearly 100 years, the international nonprofit organization has helped educate, inspire, and share best practices to outdoor creatives. The association includes roughly 600 outdoor communicators and 100 corporations. OWAA opened a new digital door for Edward and me to compare conservation notes with colleagues and keep a pulse on outdoor industry trends and insights. We want to ensure rural, Southern communities are informed about outdoor and ag forecasts, career opportunities, and best land stewardship applications to profit on the land and online for generations. That we’re able to articulate authentically what the possibilities are for rural families. Helping everyone we can learn the art to persevering in this digital landscape while preserving communal homesteads and Southern history.

That’s what Edward and I communicate to followers, family, friends, and new faces. The way Daddy describes how Great-Grandpa Dolly cared for Edward Hill Farm, I know he would nod his cowboy hat to the modern victories we’re making to keep his legacy and our home values alive. “My grandfather was a hard worker,” said Daddy. “The takeaway from exposing our five kids to farming and forestry was to temper one to look back at our family labor as a motivator to challenges in their future lives. Vanessa and I set the foundation for all five of our children to push through challenges. Those farm tests are how they’re able to manifest the receipts others see in them today.”