Every week, Yonder Radio brings rural conversations with national reach to listeners around the country.
We begin with Daily Yonder contributor Kaitlyn McConnell, who takes us to Eudora Baptist Church in Polk County, Missouri. For the last 25 years, the church has been the site of some pretty major folk-artistry, helping generations of children create unique, hand-made mosaics.
Next, we talk with Christine Hemp, the president of the National Grange, about their mission of community empowerment which began in 1867. Daily Yonder columnist Donna Kallner gives us some advice about write-in voting, and we talk to author Heather Hansman about her latest book, Fierce Country.
Finally, we put on our cowboy hats and head to Kazakhstan, to learn about the gnarliest sport at the World Nomad Games: Kok boru. It’s like polo, but with a headless goat. Don’t worry, you’ll love it.
Our featured musician this week is Moses Martinez, harmonica player extraordinaire out of Terlingua, Texas.
Tune in for all that and more on this week’s episode of Yonder Radio.
Yonder Radio is available across all digital platforms, and on air with partner radio stations around the country. If you’re a station interested in broadcasting Yonder Radio, sign up below or get in contact with the team at joel@ruralstrategies.org.
Join our Network
Sign up
If you want to broadcast or publish Yonder Radio, sign up here to be the first to know when the show goes live. If you have questions, you can also reach our team at info@yonderradio.com.
More Information About Yonder Radio
What?
Yonder Radio is a new, free, hour-long show that is fresh every week and designed to help fill programming gaps. We’ll feature nuanced stories that represent the 60 million people who live in rural America, and the distinct communities they call home.
Each week will start with a news round-up: think of this as the top headlines read through a rural lens. For instance, how does a government shutdown affect federal workers living in rural communities? Or, what do changes in Medicare policy mean for small town hospitals? We’ll also talk with reporters for in-depth but conversational segments going beyond the headlines, exploring their coverage on topics shaping rural communities. We’ll highlight how these stories unfold across different regions, offering local nuance with a broader perspective.
Yonder Radio is not just news. It’s also a show focused on rural lives and livelihoods. That means weekly human-interest stories, hearing from hunters, farmers, gardeners, and shopkeepers; conversations with artists supporting and reimagining traditions; performances by regional musicians; and vibrant analysis of rural representation in pop culture. Add in a round of engaging trivia, and you’ve got a show that’s as rich and varied as the places it comes from.
Why?
Public media just took a $1.1 billion hit, thanks to recent Congressional cuts, and as we’ve all seen, it’s rural broadcasters that bear the brunt. And even before these cuts, the rural communities we all cover have felt the consequences of a media landscape transformed by conglomerates, consolidation, and the declining resources available to local outlets.
Yonder Radio is designed to fill programming gaps for those stations struggling to find quality content. It will be formatted to fit stations’ needs with internal breaks built in. The show gives stations an accessible, flexible, high-quality hour of content every week.
Who?
Yonder Radio is produced by the Center for Rural Strategies, publisher of the Daily Yonder. Centering rural stories with nuance, context, and care has made the Daily Yonder the nation’s preeminent source for rural news for nearly two decades. Rural Strategies’ additional programs, including Rural Assembly, Rural Faith Initiative, and Living Traditions, will provide enriching voices and stories to this collaborative radio show. Yonder Radio is hosted by Jared Ewy, a veteran radio personality and regular contributor to the Daily Yonder.
The post Yonder Radio: Missouri Folk Art, the National Grange, and the World Nomad Games appeared first on The Daily Yonder.

Follow