Shepherdess...for mothers, daughters, sisters, friends
The new magazine - win yourself a copy!
A truck pulls up to the cow shed, a pretty normal scene on a rural New Zealand dairy farm, but it’s not a tanker here to pick up the milk – it’s a delivery truck full of magazines.
Kristy McGregor, a Fonterra farmer supplier in Horowhenua, has launched Shepherdess, a magazine for and about rural women.
She’s never had any publishing experience, just a mission and some passion and now her hard work’s being recognised – Shepherdess took out a Highly Commended in the Best COVID Response category of the Webstar Magazine Media Awards 2020, and was also a finalist in the Best Design category. And she’s been featured on TV.
“I don’t have a background in publishing, but I’m passionate about making our rural communities and regions a vibrant and creative place to live,” says Kristy.
“I want to connect people living rurally, and a magazine is a way to do that.”
The magazine is filled with stories from the farm, but not the usual milk prices, how to feed calves, technical content – Kristy’s focus is to shine a light on the positive contributions of women in rural communities.
“We want to uncover stories of relatable, everyday New Zealanders that are doing good stuff – there’re women like this in every community. It’s not about celebrities, it’s about relatable women.”
Shepherdess also covers fashion and recipes, sort of like a rural version of Women’s Weekly.
The magazine’s a family affair - for past editions, Kristy’s mother-in-law has helped with the recipes, while her sister-in-law has styled photo shoots. As the Editor, Kristy puts the magazine together, and has a team of freelance photographers and writers who live all around the country sourcing content.
Kristy says they’re always looking for new folk in different areas to write about and her team are on the ground and know what’s going on. But Kristy gets out and about too.
We want to uncover stories of relatable, everyday New Zealanders that are doing good stuff – there’re women like this in every community.
“We took a road trip around the East Cape in July, and I got a great story on a 70-year-old lady, from a dairy farm at Whakatane, who lives in a small settlement in the Eastern Bay of Plenty, and who wears a lot of community hats, from the fishing club to the St John’s Ambulance.”
“We have a great feature in our Spring Edition on Pania Tepaiho Marsh, of Wahine Toa Hunting. I wouldn’t have thought about covering a story on hunting, but why she does what she does is so powerful. It’s really not about shooting animals, it’s about filling your pantry and using the resources that are available.”
“I’m really excited about the summer stories we’ve got coming up.”
Interested in reading Shepherdess? You can buy copies at Whitcoulls and PaperPlus, or purchase online directly from Shepherdess here.
We’ve got five copies to give away!* Head to the Fonterra Facebook page to win a copy – along with a $50 Farm Source voucher!
