Rain Frog Ranch

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Rain Frog Ranch 501c3 Nonprofit Organization
Therapeutic & Recreational Horseback Riding
Wildlife Habitat

Mollie Rose is more of a glamping girl, so getting her to spend a night at a primitive campsite with me took a little co...
10/06/2026

Mollie Rose is more of a glamping girl, so getting her to spend a night at a primitive campsite with me took a little convincing. 🫶😂

But some of my favorite moments this past weekend were simply walking beside her.🫶

As we wandered through Paynes Prairie, something would catch my eye and I’d find myself telling her what I’d learned in my Florida Master Naturalist class. A little history, a little about the longleaf pines, and another piece of the Florida we come from.

There’s something special about sharing this place with your daughter: nearly 23,000 acres of protected Wild Florida, with a 16,000-acre prairie at its heart where wild horses and bison still roam.🐴🫶🦬

Knowing we were within the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation the whole time made it extra special, as it always does. 💚

When your children are little, you have so many chances to show them the world. As they grow up, those moments take a little more planning, and you realize just how precious they are.

mollie usher💌 is busy building her future, studying and working toward becoming a doctor. For a little while, I got to have her beside me, sharing something I love and a piece of our heritage. Priceless, y’all! 🥹

I hope she’ll remember some of what I told her about the prairie. I know I’ll remember getting to tell her. 💚

I went to Paynes Prairie for a conservation camping weekend and came home with memories I’m still trying to put into wor...
10/06/2026

I went to Paynes Prairie for a conservation camping weekend and came home with memories I’m still trying to put into words, y’all. 💚

American Daughters of Conservation - Florida Chapter l brought us together in Micanopy, where wild horses and bison roam. Women and girls sharing a primitive campsite, no electricity or running water, and a love for the outdoors.

My oldest daughter, mollie usher💌, prefers glamping, but I talked her into one night in the tent. 🫶

I’d double booked with my first Florida Cracker Horse & Cattle Sale in Webster. We missed the morning hike, but met a beautiful black stallion named Harvey, young horses from the prairie, and people preserving these herds. 🐴

With my eighth-generation Florida daughter beside me, that connection to our heritage felt especially close. The sale deserves its own post. God willing, I’ll be back every year.

Back at the prairie, Mollie Rose and I explored the longleaf pine restoration area. I shared history from my Florida Master Naturalist Upland Systems class as we spotted deer and a gopher tortoise, climbed the tower, and took a picture by the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation sign.

As she works toward becoming a doctor, sharing our Florida heritage and what I’ve learned about the land with her is something I’ll treasure. 💚

After she left, I settled in with the ladies. Talking, laughing, and listening to one another felt like medicine. Rain cooled us off before we moseyed back to the tower to watch lightning over the prairie. Lightning bugs, an alligator crossing the road, and an armadillo added to the evening.

Sunday morning, owls and Diedre Brown hooted while I packed my tent. 😂 I made it home in time for church with my family.

Our heritage lives in these places and the people who care for them. Thank you, ADC, for the sisterhood and time in God’s creation. 💚

Years ago, I admired Alex Freeze’s work from afar... Recently, I got to show her my favorite view of Florida: through th...
09/30/2026

Years ago, I admired Alex Freeze’s work from afar...

Recently, I got to show her my favorite view of Florida: through the ears of a horse. 🐴💚🐎

Did you know Alex became the Florida Wildlife Corridor’s first intern in 2015, joining the Glades to Gulf expedition? She later worked on Path of the Panther as a field producer and camera trap technician, helping bring Wild Florida’s story to people who might never set foot in these places.

Her work gave me plenty of reasons to admire her. Getting to know her has given me even more.

We both have deep Florida roots. Her family once had orange groves here in Plant City, and these woods and swamps were my childhood playground. There’s something special about sharing a place that shaped you with someone who understands why it matters.

I first met Alex at the Foundation’s very first Mind the Gaps gathering in Polk County, where I also had the pleasure of meeting Zach Franco. I remember having lunch with Alex, Travis Thompson, and Kaylyn “Gladeswoman” Glenn, wondering how I’d found myself at that table. People whose work I respected were becoming mentors and friends. 🫶

I didn’t know any of this was ahead when our family received an eminent domain letter. I knew I loved our land and needed to learn how to speak up for it. So I started showing up, listening, asking questions, and learning everything I could.

God kept opening doors I never could have planned.

Today, through Rain Frog Ranch, I have the opportunity to do contract work with the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation. Every time I’m around this team, I learn something. Their knowledge, generosity, and commitment to Florida remind me how grateful I am to be part of the work.

Alex is now one of the people I get to work under and learn from. Somehow, I also get to call her my friend. I’m still pinching myself over that one.😆

For someone who has spent years helping tell Florida’s story, I loved getting to share a little of mine.

Thank you, Alex, for the ride, the conversations, and my new profile pictures! There’s always a saddle here for you. 💚

Wherever I go, I’m usually looking for the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation or an opportunity to talk about it. 💚🐾So...
09/03/2026

Wherever I go, I’m usually looking for the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation or an opportunity to talk about it. 💚🐾

So, at the Leadership Forum Tuesday evening, this was naturally the picture I had to take.

Jonathan and I were grateful to share the evening with our dear friends Robb Alan & Joyce Upthegrove. Over the years, our paths have crossed through faith, service, and a shared love for Florida’s wildlife. 🐊

Seeing the Corridor represented there felt especially meaningful as I’ve been reflecting on the recent passing of farmer, writer, and conservationist Wendell Berry. What a legacy to leave when a life has been spent caring for the land and the people who depend upon it.

His words offer such a simple picture of stewardship:

“Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you.”

Land. Water. Wildlife. Working lands. The choices we make today travel far beyond us.

May we steward them well and leave something worth inheriting. 🐸💚🐴

Last week, I had the incredible opportunity to attend the filming of a Fox News Saturday in America town hall with HHS R...
08/31/2026

Last week, I had the incredible opportunity to attend the filming of a Fox News Saturday in America town hall with HHS Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., hosted by Plant City’s own KayleighMcEnany at the historic Cuban Club in Ybor City.🇺🇸

Invited by my sister in Christ and agriculture, Terri Parke, I submitted a question asking how protecting America’s health can also mean protecting the farmers, ranchers and working lands that produce our food, and making it economically possible for families to keep those lands in agriculture for future generations.

My question wasn’t selected, and while I was disappointed, I was humbled to be in that room.

God had other reasons for me to be there.

Running into my Cowboy-up Ministry sister in Christ, Paula Crawford, and having her pray over Terri and me and our journey to help save Florida’s remaining farms was one. Seeing Noelle Licor and her daughter, Aleah, was another. Seeing a young person so engaged and informed gives me hope for the next generation, y’all.

It was also wonderful seeing Plant City Commissioner Jason Jones and people from so many walks of life gathered around issues that affect us all.

Clean water, healthy soil, nutritious food and protecting the land that feeds us should transcend politics.

Secretary RFK Jr. spoke about our food system and what we feed our children. But we cannot talk about healthy food without talking about the LAND that produces it.💚

Buy local. Eat fresh and seasonal. Know your farmer. Support your rancher. Protect working lands. Teach your children where their food comes from.

Farm security is national security. Food security is national security.🗣️

We are stewards of one another and of the soil, water, wildlife and land God entrusted to us.

Walking down Ybor’s brick streets afterward, chickens wandering nearby, I thought: where we’ve been matters, and so does what we leave behind.

May we be good stewards of what God has placed in our hands, and leave something worth protecting for those who come after us.🫶🕊️

One more from Gainesville today 💚 So glad I finally got to meet Meghan Foos in person and enjoyed meeting Rob Griffin wi...
08/25/2026

One more from Gainesville today 💚 So glad I finally got to meet Meghan Foos in person and enjoyed meeting Rob Griffin with Collier County Soil & Water Conservation District!

My dearest friend Kaylyn “Gladeswoman” Glenn couldn’t make it today, but I know there will be many meetings ahead. I’m so proud of her and excited to see her joining the Collier County Soil & Water Conservation District and bringing her passion for conservation to this work.

Grateful for the people across Florida working together for agriculture, conservation and the future of our working lands.

Let’s go save Wild Florida! 🐸💚🐴

I walked into the Florida Farm Bureau state office in Gainesville this morning excited to see familiar faces and learn f...
08/25/2026

I walked into the Florida Farm Bureau state office in Gainesville this morning excited to see familiar faces and learn from conservation leaders across Florida.

I left thinking about my grandchildren.

I was honored to represent Hillsborough Soil & Water Conservation District at the Association of Florida Conservation Districts Annual Meeting alongside Chair Terri Parke of Parkesdale Farms.

Audrey Kuipers of Okeechobee was recognized as a Florida Hall of Fame inductee after 29 years of service. Michael Brown of Gadsden County was named 2026 Outstanding Conservation District Official, and Ann Bishop of Marion County was named 2026 Outstanding Conservation District Professional.

It was wonderful reconnecting with Kayla Dickerson, meeting Joni Sapp, Rob Griffin and Meghan Foos, and so many others throughout the day. Celebrating with Ann and the Marion team was especially meaningful after working together through Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation, Horse Farms Forever® at Corridor Connect+ earlier this year.

We also had hard conversations about the future of Florida’s Soil & Water Conservation Districts. AFCD leadership shared their advocacy for our districts in Tallahassee. Chair Parke and I were proud to have done the same during Florida Cattlemens Association Boots on the Hill, advocating for agriculture and working lands.

For me, this is personal. My family has been on this piece of agricultural land for 53 years. I’m 47, and it’s been home my entire life. I know what it means to grow up connected to the land, and I want future generations to have that opportunity too. That’s why protecting Florida agriculture matters so deeply to me.

Agricultural lands protect more than acreage. They protect our food, water, wildlife, rural communities, heritage and a way of life worth carrying forward.

I left encouraged by people willing to do something about it. Boots on the ground.

Thank you to Florida Farm Bureau President Jeb Smith for hosting us, AFCD and NACD for their work, and Fifth Generation Farms for a great lunch.

Wherever God plants our feet, we have an opportunity to make a difference.

Ours are planted here. 💚

Last week, fittingly on 813 Day, I sat in a room full of people who understand agriculture is more than an industry in H...
08/17/2026

Last week, fittingly on 813 Day, I sat in a room full of people who understand agriculture is more than an industry in Hillsborough County. It is part of who we are.

This is the only picture I snapped, with my friend Bea. Two multigenerational Hillsborough families with deep agricultural roots, celebrating a way of life we both love.

We also watched a special viewing of A Land Remembered. Surrounded by families still living Florida’s agricultural story, I couldn’t stop thinking about that title.

Is that what we’re allowing Florida to become?

USDA’s latest Census of Agriculture reports 1,992 Hillsborough farms covering 201,712 acres, about 15% of the county. That’s 12% fewer farms than in 2017. They sold nearly $704 million in agricultural products in 2022.

2022 is still the latest countywide agricultural census. I won’t speculate about today’s numbers, but look around Hillsborough. You tell me, what do you think the next Census will show?

More importantly, what will we do between now and then?

Y’all, our food doesn’t begin on a grocery store shelf.

Working lands feed us and support our economy. They can overlap with wildlife habitat, connectivity and water recharge areas. They aren’t empty land waiting to be developed.

Growth is coming, but good planning and agriculture do not have to be enemies.

Tomorrow is Election Day.

Rain Frog Ranch will never tell you who to vote for. We WILL encourage you to be informed and vote.

Look beyond social media. Don’t mistake the loudest voice for the most informed one. Ask farmers. Ask landowners. Read the records. Pay attention to public meetings. Make your own decision.

Change isn’t made by fighting online or arguing with our neighbors. We show up. We participate. We vote.

A lot of prayers went into this one, y’all, and more than a few tears. I love this place deeply.

Maybe our children will read A Land Remembered and understand what was lost.

But let’s make sure they can also walk outside and see what we chose to save.

Florida’s future hasn’t been written yet. It’s going to take all of us.

May God give us wisdom to protect what He entrusted to us. 🇺🇸💚🕊️

Address

5513 Rain Frog Lane
Plant City, FL
33567

Telephone

+18137203981

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