Tailgate Time: A New Approach to Farmer Support
Farming will wring you out some days, and it’s not just the weather or the markets. It’s the pressure, the pride, the isolation, the unrelenting rhythm of seasons that don’t stop when your body or mind says it’s had enough.
In our latest Field Good Life episode, I sat down with Ryan Bane and Mandy Young from Tailgate Time, a nonprofit that’s doing something powerful and long overdue: making space for mental health conversations in agriculture.
Ryan’s got boots-on-the-ground farming experience. Mandy’s got a background in mental health care. Together, they’ve built a nonprofit aimed at breaking down the stigma around mental health in rural communities, and they’re doing it with honesty, grit, and a folding chair on the back of a truck.
“Take a load off and talk it out.”
That’s more than a tagline, it’s a lifeline. Tailgate Time is about showing up where farmers are and starting real conversations about mental health. Because let’s face it: most folks in ag aren’t scheduling therapy sessions or calling hotlines. But they might open up over coffee at the co-op or at the tailgate after a long day.
This episode digs into why farmers face unique mental health challenges like isolation, long hours, and generational pressure, and why we’ve got to quit acting like asking for help is weakness. It’s not. It’s human.
We also talk about funding, first response mental health support, and how Tailgate Time is working to offer free resources in communities where support can be hard to find.
Here’s the truth…
Mental health in agriculture isn’t a trendy topic. It’s a real issue. One we’ve ignored for too long. And if we want our farms to thrive, our people have to as well. That starts with making it okay to talk. To ask the hard questions. To say, “Hey, I’m not okay.”
Tailgate Time is proof that community care works, and that when we support the person behind the plow, we’re strengthening the entire ag industry.
🎧 Listen to the full episode:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/49dKNmcSWMz81FT6tHZ29Y?si=TKWO6X5uRfKYeHb06oUlYA
Connect with them here: http://www.tailgatetime.org/