Community Highlight: Angie Mestas — Finding Balance and Building Paths in the SLV

This highlight features Angie Mestas from the San Luis Valley, a familiar face who joined us during our 2025 season for both Buckin’ Babes and Grit & Grazing (which many of you now know as Cowgirl Proven). We love seeing how our community members take these different disciplines and interweave them on their own landscapes, and Angie is the perfect example of how an integrated toolkit builds true resilience.

In agriculture, we talk a lot about how different types of knowledge, like running a saw or managing a herd, connect deeply with things like understanding stocking rates and soil health. When we looked for someone who embodies this interdisciplinary approach, we didn't have to look far.

Angie Mestas is a constant force for good in the San Luis Valley. Whether she’s in the office or in the field, her work is dedicated to the health of the land and the people who steward it. We sat down with Angie to talk about her roles, her philosophy on land management, and what "grit" looks like behind the scenes.

Angie wears many hats, bridging the gap between community resources and ranching. When asked what she does for a living, she explains:

"I'm a Program Assistant for CSU San Luis Valley Extension, a Community Navigator for CU AMC and work for my family's ranch and farm."

Angie’s perspective on land management goes beyond just technical skill; she sees the active presence of women on working lands as a fundamental part of the stewardship itself. For her, having women involved as key partners and decision-makers is a practical necessity for a healthy, balanced ranch: "The importance of women on working lands is about recognizing and uplifting women as partners and decision makers in land management and seeing their time, knowledge and skill as equal and valuable assets. Often, women in ag families have to take a town job to bring in off-farm income, so seeing women on working lands means there's more balance and a more complete care of land, animals, and families."

Angie joined us last year for two workshops last year, and she has seen how those seemingly different skill sets actually speak the same language when it comes to stewardship. "The saw/fire work and grazing management are different skills that work together to give me deeper knowledge and confidence to help care for my family's ranch and farm and share those skills with my community. I've gained skills to get firewood, maintain fence lines, slow woody encroachment and even get a xmas tree. In addition, I now also have a much better understanding of stocking rates and forage production on different landscapes using free tools like the Web Soil Survey."

Social media often shows the glamour of ranching. But Angie’s most important stewardship work happens in the quiet moments of community service and long-term planning. "Part of my work that is an important part of my stewardship that people don't see on social media is volunteering on the board of the Conejos County Conservation District. We recently celebrated our 1 year anniversary. Our priorities for our long term plan are crop and rangeland health, education and water project coordination."

When the work gets tough, having a network of women who "get it" makes all the difference. For Angie, these workshops are about more than just the technical training; they are about the shared joy of the journey.

"The most valuable part of connecting with other women through the workshops has been feeling support, understanding and joy seeing other women in ag build their own paths."

We can't wait to have you back to Redwing, Angie!