After growing up on the land her ancestors homesteaded in 1874, and then leaving for more than a decade, Marci Penner does not want to move away from her native soil again.
With a master’s degree and a career in counseling, Penner came home to Inman, and along with her father, Milferd, a farmer who wrote photo essay books on Kansas, the two began a journey of a lifetime — to discover rural Kansas one town at a time.
“Our roots run deep to Kansas,” Penner said. “We realized Kansans don’t know their state very well, and they don’t network.”
The father/daughter journey began with a tour of every town in Kansas. And when the townspeople said they had nothing to offer, Penner found each community’s genuine beauty that keeps rural towns alive. Each town has unique qualities, she said, and they need support.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
