FOLEY -- One thing is abundantly clear; the COVID-19 pandemic is revealing a great many people who have made looking after others their priority.

Brad Kadlec of Foley says friend and fellow Foley resident Amy Dingmann is one those those people, and has been for a long time.

Dingmann, a homesteader, produces a podcast and runs a blog/website called, "A Farmish Kind of Life," covering topics like baking, gardening, farming, caring for animals, homeschooling and more.

“It deals with the lost art of being self-sufficient,” Kadlec explained. “It really hits home right now. For example, so yeast has been hard to find. And how do you make bread without yeast? So she talks about how to make homemade yeast, and how to bake bread. It’s interesting to apply what she’s talking about to everyday life – especially now.”

Kadlec says Dingmann's work springs from a deep well of experience.

“Everything she talks about, she does or has done,” Kadlec said. “She works on her farm. She raises animals – pigs, chickens, turkeys, ducks. She’s involved in the butchering.”

Dingmann, a writer of both fiction and nonfiction, has also published two books on homeschooling Kadlec has found especially helpful and topical.

“A lot of us are sitting at home, trying to figure out how to teach out kids,” Kadlec said. “Everyone’s getting frustrated during this time. It was interesting reading those books; it helped with some of the hurdles.”

On top of all of that, Kadlec says Dingmann is the kind of person you can call upon any time to answer a question or help with a problem.

"She’s very knowledgeable and beyond that, she’s very helpful,” Kadlec said. “Really, the whole Dingmann family is. If you’ve got something going on, and you need some help, they’re always willing to come over and help you out.”

“The positivity and the willingness to share knowledge – that’s why I see her as a kind of hero,” Kadlec added. “She provides help not only to the community close to home, but also to the readers and listeners nationwide.”

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