Preppin’ Mama empowers next generation of women

HILLSBORO — Preppin’ Mama, the small mother-daughter owned business specializing in freeze-dried food and baked goods, has expanded their influence on other young women with the launch of their Sweeties program.

Dani Murphy and Tatum Kane began their adventure with freeze-dried organics and candy and massive homemade cookies in 2020. The two bonded as they created the Preppin’ Mama business, learned about organics and freeze-drying, and grew even closer as mother and daughter. On this journey they found many like-minded individuals interested in not only buying their products, but also learning how to provide in similar ways for their own families.

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In 2024, Murphy and Kane began to look closely at their marketing.

“We're like, you know, we have the people that are moms that are already taking care of families and stuff and that are starting to read labels, and really want to know how to preserve food and take care of their family in the most wholesome way,” Murphy explained. “But how do we reach young women that don't yet have to make these choices?”

As they considered the best way to reach the next generation of “future leaders of households, future moms, and future businesswomen,” the idea for the Sweeties program was born.

Part of this program came from Murphy’s desire to empower other women, which she has done for many years. When Murphy and Kane still lived in Washington they used to host a weekend they called “Kane Fest.” They would invite all the women they knew to camp out in their yard and build one another up.

“We would do all these activities together like trust exercises and it would just be a whole night of female empowerment,” Murphy said.

While Kane Fest would attract women of all ages, Murphy and Kane designed the sweeties program specifically to serve young women between 13-25 years old to learn a variety of skills from classic homesteading to marketing and leave them feeling empowered to take on whatever role they’re called to in the future. Murphy believes strong women come in all shapes and sizes whether that is a homesteader, mom, teacher, CEO or other business professional.

“All these girls have different passions, and they have different things and different whys of why they want to be in the program, like all of those are so cool and unique, and you get to just help them grow in those ways,” Murphy said. “I think an important thing for empowering young women is just letting them know that they can do whatever they’re called to do.”

The program includes a workshop day at Preppin’ Mama where the young women in the Sweeties program learn some of the “lost arts” of homesteading, cooking, and preserving food.

“I think if you’re empowering women, supporting them in traditional roles is part of it, too,” Murphy said.

“It's so beautiful listening to Dani talk about, you know, the process, the freeze-drying process, and also so beautiful to see the way that she interacts with the other businesses,” Spring Sweetie Alisia Brock said. “Like Dani is so committed to bringing out the best in everybody.

Kane, who works on marketing with another business, also taught the Sweeties about building their social media presence and more traditionally business-oriented skills.

“The Sweeties program not only allows the girls to build their platforms online, if that’s what they want to do, but it also educates the girls in local farms and it connects them to business leaders across the area,” Murphy said.

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Brock stated that the Sweeties program gave her a unique view into social media marketing. One of her biggest take-aways was to “know your audience.” She feels that Preppin’ Mamas use of the Sweeties program did fantastic job of bridging the gap between the older generation and the younger generation when it came to these more domestic skills.

The program also takes the participants along to a variety of events that allows them to network and get glimpses into how other small business function. They also attend various sponsorship events where the business helps support other organizations like the fair queen contest.

Murphy puts a high focus on building confidence in these young women whether it is through education and connection or simply through a professional photography shoot.

“It just feels so good for them to be able to be in a photo and be beautiful, which some people would say is vain,” Murphy said. “For young women today, I think it's really hard for them, with all of the social media and everything that's out there, to not criticize themselves. So, having these beautiful videos and beautiful photos and seeing themselves that way is just one more way to show them their worth, their value.”

At the end of the first three-month session with the Sweeties, Murphy said seeing their growth and joy from participation moved her to tears.

“I am just so happy to be able to see them grow and hear their passions and their whys,” Murphy said.

With the holiday season just around the corner, the next group of Sweeties are ready to learn just how much they can accomplish with a little knowledge and a whole lot of encouragement, and previous Sweetie Alisia Brock thinks they’re in for a truly special experience.

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“I just constantly am seeing these beautiful young gals that I got to know and got to meet that I didn't know previously,” Brock shared. “You know, I added them on socials, and it's just so fun keeping tabs on each other, like we're constantly still commenting things on each other's social media, building each other up. And I think that's the kind of relationships that I've maintained. It's just building each other up and empowering each other and reminding each other, we're all beautiful, we're all capable, we're all talented like and we all have, you know, strength to bring to the table.”

Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com