The Cowgirl Project- Kaleigh (Ira) Applegarth
Kaleigh Applegarth
Lakeview, Oregon, United States
Its a daily ritual to sit in my studio with a fresh Latte and enjoy the work. “On The Rise” is no exception.
The beginning of “On The Rise” on the far right in Burnt Sienna.
When I read Kaleigh’s story about her daughters—about Ira and her sister waking up in the night to feed an orphaned foal, about girls who can doctor cattle and swing a leg over a horse without hesitation—I didn’t just admire it.
I recognized it.
When I was growing up, we had a neighbour who used to say, “Horses are our religion.” At the time, I didn’t fully understand what she meant, but by putting this into words instead of just feeling it, I do now.
It wasn’t about obsession. It was about devotion. It was about shaping your days and your children around something that asks everything of you and gives something back that can’t be explained.
That’s what I see in Kaleigh’s girls.
Ira’s sister, Kodi
She’s raising daughters who are tough and yet kind. Fifth-generation ranch kids. Girls who hunt and fish, who help with the house, who doctor animals, who can ride. Girls who wake up every two hours to feed a foal because it needs them.
There is honour in pulling on boots in the middle of the night to check cows under a cold sky. There is honour in carrying a newborn calf into the warmth during a snowstorm, your arms shaking but your resolve steady. There is honour in choosing a life that is inconvenient and demanding—and loving it anyway.
The farming lifestyle brought me so much joy. Not because it was easy. But because it felt meaningful. Because when you care for animals, land, and family, you are participating in something bigger and older than yourself.
That’s why The Cowgirl Project exists.
The Reference photo I used for “On The Rise”
It’s about reclaiming “cowgirl” as a mindset—not a skill set. It’s about devotion. About women and girls who show up fully to this life, whether anyone is watching or not.