For nearly 14 hours, Jordan Carroll followed Marie McClaren and a Peruvian sheepherder named Frank across the range near Kemmerer as they cared for a flock during lambing.

Carroll even found himself on horseback for more than 12 hours after receiving a roughly 30-second lesson. By the end of the day, close to 400 lambs may have been born. Meanwhile, motorists passed along a nearby highway, largely unaware of everything happening across the landscape.

That experience gets to the heart of Grit & Grace, a new documentary Carroll produced and coordinated that celebrates women working on Wyoming’s rangelands.

“We all love the land, but we don’t always know what happens behind the scenes,” Carroll said.

The project began much differently. In fall 2025, Sheridan College Agriculture Director Mae Smith challenged rangeland management students to find creative ways to build awareness of the 2026 International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists. Inspired while listening to music from the Planet Earth soundtrack, Carroll imagined a film that could pair the beauty of Wyoming’s landscapes with the stories of ranchers, livestock and wildlife.

The project eventually focused on women pastoralists, taking Carroll and filmmaker Nick Siegel across Wyoming to meet women whose work demonstrates the close relationships among agriculture, conservation and healthy rangelands. The International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists features a different theme each month, with October dedicated to female pastoralists. Because Sheridan College had offered Carroll the opportunity to showcase the project in October during the early planning stages, focusing the documentary on women working on Wyoming’s rangelands became a natural fit.

For Carroll, the project also builds on experiences he gained as SCLT’s Scott Intern in spring 2025. Working alongside SCLT staff introduced him to recreation, land stewardship and issues such as woody encroachment on rangelands.

“Being SCLT’s Scott Intern really validated my interest in conservation and rangelands,” Carroll said. “It really strengthened my desire to be more involved with rangelands and conservation and to look at the bigger picture of why we do the things we do on our lands.”

Now Carroll hopes Grit & Grace can open that same door for others. He wants viewers to better understand the work happening behind the scenes on Wyoming’s rangelands and the partnerships among ranchers, land managers and wildlife managers who depend on and care for the same resources.

“I just hope people walk away curious, wanting to learn more, and wanting to do more,” he said.

The community can see that vision come to life during the free premiere of Grit & Grace on Friday, Oct. 9, at Kinnison Hall in the Whitney Center for the Arts at Sheridan College. A pre-show reception begins at 6 p.m., with the documentary beginning at 6:45 p.m. Admission is free, no tickets are required, and seating is first-come, first-served.

The evening is designed to be more than a screening. Natural-resource and agricultural organizations will be on hand to connect with attendees, and the film will be followed by a Q&A. Some of the women featured in the documentary are also expected to attend and answer questions.

For Carroll, bringing everyone together is a fitting culmination of what he calls “the power of yes.” From Smith encouraging him to pursue an ambitious idea to Sheridan College supporting the premiere, Carroll said people throughout the community have stepped forward to help make the project possible.

That support includes SCLT. After Carroll’s time as a Scott Intern, SCLT is honored to continue supporting his passion for agriculture and conservation by serving as fiscal sponsor for Grit & Grace, helping him bring his vision to fruition.

Now Carroll hopes the community will say yes, too, by filling Kinnison Hall and celebrating the women, working lands, and stewardship stories at the heart of Grit & Grace.

Learn more at https://gritgracewy.com/.