((PKG))  PA MAC’S HOMESTEAD  
((Banner:  A Self-Reliant Life)) 
((Reporter/Camera:  Gabrielle Weiss)) 
((Map:  Caddo Gap, Arkansas))   
 
((NATS))  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
I’m not the fastest milker in the world.  The cow really is the 
central part for my homestead anyway because she does so 
many things.  She provides the milk.  She gives me one calf 
a year that will go in the freezer and….watch out, back up.  
That flag means caution.  And thank goodness she has a 
flag to let us know when that’s happening.  And yes, given all 
this extra trouble, a lot of people probably would say, ‘I think 
I’ll just go to the store.’  And you know what?  This isn’t for 
everybody.  Even people who want to homestead, you know 
milking, not everything is for everybody.  You need to love it 
and I do.  It really doesn’t bother me that much.  Now dirty 
diapers, that bothered me.  Why is that?  I don’t know.  But 
my wife took care of the dirty diapers mostly and I took care 
of this for her.  It works out. 
((MUSIC w/ NATS))  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))
I’m Pa Mac.  I live in Caddo Gap, Arkansas.  My wife and 
daughters and I live on a 52 acre [21 hectares] homestead 
that we’re pretty much developing, have developed from 
scratch.  And what we try to do is grow a lot of our own food.  
Of course, being self-sufficient is, kind of, an ideal that may 
not really be fully attainable, but it’s the goal.  
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))  
Can you stir that up for me just a little bit? 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))  
Ellie, why don’t you just twirl it around there for a few 
seconds, you know.  Then lift it up and you can sit on that 
stool and start plucking.  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))
I grew up living what I call small farm country life, and for a 
brief period of my life, we lived in mid-town Memphis in an 
apartment.  I’d never experienced that kind of living.  I 
thought: somehow, I’ve got to get back.  At some point, I 
really need to get back.   
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))  
The reason I wanted to homestead probably had little to do 
with the kids, and when we first started moving back towards 
this lifestyle that I’d grown up with, a good life for the kids 
was really not a thought for me.  
((Ellie McWilliams, Daughter)) 
If it’s scalded good, then the feathers come of really easy.  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))  
It’s not her first chicken rodeo.  If my daughters were to 
come on hard times sometime in their life, I think they’d be 
able to feed their families, so.   
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
You did good. 
((Ellie McWilliams, Daughter))  
Thank you. 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))  
This is the stage where we’re trying to make it more 
attractive to Mama.  I just wanted to move back to the simple 
life because I missed it so badly.  And, I guess, it was just 
second nature that when I have kids, this is the life I do want 
for them.  
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
I reckon this is as close as we can get to the Garden of 
Eden.  Poke sallet, it is truly a southern tradition.  I believe 
we’re going to have this for dinner tonight if I can find some 
kind soul to cook it for us.  My motto for the homestead is, it 
doesn’t have to be perfect.  It just has to be.  If you’re going 
to wait till it’s perfect, you might be waiting a long time and 
you need a chicken coop quick.  Usable, practical, that’s the 
key.  
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))
Who is going to cook that?  Can, can…..   
((Annie McWilliams, Daughter)) 
I’ll cook it if you’ll wash it.  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
Deal. 
((Annie McWilliams, Daughter))  
You can’t eat it by itself.  It’s kind of nasty.  You have to eat it 
with something else.  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
I beg to differ.  I thought it was kind of sweet.  It’s an 
acquired taste, I suppose.  There’s so much to explore out 
here, and it’s a fun and a beautiful thing, and to be able to do 
it with people you love, that’s a whole other dimension of it, 
and brings a note of thankfulness to God for me.  Thank you 
for allowing me this brief time on earth, living this way. 
((NATS)) 
((Bonnie McWilliams, Daughter)) 
My superpower is that I can hold seven eggs in one hand.  
Some people think, oh, they’re too immature for pets.  They 
can’t, you know, they don’t think their kids can handle it.  But 
it’s really just the best way to grow and learn and, you know, 
if you can’t keep a chicken alive, what are you going to do?  
((NATS)) 
((Bonnie McWilliams, Daughter)) 
I’ve always been really proud of my dad and his show, just 
‘cause he enjoys what he’s doing and it’s fun to watch him 
enjoy it and teach other people about it, because he likes it 
and wants to keep the old way alive, and it’s just fun to 
watch him.  
((NAT sound:  The Farm Hand’s Companion Show)) 
((Courtesy:  YouTube)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))
I’m the creator of the Farm Hand’s Companion Show on 
YouTube.  That’s a show that’s dedicated to the celebration, 
the preservation, and the developing of the old-time, 
traditional farm.  That’s something I’m real passionate about 
and I love showing and teaching other people old-time skills 
that, in a lot of instances, are being forgotten. 
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))
And I cut right there.  I’m going to go in for a close-up 
because everybody wants to see a close-up of a nail being 
driven in a board.  You want to hear the only word I would 
probably ever say in my videos?  Ouch!  
((NAT sound:  The Farm Hand’s Companion Show)) 
((Courtesy:  YouTube)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
If you watch my YouTube channel, people may be under the 
impression that I’m living off the land.  Well, I’m doing things 
that people, who would live off the land, would do.  But my 
wife, you know, she does a good bit of shopping.  You know, 
not everything that appears on our table is not from the 
garden, but a lot of it is.   
((NATS)) 
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))  
But I have my own production company.  I produce radio 
programs for preachers and that basically pays the bills.  
((NATS))  
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show))
I’ve had a guy leave a comment, a question on YouTube one 
time and he said, ‘Are you prepper?  Are you preparing for 
you know, economic downturn?’  Not necessarily.  You 
know, the main reason I do this is I love it.  I can’t not do it. 
And when people watch somebody talking or teaching about 
something they love, it’s contagious.  One down and 32 
more to go, give or take.  I want to inspire people to actually 
be motivated to work with their hands.  That’s the reason I 
called it Farm Hand’s Companion.  It’s a catchy little phrase, 
but it means something to me.  To be able to work with your 
hands and then enjoy the fruit of your labor, that sparks 
things in people that really not much else can.  This is my 
dirty little secret, so, don’t tell anybody.  Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show is, really, Pa Mac’s secret weapon against 
socialism.  When you have individuals, who are given the 
freedom to be and do what they want to do, it ends up 
helping society and it ends up bringing us closer together 
than it otherwise would in any other way.  
((NATS w/ MUSIC)) 
((Lynna McWilliams, Wife))  
I don’t normally eat poke.   
((Gary “Pa Mac” McWilliams, Creator, The Farm Hand’s 
Companion Show)) 
Home grow bacon in the beans.
     ((NATS w/ MUSIC))