My Story.

I enjoy using my design skills, academic research, and education outreach to impact my community positively. For nearly 30 years, I've enjoyed creating outdoor spaces and teaching about ecological principles. Nature and functionality are at the heart of my design and education process - from initial concepts to completion, I celebrate the land and a better way to live on it.

My Plant a seed initiative was formed in 2017, focusing on food system education. Out of this effort, I co-founded our nationally recognized Seed Library at the Rochester Public Library. Since opening, it has received unprecedented levels of participation. Other projects include the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Park Community Food and Learning Garden and a city-wide composting effort involving seven locally-owned coffeehouses. In 2022, Local Food 101, a 12-session horticulture and food system program, provided fresh vegetables and education to low-income/access neighbors and residents of Rochester free of charge.

Receiving an Environmental Achievement Award for Sustainable Food Production in 2019 and the Mayor's Medal of Honor for Sustainability in 2020 was genuinely humbling. These awards highlighted my graduate work in urban agriculture and food security, leading to further local food efforts, the Olmsted County 2021 Food Security Assessment funding, and the 2021 formation of the Olmsted County Food Security Coalition.

Reconnecting with the University of Minnesota Olmsted County Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Program in 2019 was essential to forming deeper bonds with my community, fostering collaboration and partnerships to focus on Local Food. I also serve on the University of Minnesota Master Gardener State Advisory Board, two of the University of Minnesota Extension Regional Sustainable Partnerships Working Groups, the State Board of Water and Soil Resources, and as a Minnesota Water Steward for the City of Rochester.

I continue to provide garden design services and have fun offering a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Flower Bouquet Subscription during the growing season. Proudly, my urban garden hosted many events in 2022, with one visitor observing that I'd created a "garden laboratory." This inspired the name The Garden Lab, combining my gardening efforts into one space for urban agriculture in Rochester, Minnesota.