While growing up seeing how hard it was for my mom to afford quality food, and incorporate cooking into our household made me extremely passionate about food justice as a young adult. Food inequities for humans and farm animals alike pushed me to focus on sustainability model an activist. I came to Norwood in 2015 and stayed here because I saw culture that practiced self sufficiency, humbled and sincerely. Being raised in a city, I immensely value clean soil and water and appreciate every second of gardening here because of it.

I offer the project my passion and dedication; I have a strong background in community organizing and communications and believe volunteerism is fundamental for growth and identity.  The Hub was founded to promote environmental stewardship, shared health and a more intact relationship with our food. The “health food movement” can unintentionally act in classist, elitist or insular; I’m committed to challenging this, and creating alternative models that are incisive and wide reaching.  I see quality, nutritious food as a fundamental right, not a privilege. The more we can support each other and consume responsibility, the more resilient our communities become inside and out.

Guided by a former career in marketing, I freelance for various businesses including Ryder Walker Alpine Adventures in Telluride. I co-founded an heirloom orchard restoration project, the Apple Core Project, and worked as the Local Food Initiative coordinator for three years.

Currently, I work as the Food Coordinator for the local EDA grant focused on agricultural expansion and distribution for our local farmers/producers. Recently, I finished a year-long planning grant for a local Food Security Implementation plan for the Telluride Foundation.  I received a Holistic Nutrition certificate from the Bauman College of Nutrition and Culinary Studies out of Berkeley, CA.

I lived in Telluride for more than 20 years and moved to Norwood six years ago to plant a garden, cook and eat local, seasonal organic food, and spend a quieter farm life with my husband Erik, Mato and Chayton.

I joined the Food Hub board to help grow the local food scene and be a voice for the farmers. My partner and I moved to the western slope in 1995 and love homesteading. We currently own Birdhouse Farm and raise organically grown meat, milk, vegetables, and fruit. We also do construction, forestry, and trail construction work as Bedrock Land Works, LLC.

For me, a successful Food Hub would help grow the number of family farms in the west end of San Miguel and Montrose counties and their incomes. It would connect consumers to the healthy, fresh, affordable food that our neighbors have worked so hard to create. It could be the beginning of a regenerated landscape of farms and producers and could change the Iives of many people in our community around the simple notion and appreciation of healthy food.

I moved to Norwood first in 2009 as a farming and baking apprentice for Indian Ridge Farm. I left for a few years but always thought about returning to the area. My husband and I moved back in 2012 and I began working as a baker again. In 2016 I started my own wholesale artisan bread bakery, Blue Grouse Bread, that specializes in organic and locally grown wheats that we mill in house.

I have a background as both a farmer and baker and know first hand the importance of supporting our local economy through food. I also believe that food truly ties a community together. I joined the FRESH Food Hub board in hopes of helping to boost a self sustaining food system and economy in our region.

I have lived in the San Juans since my teenage years, in the mid 1990s. The mountains, mesas, canyons, and communities of this powerful landscape shaped me into the person I am today.

Through the years, sustainability and living closer to the land became a priority in life. My partner Ryan and I have set roots in Norwood and are raising our two boys on Wrights Mesa. We live on a small hobby farm, where we are gaining a humble understanding of what it takes to grow food in this high desert environment. I am an amateur beekeeper, gardener, and practitioner of restoration ecology.

I have a deep appreciation for the agricultural heritage and the current local food movement in Norwood. Supporting and celebrating regional farmers, ranchers and producers is integral to a thriving agricultural legacy. I am honored to be involved with the Fresh Foundation and the important work this organization continues to do in connecting food with community.