I was raised in Massachusetts and California; a city/suburb girl born to a pianist from Boston and a farm boy from Maine. Both of my parents instilled in me an appreciation of nature. Dad gave me an education in the connection between plants, animals and people and, though we lived in the city, I had a strong desire to be part of that connection in a real hands-on way someday. Through marriage and divorce, several cross-country moves, and raising my son as a single parent while working in real estate in southern California, the goal remained the same. When I married John in 1994, after we both quit our lucrative jobs and moved to the mountains of rural southern Utah, a new adventure began. Now instead of a small patch of garden in my backyard we had twenty acres to care for and restore. My main interest was in what I now know is Zone 1. John went on to steward the remaining daunting project of our landscape.

In 2004, John and I attended an Integral Ecology workshop in Colorado. Permaculture was discussed, though not in depth; one of the attendees had a large Permaculture project in Australia. The concept didn’t really register at the time. The seed was planted, however, and years later, in 2010, we got excited about Permaculture and its possibilities on our piece of land. John attended a PDC in 2012 with Warren Brush, taught at True Nature Farm; he was inspired and motivated. Warren came back to our home, Heartwater Farm, to teach a two day intro class. I was a student. Now I was inspired and motivated as well (thank you, Warren).

My current intentions are linked with John’s as we continue to create Heartwater Farm. We plan to become a Permaculture Demonstration Site, and are gradually getting our ideas solidified in the physical universe. We ultimately plan to expand the viable concepts of Permaculture throughout our small, rural, ranching community of Long Valley. We have hosted a number of varied workshops, have had good attendance and local interest, and plan on continuing and expanding in this area. Our location, right off Highway 89 in the middle of one of the country’s most heavily traveled tourist areas, makes us ideal for promoting Permaculture on a large scale. With the support of fellow “Permies”, friends, neighbors, and hopefully Permaculture Global, we can fulfill our dream.