Category: Spotlights

I met with Dennis Carlson at his undisputed second home, the Fish Food Bank Garden. What I thought I would learn would be a straight path of his gardening life was actually a study of diverse paths with a thread of nature always being prevalent. Dennis was born and raised in rural Venezuela in an…

Everyone  has a story, and Carol Brown is no exception.  I was fortunate enough to spend an hour with her recently and learned that she not only has stories, she has sage advice to share with new trainees. Carol’s garden journey began almost three decades earlier when she purchased her first home in Hillsboro, Oregon. …

Beth grew up in Austin, Texas, an environment that she describes as ever changing and challenging for gardening.  Her mother had many indoor plants, but the climate was inhospitable for outdoor gardens.  Beth’s mom “always had a garden and it always struggled.”  Beth remained in Texas into her mid-40’s.  She and her husband David attempted…

Spotlight on Anne Debbaut: A Journey from Engineering to Master Gardening Anne Debbaut’s journey is a testament to the power of following one’s passions, even when they lead down unexpected paths. Despite not coming from a family of gardeners, Anne has always had an eye for landscape designs, colors, and plant types. Her early fascination…

Nothing is permanent except change.  This statement by the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus is probably as true today as it was in 500 BC when the world was still flat and orbited by the sun. And today, just as there were then, there are those who resist change and others who view it as an…

From August 2024 This past year has been busy and exciting for Christine Purvis, her husband, Sam, and their sons, Asher and Eliot. They recently moved from Portland to Hood River to find outdoor adventure here in the gorge. When Christine is not homeschooling her boys, she is learning about her new hometown, enjoying outdoor…

From May 2024 Born and raised Hood River, local Christie Bradley enjoys gray diggers, animal rescue, pickleball, hiking, biking, and engaging in community alliances through Master Gardeners. She lived several places in Washington, Colorado, and Oregon, but was able to move back to Hood River when her husband got a job at Google in The…

From June 2024 Jen Munroe may be a relative newcomer to CGMGA, but her garden speaks of a seasoned gardener with a flair for blending diverse styles and elements into a harmonious whole. Before I met her, I had the pleasure of “meeting” her garden: an inviting oasis that offers water features, flowering trees, and comfortable…

From April 2024 As a Pacific Northwest native, Jayne Hill is grateful to have grown up in a beautiful part of the country with an appreciation of the nature that surrounds us here. Jayne was born in Yakima but moved to Corvallis at nine years of age. After high school she studied biology and then pharmacy.…