“Instructions for living a life. Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.” ― Mary Oliver

About Me
I was born on August 27, 1979, in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and raised in Retreat, an unincorporated community near the Mississippi River, nestled in the tri-state area of Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota. My childhood was spent working in tobacco fields, riding horses, and exploring nature, with my well-read, well-worn box set of Laura Ingalls Wilder books never too far out of reach.
After graduating from De Soto High School in 1997, I earned a B.S. in Human Ecology from the University of Wisconsin, then dedicated a year and a half to rebuilding efforts along the Mississippi Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina -- first as an AmeriCorps member in Biloxi, then as a team leader in Bay St. Louis.
In 2008, I returned to Madison, where I began a two-decade career with the public school system and built an active, fulfilling life in the city. The COVID-19 pandemic marked a period of deep soul-searching and self-reflection, and ultimately, a change in course.

