Gia gardens with her family and enjoys growing rare and unusual crops. Her interest in gardening began as a child when she used to garden with her parents in Guam. She aims to nurture successful gardens through horticultural education/mentoring as a WSU Extension Master Gardener and to build a diverse and inclusive gardening community through outreach. Unequivocally, one of the best things about being at MCGA is meeting gardeners and sharing produce.

A passionate gardener and advocate for community gardening, Vinay joined MCGA in 2019. He discovered that gardening was a way for him to exercise his body and relax his mind. Once he discovered Marymoor, he was drawn to the beauty and potential of the space, something he did not have at home. Over the years, and after starting with basic crops, he has learned to maximize crop production by use interplanting and companion planting. He is committed to helping the community garden thrive and to spreading the joy and benefits of gardening to as many people as possible.

Michael gardens at Marymoor because he enjoys taking advantage of the full sun to grow unique varieties of crops and has found a lot of joy in creating and maintaining he plots. He is passionate about helping MCGA improve its communication through the website and dashboard as well as making sure the mentoring program supports the success of each gardener.

PNW transplants Karen and her husband Pedro started gardening in MCGA in 2019 after years of failing to grow tomatoes in a cedar forest. Karen loves the community at Marymoor and hopes to contribute to that community by serving on the board.

Betsy is a happily retired mother of three grown children and 3 grandchildren (so far!) and co-gardens with her husband Michael. Together they have amassed over 30 years of gardening! When she isn’t gardening, she is a freelance calligrapher, loves to draw and volunteers her time at a hospital. Gardening, though, has given her the opportunity to be creative, plant many different flowers and veggies and further the mission of growing food not only for family, but for the community who needs it. She enjoys soaking up nature, sun, and new friendships!

Carol has been gardening at Marymoor since 2011. She and her daughter have bonded while sharing two plots at MCGA. Carol and her daughter love the concept of a community garden, working together during work parties, being with like-minded folks of all nationalities and backgrounds and sharing information. She likens the garden to a patchwork quilt, every plot is a little different from the next, all carefully thought out and planted with lots of love, sweat and even tears! Carol contends there is no better gift than organically grown produce as fresh as it can be!! She is most proud of the Food Bank Garden which provides fresh produce to HopeLink.

Amy is a trained architect and artist who joined the MCGA solely as her mother’s planter box builder. She soon grew to love the garden and has taken it over! It turns out, one of her favorite things is picking fresh sugars snap peas off an arbor trellis. Working in the garden occasionally becomes a family affair when she can manage to pry her three kids and husband away from their screens. Amy loves encouraging her fellow gardeners and learning from them. She believes strongly in the community at Marymoor and the effort behind it, as well as the future of the garden.

Ken and his wife Mary Anne joined the garden in 2014. Mary Anne sees planting and weeding as a form of relaxation, and you can find her in the dirt most days. Ken, on the other hand, is more of a techie/engineering type and enjoys tweaking and tuning the plot for maximum planting space. Over the years, they’ve expanded their at-home, spring-time seeding grow-out into a near year-round project using only LED fixtures. They are considering a greenhouse to further increase their options. Ken spends his time developing apps for agricultural and inspection drones and Mary Anne spends her time teaching piano to students of all ages.

Ken and his wife Mary Anne joined the garden in 2014. Mary Anne sees planting and weeding as a form of relaxation, and you can find her in the dirt most days. Ken, on the other hand, is more of a techie/engineering type and enjoys tweaking and tuning the plot for maximum planting space. Over the years, they’ve expanded their at-home, spring-time seeding grow-out into a near year-round project using only LED fixtures. They are considering a greenhouse to further increase their options. Ken spends his time developing apps for agricultural and inspection drones and Mary Anne spends her time teaching piano to students of all ages.