About me

Although I am a private person and would really rather not be in the spotlight, enough people have found my story interesting and have encouraged me to share it. Since I am also a firm believer that people should know where their food comes from, I invite you to read on and learn a little more about my story....

Originally hailing from the Midwest, I grew up mainly in the suburbs of Green Bay, WI. I fondly remember picking vegetables from my Grandma's garden and from the local farms that offered pick-your-own fruit, peas, sweet corn, and much more. The area's numerous dairies allowed their cows access to pastures supplied the milk we drank. Never did we have to worry about growth hormones and antibiotics in our milk and meat and food shipped in from thousands of miles away.

Fast forward several years and you will find me in Southern California modeling, attending college at USC and doing small acting jobs. After living through the horrors of the Los Angeles riots I took a year off of college and moved to Berkeley, California. It was there that I began to develop a real appreciation of fine cooking, good food, sourdough bread, and farmer's markets. After returning to LA and finishing my degrees in Political Science and Russian Studies, I took that appreciation all the way to law school in Washington, DC.

During my law school days I became concerned about the horrors of factory farming and the inhumane treatment of livestock animals, not to mention the toxicity of the food produced in our subsidized, industrialized farming system of today. At that point I became a vegetarian. Unfortunately, I love bacon and ham and soon fell off the veggie wagon:o) Luckily, I learned that I was a sushi devotee so my meat consumption remained very limited and my health and diet improved somewhat, despite the stress of practicing law and eating on the go. The birth of Whole Foods piqued my interest in small, family-farmed, heirloom organic foods and led to beginning of my gardening efforts for heirloom varieties of tomatoes and other rare vegetables.

After years of working as a legislative aide in a labor union's lobbying office, followed by practicing law in a career was increasingly unsatisfying to me, I endured the stress and horror of being in Washington, DC on 9/11. Watching the smoke billowing up from the burning Pentagon and walking home through the streets jammed with unmoving traffic as people attempted to flee the anticipated attacks on the Capitol, I vowed that I would leave this unhappy life and make my difference in another way.

On to Sedona, AZ and the natural beauty of the austere West. There the fateful turn was made: I got my first few chickens. After one taste of those healthy, fresh, free-ranging eggs I knew that there was no turning back. I gave up the practice of law and became a full-time hobby farmer. I bought Nigerian Dwarf goats for milk, Komondors to guard them, and horses to ride. I combined my desire to protect and preserve increasingly rare breeds and varieties of animals and vegetables with my love of good food and animals. Quickly I outgrew my place in Arizona (and its uncertain supply of water) and looked around until I found the lovely secluded ranch I now call home in Idaho.

Once there I jumped in with both feet and went from hobby farmer to organic rancher. I buckled down and studied genetics, pedigrees, conformation, the principles of biodynamic farming and more. I searched out rare, old-fashioned breeds that would thrive in a natural environment and the breeders that still raised them. I imported horses from Europe and pigs from Canada. And I did it all alone. I am now proud to say I am owner, breeder, ranch hand, mid-wife, veterinarian, web master, marketer, etc. I can appreciate the sentiment "Being overworked and underpaid" but I sleep well at night knowing that I have made a difference. I wouldn't change it for the world! (Of course, I would gladly accept the help of interns and volunteers).

Holly