I was born outside the small town of Fife Lake and have spent most of my life within a few miles of the family farm. Being the daughter of a second generation logger and owning a dairy farm guaranteed that I would have hard work in front of me most of my life. I assessed my older sisters chores which included dishes, laundry, cooking and etc, (that didn’t look like much fun) then I looked at my older brothers chores of tractor driving, skidding logs with horses, and animal care that was of course the direction that I knew I wanted to take. It was a challenge, for my dad. I was always in his back pocket asking the questions why. This kept him on his toes and it made me educated in the world of physical work. From logging, farming, horse-pulling and hunting coon I was only a few feet away at all times.
As a student of Forest Area I elected to take college prep courses along with this I was one of the only female students involved in the woodshop classes. As a sophomore I spent the majority of the year building a roll top desk. I competed in the regional show in which I won grand awards. At the state level my instructor wanted me to add the title Ms to my name to show this significance, without including this I was able to walk away with the reserve state honor. After finishing high school early I attended Northwestern Michigan College and worked as a cabinet designer with Wickes Lumber in Cadillac.
In my early 20’s the office life was becoming a mundane place, I was finding myself thinking about the earlier years of hard physical work and the outdoors pulling at me. With a sit down talk between father and daughter I was offered 50 percent of the family logging operation. I didn’t hesitate, I jumped at the chance to work a team of horses in the woods with my dad. For the next 18 years this became my profession. I enjoyed the hard work and I excelled beyond most of my peers. The education came first hand, and I learned all aspects of the profession. From buying the standing timber, logging, and proper marketing.
After my daughter was born I came to the realization that this profession was dangerous and I had someone that depended on me daily. I struggled with the passion that had built over the years of impacting woodlots in a positive manner for our future generations. I was given the opportunity to be a buyer at Fahl Forest Products. After looking into the company and finding that they have the same values in mind. I was eager to become part of the family forestry team.