We are pleased to share the story of one of our supervolunteers, Sharon Conboy. Sharon first came to Olympia in 1976 to attend The Evergreen State College, with a focus on natural history. She grew up with a love of animals, and was also influenced by a high school teacher who taught organic gardening.
For ten years, she lived in Mason County in a converted school bus, and raised herb plants to sell at Farmers’ Markets around the region through her business Hanging Gardens. She shares, “I never made much money, but I made a lot of friends, with the plants and the people.”
Volunteering was important to Sharon ever since she was a teen, and she especially enjoyed settings where she could interact with children. She helped create several school gardens around Olympia and taught diverse topics from worm composting to apple grafting. She’s volunteered at various zoos and Left Foot Organics. She’d heard about GRuB across the years, and finally came here for a workshop in 2015.
During that visit, she overheard another guest asking a staff about one of the herbs in the garden. Sure enough! Sharon knew the answer, and knew she had found the next place to bring together her love of plants and community.
For over a decade, Sharon has come to GRuB nearly every week, and guides our culinary and medicinal herb garden. We are so grateful for her deep knowledge of herbs, including their ideal growing conditions, propagation, and medicinal uses. She is generous with sharing her wisdom, and insightful in recognizing what both plants and people need! Volunteers like Sharon are the heart of GRuB’s work, truly creating a setting where others can thrive.
