Pioneer Valley Summer of Solutions is comprised of a number of amazing people that have come together to create quite and interesting mix of personalities, skills, and talents.
Program Leaders 2012:
Martha Pskowski is a second-year program leader with Summer of Solutions. In 2011 she worked with the Brick House as an organizer for the Summer Workshop Series, and helped start the partnership with Harvest Moon Farm in Greenfield. Martha became involved in SoS as a participant in 2010 during a summer break from Hampshire College. Her goals include actually learning how to skateboard this year. She has a personal blog at marthapskowski.wordpress.com
Duncan Shippee is a resident of Greenfield, Massachusetts. He likes making music with his friends, doing stuff outdoors, skateboarding, and playing Mario. He was a participant in the summer of 2011 and worked on the farming and bikes projects.
Evan Scheltema is a new program leader with Summer of Solutions. He has previous experience as a weatherization technician for Evergreen Homebuilders, his family’s contracting company based out of Brattleboro, Vermont. He also has experience canvassing for energy efficiency with Greenfield’s Energy Smart Homes Program. This summer, he hopes to learn and grow with Summer of Solutions as he helps to shape the relatively new Pioneer Valley program.
Full-time participants 2012:
Kayla Kennett studies English with a concentration in poetry at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts. She is an avid creative writer and has served as a staff member and been published in Rushlight, the Wheaton College literary magazine. Endeavoring to maintain her own physical and mental health, Kayla has recently developed an interest in nutrition and finding fun ways to stay active. As a participant in Summer of Solutions: Pioneer Valley, she hopes to spread her love of healthy, local food and bicycle her way (one mile at a time) into a state of fitness.
Lucy Bergwall hails from Lebanon, NH, a small city nestled in the upper Connecticut River Valley. Having recently completed her freshman year at Williams College, Lucy plans to major in Environmental Science; this summer, she is eager to further explore her interests in food justice and sustainable agriculture. An experienced cyclist, Lucy loves long, scenic rides. Thus far, she has enjoyed developing various new skills, e.g., seed-saving, foraging, bicycle maintenance, and the art of wild fermentation.
Zachary Wallenius-Duda
I live in Gill, MA with many of my friends and am actually the fifth generation of my family to live on our farm. I really love to play music, skateboard and kick it with all my homies. My friends and I have a garden and we enjoy growing our own food almost as much as we do eating it. I also love exploring the natural land around me like walking rivers, streams or the forested landscape as often as I can. One day I hope to travel and change the world for the better by inspiring people through the music I create, but until then I’m just enjoying living life, trying to help out those in my local community and making profound connections with the people I love.
Colman Lee was born in Olympia, WA, and now lives in Greenfield Massachusetts. Due to T-Rex ancestry Colman has a mini arm, and is very sensitive about it. He enjoys tree climbing, and pun making. You may have seen him rocking out on a flute while skateboarding down Main St. or dancing his buns off at a Gogol Bordello show.
The full crew (group picnic!) :
