Emeritus Board Members

When Jess was 3, her parents planted a garden and according to her Mom, they couldn't keep her out of it. As a teenager working in a local restaurant, she developed an interest in herbs and planted her first garden of her own. Since then, she has worked in landscaping, garden design, horticulture, environmental restoration, botany, and reforestation.

These days she finds the most gratification in growing food for herself, her husband, her dog (who loves peas) and the bees.  Her core beliefs include protecting the land and supporting the people who feed us, the importance of fostering community, and that pie crust is best made from scratch.

Jess is a founding Board member of O’Hara and continues to serve in the capacity of guidance, oversight and serves on the External Committee. 

Hannah has always been in love with the natural world. As a child, she was always outside. Her summers were spent at Lake Champlain harvesting blueberries, fishing and making preserves, and canned goods with her mom. Those magical experiences have shaped Hannah's career and her relationship with her community.

Hannah has had professional careers in the flower business and as a fly-fishing guide. These experiences are inspiration in her new career as a wood block artist. She loves teaching others about the importance of clean waters as the foundation for healthy ecosystems. Hannah lives off the grid in Idaho with her husband and adopted twins.

As a founding Board member, Hannah continues her commitment to grow O’Hara’s service to the community in the most sustainable manner.

Kathie originally joined O’Hara’s Board of Directors in 2017 as Treasurer.​

Kathie has a business background and has been involved with the Clay Studio of Missoula for over 20 years. She believes in O’Hara’s mission because the growing presence of food deserts in Montana. Kathie is invested in the work that O’Hara does as it is critical to building resilient food systems and food security.

She grew up with a family in farming and has an inherent knowledge of the value of good food for long term health. She, her husband and their ever-evolving pack of well-trained dogs live off grid in the Sapphire mountains. Every year they start a vegetable garden. The success is dependent upon the rodent population, so they are ever grateful for the local farmers in Bitterroot Valley to fill in the gaps.

She continues to bring a breadth of nonprofit knowledge, financial expertise and serves as O’Hara’s IT muse.

Andreas first settled in Montana 1992, because it felt like a great place to raise his children. Having been raised in Southern Bavaria Germany, he loves nature especially mountains and rivers.​

Andreas’ background is around classic economics and business culture. As early as the 90’s, Andreas realized that further growth came with a lot of challenges for his family business, as well as for society and environment. Andreas loves to get involved in communities wherever he lives and believes strongly in local products, local food supply, and a healthy diet (of course this includes beer in moderation as being from Bavaria). He has been involved with O'Hara from the initial stages. ​

Even though work and family circumstances necessitated a move back to Munich, he has stayed engaged in the Hamilton Community.

Honored to serve as a Board Member Emeritus to help support the O’Hara Commons, Andreas brings ideas and insights from other rural communities.