Dustin Vandervest gave the first of two new-member biographies today.
 
Dustin has deep roots in our area, as his grandparents are the owners of Crystal Gardens outside of Frankfort. In addition to working there (among other places) Dustin has a degree in landscape architecture, as well as a bachelor of science in liberal arts with an emphasis on environmental leadership. He recently started "Sustainable Site Solutions," a business whose goal is to create sustainable environments that "look pretty" (an apparent goal of all clients).
 
Dustin became interested in Rotary after meeting Kris Thomas on a hunger relief project. He showed us some features of a sustainable environment that included a "chicken tractor"-- essentially a chicken shack that is moved from one location to another. (This led members to offer several helpful suggestions, such as setting up tractor pulls with the chickens doing the work!)
 
On the personal side Dustin lives in Arcadia with a "wonderful girlfriend," and they are expecting a son in in June. She hails from Ecuador, and Dustin has spent a good deal of time enjoying the outdoors there as well as in northern Michigan.