Laurie Lafferty is a retired teacher with a master’s degree in education. After 25 years in the classroom, Laurie retired and moved to Arroyo Grande, California, to care for ...

Douglas Airhart is a Professor of Horticulture in the School of Agriculture at Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville. He teaches production horticulture (landscaping, nursery, greenhouse), turf, and provides FFA training and ...

Sue Amatangelo brings a well-rounded background to America in Bloom which includes the position of Eastern US and Canada Sales Manager for EuroAmerican Propagators, founder of the #1 plant brand ...

Carlo A. Balistrieri is a seasoned botanical garden professional with significant leadership experience honed as a curator, head of horticulture, vice president and executive director at some of the ...

Rod Barnes currently serves as the Town Administrator for Edmonston, Maryland. Edmonston is a small community in the Washington DC metro region. He has a Master of Public Administration from ...

Cindy Brown enjoys a career as a community volunteer in her hometown of Marietta, Ohio. She has been an active Ohio Master Gardener Volunteer since 2011. From 2012 to 2014, ...

Jack Clasen earned a PhD from the Indiana University School of Public Health and taught at LSU and the University of Cincinnati. After a few years he joined the business ...

Cheryl Corson, RLA, CPSI, NBC-HWC, is a landscape architect, writer, and health & wellness coach in private practice. As a certified playground safety inspector (CPSI), Cheryl has designed and ...

Linda Cromer has served her community, Greendale, Indiana, in a variety of political positions including Planning Commissioner, Chairperson of the Park Board and Tree Board, and Housing Authority Commissioner. She ...

Jennifer is a 1992 graduate of Auburn University in the field of Horticulture and landscape Design. She worked for city government for over 24 years in Eufaula and Fairhope, Alabama. ...

Tim has been serving as the Coshocton, Ohio Municipal Court Judge (an elected position) since 2006, currently serving his third 6-year term. He has been involved with the community in ...

Galen believes strongly in community engagement, pragmatic research, education, and public gardens that remain relevant to their constituents. He actively pursued these interests during his 30-year career at the Chicago ...

Evadne Giannini, originally from Somerset County, New Jersey, moved to New York City to attend the New School for Social Research where she acquired a master’s degree in behavioral science. ...

Sharon Hadden moved from the UK to the USA four years ago to accompany her husband. Sharon has joined Allisonville Garden and Home and has taken over the responsibility of ...

Ed Hooker, III currently serves as the first Historical Architect of the National Cemetery Administration (NCA), Veterans Affairs (VA). The NCA oversees 131 National Veterans Cemeteries through the United States ...

Kristin Pategas is a certified Landscape Designer, horticulturist, and co-owner of Hortus Oasis, a boutique landscape design firm in Winter Park, FL. Kristin and her husband, Stephen, co-authored the book ...

Stephen Pategas is an award-winning landscape architect, garden writer, garden photographer, and plant geek in Winter Park, FL. He and his wife Kristin are owners of Hortus Oasis, a boutique ...

Alex Pearl, Centerville, Ohio has been an America in Bloom judge since AIB’s inception. He is among the founding individuals. Alex’s affiliation began as a judge during AIB’s 2001 pilot ...

Leslie Pittenger is an AIB board member and Past President of the AIB board. She served on the national awards program committee as the judge’s coordinator for 5 years ...

Bruce Riggs currently free-lances in horticulture and is involved in several not for profit institutions. He is also very involved in the family landscape design business with his wife Melanie ...

Melanie Riggs resides in New Rochelle, New York. Melanie is a Landscape Designer who has had her own Landscape Design business for over thirty years. She is the principal and ...

Karin Rindal. Karin Rindal’s wide ranging business career in manufacturing and government includes time involved in international trade program evaluation and training in Total Quality Management (TQM) and Malcolm Baldridge ...

Susie Stratton and her husband Steve are the owners of Stratton Greenhouses, Inc, founded by Steve's father in 1949 as a tomato production range. Today it is a retail ...

Nikki Springer is an environmental consultant with a background in landscape architecture, sustainability, and facility management. She recently completed a PhD in Environmental Management from Yale University and was the ...

For the past decade, Alexandra Torres worked at the United States Botanic Garden, Washington, DC, as part of their Education/Public Programs Team. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Conservation ...

Barbara Vincentsen is owner of Vincentsen Associates, a medium-sized award-winning architectural firm in Westfield, New Jersey. She grew up in a gardening family and has continued her family tradition in ...

Diana K. Weiner has cultivated her career learning all facets of the horticulture industry after earning her degree in Agronomy form SUNY Cobleskill – florist, interior plantscaper, Program Manager for ...

Teresa Woodard writes and produces garden and lifestyle stories for regional and national magazines. After graduating from Indiana University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, she worked seven years for ...

Steve Zwiep served the City of Holland, Michigan for 30 years. He attended Calvin College and majored in Plant Biology. After college, he became the lead grower for the ...