Community. Hyper-Local. Creativity. Environment. Health.

Lori is currently the Laboratory Manager in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department at Furman University. She has an MPH in Environmental Health Sciences/Toxicology from the University of California, Berkeley, and an MS in Analytical Chemistry from Furman University. She has a passion for baking and cooking, and has successfully melded her laboratory and kitchen skills. She has also attended the Seasonal School of Culinary Arts in Asheville, NC.

David recently moved to the US from Costa Rica, where he ran Aborigen, a highly popular farm-to table-restaurant. David earned a diploma in culinary arts at Latina University; was certificated in hydrocolloids and avant garde techniques at the French Culinary Institute in New York City; and obtained a Masters in cuisine, techniques, and produce from the renown Basque Culinary Center in San Sebastian, Spain.

Chris Miller is the owner of Yeah That Garden Guy, a garden and microfarm installation service provider in Greenville. For the past 5 years, Chris has worked on farms and restaurants across the country, studying farm-to-fork from both sides of the table, working to increase profitability and the marketing of a unique, hyper-local, culinary product to restaurant guests.

Aaron von Frank is the manager of the farm portion of Oak Hill Cafe & Farm. Aaron graduated from Furman University in 2000 with a B.A. in Political Science, and has been an avid organic gardener, heirloom seed geek, and gardening teacher for over a decade. In 2014, he and his wife, Susan (aka "The Tyrant"), started GrowJourney.com, a USDA certified organic seed company and organic gardening educational service. Aaron also writes about gardening, foraging, and cooking on his and Susan's personal blog, TyrantFarms.com.

Crayola Specialist, Derek Nelsen, is known to most of his friends as "The Art Goblin" because of his obsession to be "the very best, like no one ever was." He graduated from Furman university, where he studied Graphic Design and received his BA degree. Outside of work, Derek will sometimes functionally shred the git-fiddle (guitar) or, if you're lucky, the ukulele. He also greatly appreciates the art of craft beer, cooking, and other culinary-related activities. When he needs to isolate from the rest of the world, Derek plugs into a good audio book. If you want to get to know Derek, please be prepared with a good (or bad) pun to share. Also, be aware that you need to enjoy, or a least have knowledge of the following: Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and everything Christopher Nolan.