In 1996 I officially founded Marek Landscaping, LLC the business that I had been working on unintentionally since I was 10 years old (I could tell you stories!). I had an accountant tell me that it was "time to legitimize" the business. She was right! I set out with intention to protect and restore the natural systems of the area that I grew up in in southeast Wisconsin. This started with small native gardens, and elm tree treatments largely in the suburbs, working out of a small Blue Chevy S-10 (manual). With thousands of people to thank it has been built into a growing and thriving endeavor. My team of 12-15 amazing professionals and I have established some good examples of how urban and rural lands and waters can be celebrated by people in harmony and kinship with Nature. We work throughout the Great Lakes, focusing mainly in our beloved Milwaukee area, the land of the Ojibwe (Chippewa), Potawatomi, Menominee, Oneida, Stockbridge, Brothertown and Ho-Chunk . We are a design build consulting business with an incredibly talented and passionate team of designers, scientists, ecologists, and construction team. Take a look at our website if you have time, this is what we do.

I took every mode of transportation to get to Alaska including hiking, hitchhiking, boats (ferries), trains, buses, and seaplanes (all before cell phones!). Trained and performed as a volunteer on the Search and Rescue team. Lived, played, and worked in the mountains of the Tongass National Forest. Among several missions I had one helicopter supported mission where my team was dropped on remote mountain top in the wilderness in the search of a lost backpacker who we rescued alive after a 6 day, multi agency search. I also worked on a historic log cabin reconstruction on an island in the wilderness that was accessible by boat or sea plane. I also worked in construction and design on an experimental floating net pen project at a salmon hatchery in a remote camp that was accessed by seaplane. This became the inspiration for one of my projects that involved designing, grant writing, building, and maintaining floating fish habitat in the Milwaukee River estuary. This time in Alaska, especially SAR led me to train and volunteer for the National Ski Patrol.

Responsible for the planning and managing of the year's operations including budgeting, HR, and purchasing. I hired and trained the seasonal crew of 2-3 technicians, planned and celebrated Arbor Day for the Village, managed the Elm tree protection program, started and managed a Village nursery, planned and coordinated a street and park tree planting program, built a park tree inventory form scratch (before digital field data collectors), and assisted residents with tree health and structural matters, disease diagnosis, and treatment recommendations. One of my duties as weed commissioner was to enforce a legacy weed ordinance that mandated that all lawns were mowed to no more than nine inches. This included several prairie gardens that residents had established that were generating complaints from uninformed residents (after working patiently to inform them). Lorri Otto, the founder of Wild Ones and one of the pioneers of the native plant movement helped me with model ordinance language and I was able to change the Village Ordinance with the help of the Village Attorney. This language has been used as a template across the United States to allow for native plantings to be encouraged and protected in urban and suburban landscapes, I was 19. The positive impact to the environment has been bigger than I could have imagined. This position was an opportunity that I built my career on that never would have been afforded me had I grown up in a different situation. As the youngest village post holder in the history of the Village, I was clearly in over my head and I told them that when I got the offer, they had faith in me and I had great leadership. I helped grow and improve efficiency in the department, cared for and saved a lot of trees, and improved the health of the community. I'm immensely grateful for the trust and confidence the Village placed in me.

I was a one person crew performing the treatment of American elm trees for Dutch Elm Disease prevention. This included an IV type injection that delivered a fungistat to the trees vascular system and canopy. I evaluated and measured the tree, prepared injection sites, installed injection ports, and measured and mixed chemicals. They were delivered by gravity injection w/ large carboys of product overnight. I also planned and planted perennial and annual planting beds around the Village. I performed tree planting, pruning, and tree disease diagnosis and treatments. This included visits to residents to assist with tree health, structural, and pest problems on private property. I had an amazing mentor in Judy Mead who taught me all about trees, and forests, and politics, and new ways to swear. She was a powerhouse, and an inspiring mentor. I was 16 years old when I started.