Garden Volunteer D’ana Soto

D’Ana Soto, Mexican / Chihene / Apache, recently began volunteering in the NAYA Learning and Medicine Wheel Garden after coming to NAYA with Judy BlueHorse Skeletons’ PSU Capstone class, Indigenous Gardens & Food Justice. D’Ana’s love and connection with the plant world is evident through her 25 years of farming experience. She’s been an ancient seed saver, collecting for 20 years. She belonged to the Traditional Native Farmers Association, and traveled amongst the southwest tribes, including the Hopi, Diné, Pecos, and Pueblo. She also created a 40-member, community-supported farm in Tucson, Arizona. D’Ana currently works at Heart2Heart Farm in Sherwood. We are so thankful and fortunate to have her here to support the NAYA gardens! We accept all levels of experience, so if you are interested in volunteering in the garden or in any other capacity, please contact: Natalia Devine, nataliad@nayapdx.org, or call (503) 288-8177, ext. 332

Pictured here, D’Ana finds a stranded plastic egg from the NAYA Easter Egg hunt with five dollars inside!