We had the good fortune of connecting with Heather Waringa and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Heather, what do you think makes you most happy? Why?
There are so many things that make me happy and it’s impossible to list them all! My son, being surrounded by animals, trees, bodies of water, highland cows, good books, chocolate chip cookies, the people I love, surpassing a challenge, Scotland, my home and so many more. I have a calm and peaceful life at home and a job I love. I spend most of my days outside in the woods , meeting friends or at home with my cats and dog. I fully believe in living a life with happiness as the primary goal. I have been fortunate to be able to build a life which incorporates happiness in almost every aspect!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
After college, I didn’t have a specific career plan. I had several ‘good’ office jobs, but nothing that I wanted to spend my life doing. When I was in my mid 30s, I sort of fell into working with trees. I completed my Associate’s Degree in Horticulture from Gwinnett Technical College and passed my Certified Arborist exam. I spent roughly ten years working for myself doing tree consultations and landscape design and installation. Working for myself enabled me to home school my son from third grade through high school. As he got older, he was able to come to work with me. The fluctuating seasonal income was a challenge and there were quite a few complicated jobs over the years. Fortunately, I had a core group of people to help me and as a source of expertise, I love educating people about their trees and seeing their joy when we completed a landscape installation.

Working for myself gave me the freedom to be with my son as he has grown up and has led to us having a close relationship. Once he was in college and more self-sufficient, I was ready for a change. I wanted to find a full-time job which would enable me to network with like-minded people and to learn all of the things that I didn’t have access too while self-employed. Since I’m a Certified Arborist, I started by looking at tree companies and county arborist jobs. I quickly realized that was not what I wanted to do. I’m far more interested in conservation and preserving our trees, especially the natives. I then changed my mind set to ‘where would I be happy to spend my days?’ Fernbank Museum was the first site I looked at and there was the post for my job. I immediately applied and started work as the new Forest Manager a few weeks later. I have been here since the beginning of the year, and I absolutely love it!
When I was in high school and college, my wishful dream was to be able to work in a flower shop. This is the leveled-up version of that dream. I spend my days in Fernbank Forest, and I work with flowers, trees and dinosaurs!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I have lived in Gwinnett county since 2006. Homeschooling my son allowed us to go on many field trips and see more of the area than we would have otherwise. There are so many places that we love to visit. Since I work at Fernbank Museum, that is obviously one of my favorite places! The Georgia Aquarium is another required stop. I volunteered there when my son was younger and I have always loved it. I also love the Delta Flight Museum, Tellus Science Museum and the new Savoy Automobile Museum.

One of our favorite day trips is going to visit Helen, in the north Georgia mountains. During the summer we go up there to go tubing. We usually stop at the Creekside Deli in Cleveland, then head to Nora’s Mill and downtown Helen. We often get ice cream at Mountain Fresh Creamery on our way home. Helen is an excellent day trip destination as it so different from anywhere else in Georgia.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Aaron Poulsen is the Program Director for Environment Horticulture at Gwinnett Technical College. He is so much more than a teacher. Aaron is there for every one of his students and encourages them as much as possible. Almost ten years after graduating, I can still ask him questions and get a fast response. He has an enormous contact base and an extraordinary knowledge of horticulture. He has been a mentor for me since the day I started classes at Gwinnett Tech. I truly value and appreciate all of the help he has given more over the years!

Instagram: @thistle_04

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heather.waringa

Image Credits
All photos are mine.

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