About
Rooted in the convictions of renowned American poet W.S. Merwin, The Merwin Conservancy imagines ways of engaging with place, poetry, and practice.
We care for the thriving, internationally recognized palm garden on Maui that William Merwin and his wife Paula planted on land depleted by extractive agricultural practices; offer a residency program in the Merwins’ home to writers and artists who make new possibilities for language and land; and foster attention to nature and the imagination through programming and storytelling.
Our Commitments
Place
We sustain a lineage of care—for the land we steward here in the ahupuaʻa (traditional land division) of Peʻahi, the communities we are part of, and the planet itself. We offer the unfolding story of the Merwins’ garden as an example of resilience and renewal, and of what can happen when we cultivate and sustain relationships to the places we love.
Poetry
We promote the enduring relevance and necessity of W.S. Merwin’s work and of poetry broadly, in its many expressions. We uplift the potential of poetry to convey complex truths, spark wonder, and nurture curiosity.
Practice
W.S Merwin’s poetry and the Merwins’ palm garden are testaments to the transformative possibilities of daily practice. A lifelong student of philosophies that emphasize presence, attention and contemplation, Merwin remained devoted to the daily rituals of writing, studying, meditating, and tending the garden. Our work honors these practices and their role in broadening what each of us can do to renew the world around and within us.
In Prose & Palms
Featuring Executive Director Sonnet Coggins, this short video offers a glimpse of the garden we tend, and the legacy we carry forward.
History
April 2010 — To ensure that their house and garden would be tended after their deaths, and in perpetuity, W.S. Merwin and Paula Merwin founded The Merwin Conservancy with partners Copper Canyon Press, National Tropical Botanical Garden, and Maui Coastal Land Trust.
August 2013 — The Green Room debuted as a public program weaving together language, nature, and the imagination.
May 2014 — With partners Dr. John Dransfield of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, National Tropical Botanical Gardens, and The Nature Conservancy, The Merwin Conservancy cataloged the entire Merwin palm collection, comprising over 3,000 palms and nearly 400 species.
October 2014 — William and Paula donated a perpetual conservation easement to the Hawai‘i Land Trust (formerly Maui Coastal Land Trust), protecting the land from future development.
March 2017 — Paula Merwin died, two days short of her 81st birthday.
March 2019 — William Merwin died at the age of 91.
January 2020 — The home and garden passed from the Merwin family to The Merwin Conservancy.
2020 — Restoration of and repairs began on the house. The garden dojo was restored.
October 2021 — An ethnohistorical study of the ahupuaʻa of Peʻahi was completed.
December 2021 — The Merwin Conservancy launched its residency program with poet Natalie Diaz.
2022 — The Merwin Conservancy welcomed poets Arthur Sze, Carol Moldaw, Ada Limón, Carrie Fountain, and artist Sean Connelly as residents throughout the year.
2023 — During his residency at The Merwin Conservancy, biologist and palm expert Dr. Bill Baker helped to identify and catalog several new palm species in the garden.
2024 — The Merwin Conservancy welcomed composer and sound artist Leilehua Lanzilotti, writer Elisa Gonzalez, and Michael Swaine and Archie Wessells of the artist collective Future Farmers, and writer and conservationist Terry Tempest Williams as residents.
2025—Poet and theologian Pádraig Ó Tuama and writer and visual artist Rachel Eliza Griffiths joined The Merwin Conservancy as residents. The Conservancy reached its $2 million endowment milestone and completed the transfer of W.S. Merwin’s remaining papers to the Harry Ransom Center, ensuring long-term preservation and access for scholarship. The Merwin Conservancy also launched the Centenary Circle, a multi-year giving initiative to support the long-term stewardship of the home, garden, and programs in advance of William Merwin’s 100th birthday in 2027.
“In gardening, as my wife and I go about it here, what are called concerns–for ecology and the environment, for example–merge inevitably with work done every day, within sight of the house, with our own hands, and the concerns remain intimate and familiar rather than far away. They do not have to be thought about, they are at home in the mind. I have never lived anywhere that was more true.”
— W.S. Merwin
Founders William and Paula Merwin
The Merwin Conservancy was founded by W.S. Merwin and Paula Merwin, with the help of many friends and supporters including Copper Canyon Press, National Tropical Botanical Garden, and Maui Coastal Land Trust.
For over forty years, William and Paula lived together in a house William designed and helped build, surrounded by acres of land once devastated and depleted from years of erosion, logging, and toxic agricultural practices.
Together, they painstakingly restored the land into one of the most comprehensive palm gardens in the world.
In 2010, William and Paula Merwin established The Merwin Conservancy to safeguard the house and surrounding land in perpetuity, and in 2014 the land became permanently protected by a Deed of Conservation Easement held by the Hawai‘i Land Trust.
They lived together until Paula’s death in 2017. William continued to live, write and garden in Hawaiʻi until he died at home on Friday, March 15th, 2019.
Paula Merwin
Paula Dunaway Merwin was a children’s book editor. She was engaged in politics, literature, art, cooking, and fashion.
William and Paula met for the first time in 1970 and again twelve years later at a dinner party in New York.
W.S. Merwin described the latter meeting in the poem “Late Spring.”
“After looking and mistakes and forgetting
turning there thinking to find
no one except those I knew
finally I saw you
sitting in white”
They were married in 1983.
Paula shared and contributed to William’s dream of revitalizing the formerly barren land they lived on in Pe‘ahi, furthering their collective vision for The Merwin Conservancy at every step.
Among her many contributions, Paula developed and maintained the gardens around the house.
Her vivacious and loving character helped her and William forge social connections across Maui and the broader world, building a wide-reaching network integral to The Conservancy’s growth.
Throughout their thirty-three years together, Paula was often a sounding board and first editor for Williams’ work, helping produce some of the greatest poetry of the last half-century.
The Merwins’ life together in Peʻahi, which they chose as their home after living for many years in New York City, represents an unwavering commitment not only to a place, but to a way of being.
The Merwins founded The Merwin Conservancy not just to preserve their home, “but also to inspire the rest of us to plant our own forests, turn our own dreams into reality, wherever we live.”
To Paula in Late Spring
Let me imagine that we will come again
when we want to and it will be spring
we will be no older than we ever were
the worn griefs will have eased like the early cloud
through which the morning slowly comes to itself
and the ancient defenses against the dead
will be done with and left to the dead at last
the light will be as it is now in the garden
that we have made here these years together
of our long evenings and astonishment
—from The Shadow of Sirius (2009)
Team
Sonnet Kekilia Coggins
Executive Director
After completing a Masters degree in Education at the University of Virginia, Sonnet moved to France, then later completed a Master of Arts in French Language and Literatures, with a focus on cultural history and interpretation of historic sites. She worked with the Denver Art Museum, then the Williams College Museum of Art, where she co-curated The Field is the World: Williams, Hawai‘i, and Material Histories in the Making. Sonnet has been with the Conservancy since 2018.
Nina Peláez
Associate Director for Story and Experience
Nina is a poet, educator, artist, and cultural producer. She held previous leadership positions at the Smith College Museum of Art and Williams College Museum of Art and holds a Master of Arts in Art History from Williams College and a Master of Fine Arts in Poetry from Bennington College. She mentors for The Adroit Journal and was a 2025 Bennington College Alumni Teaching Fellow. Her writing has been widely published in journals and appears or is forthcoming in The Atlantic, The Poetry Foundation, The Iowa Review, Narrative, Poetry Northwest, and Rattle, among others. Find her at www.ninapelaez.com.
Walter Schmid
Gardener
Originally from Germany, Walter has worked in William and Paula’s garden since 2002. A friend introduced Walter to the Merwins while living in the neighborhood, and he immediately felt a strong affinity. What started as a casual job eventually became a longstanding dedication to William and Paula’s—and now The Conservancy’s—vision. Walter is also a guitarist and composer. He and his partner Sanae, a Japanese singer, put ancient Japanese Waka poetry to contemporary music and perform in Japan and Maui.
Chuck Virtue
Development Manager & Administrative Coordinator
Chuck is from Palos Verdes, CA and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with degrees in International Business and Finance. After 8 years in Japan, he landed in Hawai‘i and worked in hospitality for over 20 years on the Big Island and Maui. He has been with the Conservancy in a part-time position since 2021.
Job Opportunities
Head of Horticulture and Head of Gardens & Grounds
The Horticulturist and Head of Garden & Grounds leads the care and conservation of The Merwin Conservancy’s 18.9-acre palm forest—an internationally recognized living collection of more than 3,000 palms representing over 500 species from around the world. This role ensures the continued health, beauty, and continued flourishing of this unique landscape stewarded by the poet, environmentalist, and activist W.S. Merwin and Paula Merwin and plays a central role in its next chapter.
Review of applications begins December 10
Directors & Advisors
Mary Lock
President
After training in ecology but spending a long career in biotech software development in the Silicon Valley, Mary is returning to her roots, devoting her time to plants, gardens, and conservation leadership. Mary first met William and Paula Merwin more than twenty years ago while she and her husband were creating a garden across the street from the Merwins. At the time, she knew little about palms, but that introduction sparked a lasting passion. She came to appreciate palms not only for their remarkable beauty and diversity, but also for their importance in understanding ecology and evolution. Over the past decade, Mary has been deeply engaged in palm conservation and education. She is the past president of the Hawaiʻi Island Palm Society and continues to serve on its board, and she currently serves as Vice President of the International Palm Society. Her work has included supporting conservation projects, organizing educational programs, and fostering connections among scientists, gardeners, and conservationists worldwide. She first joined the board in 2016 and again in 2026.
Richard Andrews
Vice President
Richard Andrews lives in Seattle. He is an art advisor to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and board member of the Skystone Foundation, the organization responsible for the realization of James Turrell’s Roden Crater Project near Flagstaff, AZ. Previously he served as director of the Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, and director of the Visual Arts Program at the National Endowment for the Arts. Andrews has extensive experience in contemporary art, non profit leadership, and public art programming. Exhibitions curated by Andrews include Maya Lin: Systematic Landscapes (2006), James Turrell: Knowing Light (2003), James Turrell: Works 1967 -1992 (1992), and Art into Life: Russian Constructivism 1914-1932 (1991). Publications include catalogues for those exhibitions as well as essays on contemporary art and artists. He joined the board in 2021.
Amber Strong Makaiau
Vice President
Born and raised in Hawai‘i, Dr. Amber Strong Makaiau is an award winning educator and a Specialist at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (UHM) College of Education School of Teacher Education. She is also the Director of Curriculum and Research at the University of Hawai‘i Uehiro Academy for Philosophy and Ethics in Education and the Director of the Hanahau‘oli School Professional Development Center. Her current projects include carrying out progressive social justice and democratic approaches to pre-service social studies teacher education. She enjoys spending time on Moloka‘i, engaging in philosophy with her two children, and being in the ocean. She has been a member of the board since 2018.
James Pickrel
Treasurer
A longtime resident of the San Francisco Bay Area, Jim has had a wide-ranging career spanning the worlds of business, nonprofits, and the arts. Following various management positions with Silicon Valley companies, he served as senior stock analyst for enterprise software with the JPMorgan Chase investment bank. Jim was a young teenager when he was drawn to the writing of W. S. Merwin, and has been an avid student of Merwin’s life and works since that time. He joined the board in 2020.
Michael Moore
Secretary
Michael Moore is a small business entrepreneur and president of Na Hoaloha Ekolu, a restaurant group that owns and operates Old Lahaina Lūʻau, Aloha Mixed Plate, Star Noodle, Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop, and Hoaloha Farms. He has served as Maui Commissioner: Hawai‘i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, and on the Board of Directors of Lahaina Restoration Foundation, Hui O Wa‘a Kaulua, Maui Arts and Cultural Center, and Maui Visitors Bureau. His interests include dogs, cats, whales, most other animals, walking, reading, and traveling. He resides in Hāna, Maui and has been a board member since 2018.
Jeanne Herbert
Assistant Secretary
Jeanne was born and raised in Ko‘olaupoko, Kaneohe Bay, O‘ahu. Today she resides in Honolulu, having returned to Hawai‘i after thirty years in the Bay Area. Jeanne earned a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and an Associates degree in Fine Arts Photography. She spent her early career as a radio announcer and was the founder of Blue World Travel in San Francisco. An avid traveler,
Jeanne’s photographs are published in National Geographic book Great Journeys of the World, Outside Magazine, and Lonely Planet travel books, among others. Jeanne has served as Board Chair of CASA of Country Costa County, and as a Board Member of Chaksampa Tibetan Opera Company, More recently, Jeanne volunteered for the Polynesian Voyaging Society and the Hōkūle‘a Worldwide Voyage. She joined the board in 2021.
Breeze Giannasio
Breeze Giannasio is an interior designer whose path is guided by a lifelong relationship to land, culture, and place. Her work has been featured in Architectural Digest and Elle Décor, and through ongoing television collaborations with the Property Brothers. Breeze was educated at Punahou School, studied in five countries, earned her undergraduate degree from Wellesley College, a masters in Interior Architecture, and a law degree from Harvard University. She spent a decade practicing as a private equity lawyer, later shifting into nonprofit advocacy and urban planning projects as a bridge on her path to design. She joined the Merwin Board in 2026.
Mark Hamilton
Mark Hamilton is a retired telecommunications executive residing in Seattle and San Juan Island. He began his career in corporate law, and then transitioned into telecommunications. Mark serves as a Board member of Copper Canyon Press, and is a member of the Visiting Committee of the Department of Economics at the University of Washington. Mark received his undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Washington and law degree from Harvard Law School. In addition to poetry and literature, his interests include hiking, cycling, cooking and travel. He joined the board in 2021.
Li Hay
Li Hay lives in the historic town of Makawao on Maui, where she grows 70+ varieties of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and lei-making plants. She is a psychotherapist intern in private practice working towards her PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy. Li has served on multiple service and Hawaiian cultural Boards of Directors, including Mana O Maui, Maui Mediation Services, Hui O Wa‘a Kaulua, and the Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe Voyaging Society. When not working with clients or volunteering, Li can be found traveling around this beautiful world, reading novels and poetry, in or on the ocean, hiking upcountry Maui with her puppy Lulu, or playing her ukulele badly. She joined the board in 2024.
Vilsoni Hereniko
Vili is the first Rotuman to receive a Ph.D. as well as Rotuma’s first and only playwright, filmmaker, and full professor. He is a former Director of the Oceania Center for Arts and Culture (Fiji) as well as the Center for Pacific Islands Studies at the University of Hawai‘i. Currently he is a professor at the Academy for Creative Media at UH Mānoa where he teaches screenwriting, indigenous aesthetics, and film production. Having lived in Hawai‘i for 30 years, he has made the coconut palm (known widely in Oceania as “the tree of life”) a major focus of his scholarly and creative work. Passionate about trees and indigenous worldviews, he is best known perhaps for having made the narrative feature film Pear ta Ma ‘On Maf: The Land Has Eyes. Vili joined the board in 2020.
Gabby Ahuli‘i Ferreira Holt
Gabrielle Ahuli‘i Ferreira Holt was born and raised in Honolulu. She has a BFA in Theatre Design and Production from the University of British Columbia and an MLIS from the University of Hawai‘i. She has published a series of adaptations of Hawaiian legends with BeachHouse Press, titled Hawaiian Legends for Little Ones. Gabby is currently employed at Hanahauʻoli School, a progressive elementary school in Honolulu, as the school librarian and information literacy specialist. Her work as a librarian is focused on emphasizing a diverse library collection, the role of progressive education in upholding the health of democracy (particularly in the areas of educating children to be critical consumers of information and media), and how the development of multiple literacies can be the key to self-determination (both as an individual and a community). She became a board member in 2021.
Jordan Kandell
Jordan Kandell is a screenwriter and producer best known for work on the survival-romance ADRIFT, and Disney’s MOANA. He’s written film and television projects for Dreamworks, Disney, Warner Brothers, Fox, Paramount, HBO, Apple, and Netflix and has collaborated with legendary directors including Jon M. Chu, Destin Cretton, Robert Zemeckis, Clint Eastwood, Chris Columbus, Peter Farrelly, and Ron Howard. Born, raised and based in Honolulu, Jordan was inspired by Merwin at a young age to pursue a passion for poetry through his college degree at USC. He’s served on the advisory board since 2019 and Merwins’ mission continues to inspire him to tend his own poems and palms in his garden in Manoa.
He became a board member in 2026.
Geoffrey Lewis
Geoffrey Lewis, AIA is the principal and owner of Geoffrey Lewis Architect, Inc. He graduated from SCI-Arc in 1989 and moved back to Honolulu in 1990. Geoff and his team have won numerous awards for custom residential and boutique commercial projects. Geoff has served on the AIA Honolulu Board of Directors and recently finished up his term as the 2018 AIA President for the Honolulu Chapter. He is now board president of Hawaii Architectural Foundation. Geoff taught design studio for several years up at the
University of Hawaii, School of Architecture and currently sits on the SOA Advisory Council. Geoff is also a trustee at Hanahau’oli School, a progressive JK – 6 th grade school located in Makiki. When working in academia, Geoff considers his greatest value to the students is in design and process. He joined the board in 2025.
Lily James Olds
Lily James Olds (née Whitsitt) is a writer, director, and visual artist whose work has been recognized across disciplines for its originality and depth. Lily serves as director of the TED Fellows program, a global network of scientists, artists, entrepreneurs, and changemakers advancing bold ideas. She is also a regular guest host on TED Talks Daily, one of the world’s most popular podcasts with over 10 million monthly listeners. She grew up in Seattle and now lives in Brooklyn. She joined the board in 2026.
Catherine St. Germans
Catherine St. Germans was co-founder and director of the Port Eliot Festival, a multi-disciplinary festival held for 13 years on the grounds of the stately home in Cornwall, England where she lived for many years. She now organizes the Regenerative Agriculture Gathering in the UK, and founded Farms to Feed Us, a non-profit helping to support farmers and growers during the Covid-19 crisis. She studied fashion at St. Martins School of Art in London and has written for many publications including The Guardian, The Observer, The Sunday Times, The Face, Vogue, and i-D. She lives in Cornwall and Hawa‘i and has been a Merwin Conservancy board member since 2018.
Matthew Carlos Schwartz
As Paula Merwin’s son and W.S. Merwin’s stepson, Matt has been involved with the vision for the The Merwin Conservancy since its inception, and led the Conservancy board since the Merwins stopped participating directly in 2010. He has more than 30 years of experience leading mission driven public benefit organizations. A resident of San Francisco, Matt has served as CEO of the California Housing Partnership since 2002. In this capacity, he helps low-income renters gain access to affordable and sustainable homes by providing technical assistance and policy advice to California leaders. Matt has also served for many years on the board and loan committee of Equity Trust, pioneering the use of community land trusts and easements to help local communities gain access to land and other resources needed to increase long-term affordability and sustainability. He has served on the board since the Conservancy’s founding in 2010.
Molly Taylor
Molly Taylor specializes in arts and cultural communications and is currently the Director of Communications at contemporary art gallery Kasmin. Focused on brand development, marketing, digital projects, publications, events, and partnerships, she leads Kasmin’s creative direction across multiple channels both on- and off-line. Prior to this, Molly was the Communications Manager at London-based art magazine Elephant from 2014-2017 and the co-founder of literary magazine Hotdog. She holds an award-winning dissertation in MA Publishing from University of the Arts, London, and a BA in English Literature from the University of Sussex. Originally from Devon, England, Molly has lived in New York since 2017. She joined the board in 2024.
Severine von Tscharner Welcome
Severine von Tscharner Welcome is an organic fruit grower and seaweed harvester living in Pembroke, Maine. She serves as the publisher and founding director of Greenhorns, which produces events and educational materials for a new generation of farmers, including The New Farmer’s Almanac. Severine is a public speaker, organizer and advocate, and is especially passionate about the commons. In the past four years she has been building an educational campus for Greenhorns in a series of beautiful historic buildings—creating the condition for artists, scholars, families, summer campers, local food and a vital rural youth culture. She serves on the board of Agrarian Trust, Schumacher Center for New Economics, Savanna Institute, and Farm Hack. Severine joined the board in 2021.
Michael Wiegers
Michael Wiegers is Editor in Chief of the not-for-profit Copper Canyon Press, one of the original two supporting organizations that helped establish The Merwin Conservancy as a nonprofit organization. He was W.S. Merwin’s publisher and editor for 26 years. Impassioned by William’s poetry, as well as a long friendship with the Merwins’, he brings a literary background to the organization, alongside a historical perspective. As an outdoorsperson, he values solitude in wild places, as well as respectful community with critters. He has hiked nearly every watershed of the Olympic Mountains, walked the Paine Circuit in Chile’s Patagonia, climbed the Cascades, paddled the waters of the Salish Sea, and skied the mountains of the Pacific Northwest. When he is not traveling, he lives in a small house near the Salish Sea, in Port Townsend. He has been a Merwin Conservancy board member since 2018.
William and Paula Merwin
Founders
Emeritus Board Members
Robert Becker
New York, NY
Susan Kean
Lahaina, HI
Advisory Board
Dr. John Dransfield
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, United Kingdom
Aaron Kandell
Honolulu, HI
Ara Laylo
Honolulu, HI
Dr. M. Puakea Nogelmeier
University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI
Naomi Shihab Nye
San Antonio, TX
Walter Parsons
Port Townsend, WA
Scott Schweighauser
Chicago, IL
William True
Seattle, WA
Supporters
We extend our gratitude for the generosity of our contributors. Through their care, the Conservancy has taken root, and now thrives.
Below, we acknowledge all those who have provided foundational support across the years, as well as those who have given to the Conservancy in 2024 and 2025.
Last updated January 2026.
2026 Donors
* Centenary Circle
$100,000+
$50,000 – $99,999
$25,000 – $49,999
$10,000 – $24,999
Suzanne E Rapp and Mark R Hamilton *
$5,000 – $9,999
Elizabeth Ellrodt and Scott Schweighauser *
$2,500 – $4,999
$1,000 – $2,499
Katherine Florence Parrish *
Pauline Sheldon *
$500 – $999
Cheyney Family Fund
Ruth Moser
$250 – $499
Susan Tracy Flanagan
Phyllis Brown and Doug Hagen
Peter Kafka
$100 – $249
Carolyn and Edward Arndt
Suellen Barton
Dille-Walvis Charitable Fund
Ira Heilveil
Vilsoni Hereniko
Kakela Peters
Lady Catherine St. Germans
Sujata Thawani
Susan Yap
Up to $99
Michael Andrews- Schwind
Joanne Bachmann
Rena and Michael Bever
Sara Brewster
Linda Kay Buck
Caroline Casey
Barbara Catlin
Sean-Joseph Choo
Kelly Cressio-Moeller
Carol Fern Culhane
Eva and Brian Daniells
John Elmensdorp
Gloria Erickson
Daniel Fiege
Deborah Floyd
Daniel Francis
Claudia Gerbaulet Papazian
Ellen Gozion
Harris Hatcher
Jordan Kandell
Susan Kean
Moranne and Jonathan Klassen
Mitchell Krasnopoler
Sachi Lane
Patricia Lynch and Kent Stephens
Jeanne Malmgren Melvin
Alice and Joe McDermott
Judy Mohr Peterson
Andrea Nandoskar
Judith and Daniel Nystrom
Nathaniel Parr
Michael Redmond
Carol Sadtler
Dan Shepherd
Sher Sherman Cohen
Linda Somer
Sarah Stratton
Barry Sultanoff
Athena Red Summer
Jenny Twelvetrees
Eva Unhold
Lisa Walsh
Karen Winslow
Stuart Zinner
2025 Donors
* Centenary Circle
$100,000+
Anonymous *
Jonathan and Kathleen Altman Foundation *
$50,000 – $99,999
Karen A. Levesque and Matthew C. Schwartz *
Diana Tomseth *
Bill True
$25,000 – $49,999
Colleen Chartier and Richard Andrews *
Robert Becker *
Jeanne Herbert *
Nancy and Larry Mohr
$10,000 – $24,999
Carol Bauer *
Carolee Campbell and Hector Elizondo
Sarah and Tim Cavanaugh
Cooke Foundation
Karin Frost
Susan Kean *
Michael Moore *
Ruth Moser
Jana and Howard Wolff *
$5,000 – $9,999
Atherton Family Foundation
Meda and Ian Lind *
Francie Rehwald
Shaunagh Robbins
Linda and Leighton Taylor
Marsha Trimble *
The Lia and Mike Watanabe Fund
$2,500 – $4,999
Anonymous
Sarah Butler *
Steve Clark
Joan and David Grubin *
Mary and Michael Lock
Carolyn Woolley and James Pickrel
$1,000 – $2,499
American Public Garden Association
Lillian Ball *
Suellen Barton *
Pamela Brennan
Martha W Cannon
The Janie and Mark Davis Charitable Fund *
Suzanne and Don Carlos Dunaway
Katherine Florence *
Sandra Florence
Mary Hattori *
Li Hay *
Vilsoni Hereniko
Macdonald Builders Legacy Fund
Dorian King
Liz Kinney
Juliet and David Lee
The Allen and Barbara Levesque Family
Pamela Lichty *
Brian McDonald
Paul Mancini
Andrew F. and Ann B. Mathieson Fund
Katherine Maxfield *
Joan Meitl
Vicki and Peter Merriman
Mary Miller
Patricia and Richard Missler *
Timothy Moore *
Emily Naunheim
Traci and Dennis Oliphant
Walter Parsons *
Cathy and Ed Schultz
Lady Cathy St. Germans
Meg and Sam Steere
Earl Stoner
Barbara Sweet
Molly Taylor
Marisa Leigh Valente *
Whitsitt Family Fund *
Pattie Wright
$500 – $999
Linda Allen
Cynthia Bassett
Rena and Michael Bever
Marge and Dale Bonar
Deborah Bowers
Liz Boykin
Sara Brewster
Cheyney Family Fund
Dennis Clemmens
Robin Davis
Breeze Giannasio
Mary Anna Grimes
Kitty Harmon
Tricia and Christopher Higgins
Grant Kaufman
Kananileialoha Kawika
Kelly and Ed Lees
Geoff Lewis
Helen Liu
Alice and Joe McDermott
Rosanne Ogles
Paula and Steven Pickrel
Merrill and Anthony Ranken
Julie and Randy Roenigk
Lesly Sanocki and Manish Chandhok
Alison Shore Adler
Joellen and John Smolowe
Crystal Smythe
Kim Stanley Robinson
Barry Sultanoff
Taketa ʻOhana Fund
Libby Tomar
Janis Von Thaden
$250 – $499
Michael Andrews-Schwind
Joan and Mitch Berman
Marnie Burke de Guzman
Virginia Carter
Margaret Chang
Clemency Coggins
Bill Coy
Diana Elghanayan
Deborah Floyd
Suzanne Fraser
Amelia Fusaro and Bill Everitt
Claudia Gerbaulet Papazian
Ellen Gozion
Brigitte Hahn-Miller
Jacqueline Husid
Tyrie Jenkins
Jordan Kandell
Kelly Advisors
Teresa Vast and Michale Kieran
Judy Kirkpatrick
Moranne and Jonathan Klassen
Susan Walker Kowen
Patricia Lynch and Kent Stephens
Amber Strong Makaiau
Janice Marsters
Jayne McConkey
Judy Mohr Peterson
Judith and Daniel Nystrom
Carrie Ostroski
Jeannie Perales
Geoff Plant
Leslie Resnick
Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts
Mary and Steve Ruley
Jean and Larry Shaw
Pauline Sheldon
Mary Decker and Robert Smith
Linda Somera
Joan Stevens
Wyatt and Roderick Townley
Severine Welcome
Kathryn and Tom Whittaker
Michael Wiegers
Kanara and Rick Woodford
Elizabeth Yee
$100 – $249
Jessica and Thomas Adams
David Aggerholm
Gini Alhadeff
Gertrude Allen
Claressinka Anderson
Joanne Bachmann
Eric Baizer
Diane Bell
Leomi Bergknut
John Blotzer
Keith Boi
Tracey Boyce
Suzanne Brace
Susan Bradford
Sue Bremner
Bennett Brooks
Linda Kay Buck
Deborah Brown
Linda Kay Buck
Mark Campbell
Chuck Carletta
Andrea Carter Brown
Sean-Joseph Choo
Betsy Hearne and Michael Claffey
Margaret and William Coggins
Diana Cohn
Lee Cooper
Kelly Cressio-Moeller
Carol Fern Culhane
Eva and Brian Daniells
Debra Dean
Ms. Carolyn Dille
Richard Dobbs
Devin Dougherty
Jill Downing
Andrew Ekblad
John Elmensdorp
Jaune Evans
Cathy and Roger Fantz
Cynthia and Adam Fasano
Marybeth Fentriss
Daniel Fiege
Jane and Jack Gilmar
Timothy Goddard
Floyd Gregory
Peter Griffin
Mary E Tucker and John Grim
Kimberley Haines
Asha Hall
Shannon Hartzler
Harris Hatcher
Susan and Kurt Heinzelman
Gretchen Henderson
Carol Hiniker
Jane Hirshfield
Kathryn Holt
Gabby Holt
Steven Hopkins
Liana Horovitz
Robert Hottenstein
Grant Howe
Judy Anderson and Harlan Hughes
Jonna Iacono
Trebbe Johnson
Frederick Jones
Elizabeth M. Olmsted and Randall K C Kau
Jan Heller Levi and Christoph Keller
Stephen Kessler
Pamela Kim
Francis Kim
Jane Kocivar, MD
Peter Koehler
Jeannie Kong Evarts
Mitchell Krasnopoler
Peter Krengel
Sachi Lane
Elaine and Robert Lang Foundation
Mary Beth Laughery
Nikos Leverenz
Gina Liberman
Christa and George Lordi
Deborah Lycette
Christie Lynk
Jean Mabry
Leslie and Jon Maksik
Jeanne Malmgren Melvin
Jiva Manske
Rita Marlowe
Cheryl and Keith McElfresh
Josie Merck
Victoria Millard
Amy Muramatsu
Lynn Myers
Beth and Dick Nesbitt
Howard Norman
Matt O’Meara
Nathaniel Parr
Jacque Passow
Kris and Luis Pelaez
Virginia Pflueger
Mark Poag
Michael Pohorecky
Rosalime Productions
Meredith Pond
Lovel and Boyd Pratt
Alice Quinn
Brendan Quinn
Michael Redmond
Janice and Jim Reisch
Ziggy Rendler-Bregman
Robin Rierdan
Gordon Roberts
John Romain at Bamboo Inn on Hana Bay
Hazel and Stephen Roos
Michael Rose
Sheila Sampson
Frederick Howard Sands
Mara Santos
Dennis Sears
Susie Schlesinger / Brown Bag Farm
Sierra Schneider-Williams
Dennis Sears
Robin and David Shambach
Sheri Sherman Cohen
Margaret Creighton and Rob Smith
McKay Stangler
Jenepher Stowell
Sarah Stratton
Eric Sundquist
Sara Tekula and Joseph Imhoff
Thomas Thomas
J. Kevin Tighe and Rebecca Fletcher
Kathryn B. Tracy
Patricia Tummons
Julia Van Dyke
Audrey Vanderhoof
Ms. Robin Wallin
Lisa Walsh
Amy Weber
Rachel White
Grant Wilson
Karen Winslow
Lenita Witherspoon
Sylvia Wolf and Duane Schuler
Stuart Zinner
Up to $99
Alfred Abiva Jr.
Leon Alirangues
Dana Anderson
Callum Angus
Aaron Barrell
Howard Benson
Rachel Berman
Susan Beumel
Dr. Nathan Blumberg
Betsy Bowen
Tina Bowlin
Mark Branon
D. Joan Breiding
Karen Bretharte
Jenn Bronson
Jody Brown
Barry Buchy
Daychin Campbell
Geoffrey Carter
Caroline Casey
Michael Casey
Barbara Catlin
Patrick Crain
Emily Jane Davis
Lilia Davis
Estela De La Cruz
Celestial Dempsey
Lily Diamond
Susan Dines
Bruce Douglas
Andy Eaton
Elizabeth Elliott
Estelle Enoki
Keith Epstein
Lyn Erickson
Patrick Erwin
Kimberly Farrant
Kenneth Faught
Janice Fazio
Maria Felber
Daryl Fischer and Daniel Gleason
Mike Fowler
Daniel Francis
Dale Franzen
Lisa Maile Fulcher
Carol Gentz
Juan Giliberto
Bonnie Goebel
Lynn Graybeal
Gary Greenberg
Lollie Groth
Jan Haag
Douglas Hagen
James Hessler
Stuart Hobbs
Carol Hoch
Rick Howard and Jan Steinbrueck Howard
Walter Ingebritson
Janice Isaac
Paul Janes-Brown
Savy Janssen
Joyce Jeffers
Ragnhild Jenkins
Lawrence Johnson
Georgia Jones-Davis
Kristyn Judkins
Peter Kafka
Lisa Kamolnick
Joel Katz
Jan Kikumoto
Mary Jane Knecht
Paul Lacinski
Kathleen Levey
Janet Lowry
Barbara and Rufus Lund
Marion Lyman-Mersereau
Nina Michael
Mary MacKay
Marc Malandra
Caroline Marotta
Diane Master
Antonia Matthew
Jeffrey Matthews
Hannah May
Sally McClellan
Roger McDonough
Richard Meadows
Mary Michael
Christal Miller
Michael Miller
Aida Nadar
Gail Nagasako
Jordan Nagasako
Carla Nakata
Andrea Nandoskar
Gracia Neuhart
Aimee Nezhukumatathil
Mai-Uyen Nguyen
Katie Noonan
Rick Nordby
Regina O’Melveny
Barbara Oldroyd
Laura Olvera
Streams Paramanda
Cassy Parrott
Patricia Patrick
Elizabeth Pearl
Gail Pickholz
Sandra Percival
Gail Pickholz
Russell Pierce
Susan Pollak
Janet Polli
Lucy Prostko
Cindy Putzier
Shan Quinn
India Radfar
Shandhini Raidoo
Allison Rand
Paula Rath
Heidi Rian
Gretchen Robinette
Rick Rosen
Brian Roskum
Marsha Sabourin
Winick and Saccoccio Family Fund
Diana Saltoon-Briggs
Ed Sampson
Hilary Saner
James Sartoris
Mary Saunders
David Schaff
Mary Schjeldahl
Andrew Seguin
Dan Shepherd
Jeannamarie Shepphard
Paula Shur
Ellen Simonetti
Lee Slaff
Sarah Slaughter
Laszlo Slomovits
Carey Smith
Stephanie Smith
Bernice Sousa-Carden
Donald Spanel
David Stallings
Athena Red Summers
Jan Surface
Dyanna Taylor
Henry Teague
Debbie Thiess
Cheryl Tomchin
Hannah Trees
Mark Turley
Jenny Twelvetrees
Chiho Ushio
Piet Vanderhorst
Ashley Welch
Jerry Welch
Brad Wells
Carol Wilson
Thomas Wolfe
William Worcester
Susan Wurtzburg
Masami Yuki
Larry Zimmerman
2025 Green Room Patrons
Suellen Barton, Robert Becker, Marge and Dale Bonar, Liz Boykin, Pam Brennan, Marion Burke, Bill Coy, Breeze Giannasio, Marya Anna Grimes, Brigitte Hahn-Miller, Mary Therese Hattori, Li Hay, Jeanne Herbert, Vilsoni Hereniko, Donna Howard, Kanani Kawika, Susan Kean, Susan Walker Kowen, Geoff Lewis, Pam Lichty, Mary and Michael Lock, Paul Mancini, Janice Marsters, Nancy Mohr, Michael Moore, Tim Moore, Merrill and Anthony Ranken, Catherine Schultz, Pauline Sheldon, Barry Sultanoff, Diana Tomseth, Jana and Howard Wolff, Elizabeth Yee
2025 Stewards
These sustaining donors are part of our monthly giving program.
Gertrude Allen
Michael Andrews-Schwind
Joanne Bachmann
Suellen Barton *
Michael Bever
Sarah Brewster
Linda Buck
Carolyn Casey
Barbara Catlin
Sean-Joseph Choo
Kelly Cressio-Moeller
Carol Fern Culhane
Eva and Brian Daniells
Jill Downing
John Elmensdorp
Daniel Fiege
Deborah Floyd
Daniel Francis
Claudia Gerbaulet Papazian
Timothy Goddard
Ellen Gozion
Harris Hatcher
Vilsoni Hereniko
Frederick Jones
Jordan Kandell
Susan Kean
Francis Kim
Moranne and Jonathan Klassen
Mitchell Krasnopoler
Sachi Lane
Nikos Leverenz
Patricia Lynch and Kent Stephens
Jeanne Malmgren Melvin
Alice and Joe McDermott
Jason Myers
Anatole Nagy
Andrea Nandoskar
Judith Nystrom
Nathaniel Parr
Judy Peterson
Michael Redmond
Daniel Shepherd
Sheri Sherman Cohen
Linda Somera
McKay Stangler
Lady Cathy St. Germans
Sarah Stratton
Barry Sultanoff
Sara Tekula and Joseph Imhoff
Libby Tomar
Cheryl Tomchin
Jennifer Twelvetrees
Lisa Walsh
Rachel White
Karen Winslow
Kanara and Rick Woodford
Stuart Zinner
Foundational Support
These donors made a seed gift of $10,000 or more at the founding of the Conservancy.
Anonymous (2)
Margaret and Robert Ayres
Helen Bing
Lloyd and Margit Cotsen
Peter Hagedorn and Miriam Trahan
Charles Engelhard Foundation
Mr. and Mrs. Dan Gerber
Doug and Liz Kinney
William and Eileen Kay Kistler
William Merwin
Paula Merwin
Stanley Moss
Susan and Roy O’Connor
Patricia O. Smith
Diana & Steven Strandberg
Merwin Legacy Circle
Planned Giving, Estate Gifts and Bequests
Anonymous (2)
Carol Bauer
Ellen Gozion
Paula and William Merwin
Ruth Merwin Moser
Eric Paddock
Grace Schulman
Barry Sultanoff
J. Kevin Tighe and Rebecca Fletcher
Grove Giving Circle
Through a gift of $15,000 or more, these donors together planted a memorial grove of palms to remember William and Paula Merwin.
Anonymous
Colleen Chartier and Richard Andrews
Robert Becker
Carolee Campbell and Hector Elizondo
Sarah and Tim Cavanaugh
Susan Cooper Cronyn
Sacharuna Foundation
Donovan Family Fund
Suzanne and Don Carlos Dunaway
Jan Elliott
Elizabeth Ellrodt and Scott Schweighauser
Florence Foundation
Karin Frost
Jeanne Herbert
The Janie and Mark Davis Charitable Fund
Randall K C Kau and Elizabeth M. Olmsted
Susan and Jac Kean
Arlynna and Michael Livingston
Mary and Michael Lock
Michael Moore
Ruth Moser
Charles Engelhard Foundation
James Pickrel and Carolyn Woolley
Matthew C. Schwartz and Karen A. Levesque
Pauline and Bill Sheldon
Joanne Holmes Shigekane Fund
Lydia Shigekane
Alana Marie Levinson-LaBrosse and David Shook
Patricia O. Smith
Keith and Judy Swayne Fund
William True
Jonathan and Jane Wells
Jana and Howard Wolff
Financial Reports
EIN Tax ID: 47-4653401
