Laura moved to Oliver with her husband, Jack, in 2017, where they bought their first home.
Even though Baltimore is home now, Laura originally hails from the Great Lakes State. Born and raised in Metro Detroit, she has always appreciated the beauty and diversity of the city. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Professional Writing from Michigan State University, and enjoys her part-time job of writing, copyediting, and project management for Cardinal Financial. When she’s not serving in Oliver, you can find her gardening (of course), reading and writing, cooking, trying different restaurants in the city, fellowshipping with her church (Redemption City Church), and spending time with Jack and their daughter, Catalena.
Laura has enjoyed diving in and serving the Oliver community in different ways. She has
helped organize events (like cleanups, prayer walks, a clothing drive, and family-friendly activities), participated in traffic calming efforts, volunteered at the Oliver Community Farm, and taught a résumé writing class at CUPs. She served on the Community Association Board for two years, where she helped update the bylaws, designed flyers for various neighborhood events, and performed weekly community “drive throughs” to submit neighborhood violations to 311. Although she’s finished her time as a board member, she still serves the community through creating and distributing the Oliver Newsletter email every month.
Laura loves to support her fellow neighbors and, over the years, has attended numerous community events. Some of her favorites have been movie night at Bethel Playscape, Destination Walks, yoga in the park, and cleanups at the Dawson Family Memorial Garden. “Oliver is such a special place. I’ve made some lifelong friends here!” she said. Laura and her family love to spend evenings playing at the Kaboom! Playground, and afterward, taking a stroll through the Oliver Community Farm. “The farm is like a little escape. It’s a peaceful place with its own vibrant life and ecosystem. For a moment, you forget you’re in the city,” she said.
The farm is part of what drew her to Oliver in the first place. “When we were house hunting, the Oliver Community Farm was actually a big selling point. I used to interview and blog about urban gardeners in Lansing, so urban farming is both fascinating to me and near to my heart,” Laura said. She even keeps a garden in her tiny backyard! “A man named Doug Green said, ‘I am more myself in a garden than anywhere else on earth’ and that is completely true of me!” she said.
If you see her around, don’t be afraid to say, hey neighbor!
