The Ah-Ha Moment

Gary Altman

Gary L. Altman, MS, CRC, HTR

 

Mr. Gary Altman is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, and Registered Horticultural Therapist. He is a Teaching Instructor in the Rutgers University Department of Plant Biology and Associate Director of the Horticultural Therapy program at School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, with responsibilities in teaching and providing supervised internship experiences to students in the Horticultural Therapy Certificate program and the Horticultural Therapy Minor Program.  Mr. Altman also serves as an executive committee member of the board of directors for the American Horticultural Therapy Association.  Gary is a Ph.D. Student in the Psychiatric Rehabilitation, Counselor Education and Supervision Track program in the Rutgers University Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions where he is working to develop evidenced-based rehabilitative practices for people-plant interactions and horticultural therapy.  He is also developing a green industry vocational skills training and supported employment program for individuals with disabilities on the Rutgers University Cook Campus in New Brunswick, NJ.

Laura Rumpf

Laura Rumpf is a Registered Horticultural Therapist since 2015. She received her training in HT from the Horticultural Therapy Institute. She is an independent contractor and owner of Seattle Horticultural Therapy.

Laura currently provides horticultural therapy to Veterans, high school students with developmental disabilities and, before the COVID pandemic, to residents of group family homes which include those living with dementia, depression, the effects of stroke and other illnesses. She has been co-facilitating the monthly Garden Discovery Walks in partnership with the UW Medicine Memory & Brain Wellness Center and the Seattle Parks & Rec's Dementia-Friendly program, now recorded and featured online. Laura was a presenter at the 2019 Northwest Nature and Health Symposium at the University of Washington. She has also conducted sessions for Neighborcare Health and the Brain Injury Alliance of WA state.

Patty Cassidy

Episode 11: Patty is a registered horticultural therapist through the American Horticultural Therapy Association and sat on its national board for over 8 years holding the offices of secretary and vice president. For 11 years, she presided as president of the Friends of the Portland Memory Garden, a local non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance the lives of individuals with memory disorders and their caregivers by maintaining the Portland Memory Garden and providing therapeutic and educational activities. This garden won the AHTA Therapeutic Design Award.

Debra Edwards

Debra is a registered horticultural therapist (2013) and received her horticultural therapy certificate from the horticultural Therapy Institute and a Bachelor of landscape architecture from Auburn University. Debra has 18 years of experience in landscape design and maintenance and 5 years of experience in horticultural therapy programming.  Now, Debra works as the horticultural therapist at the Life Enrichment Center in two locations of Cleveland Co., NC. The population she serves includes adults with disabilities or dementia at two adult daycare campuses. She is also the Editor in Chief of the AHTA Magazine as well as serving on the national AHTA Board. 

John Murphy

John Murphy has been the director of Bullington Gardens in Hendersonville, NC since 1999.  Bullington is a public garden and horticultural education center and offers programs for school children and adults. He developed the HT program for high school students with special needs in 2003.  

John has a MS in horticulture, is a HTR and a licensed teacher.

Anne Meore

Tonight we had the opportunity to talk with Anne Meore LMSW, HTR. She is the Garden Projects Coordinator for Bon Secours Charity Health System, Suffern, NY, where she is responsible for designing & managing therapeutic garden spaces & conducting Horticultural Therapy programming in the accessible and therapeutic, “Garden of Hope,” at Good Samaritan Hospital.” She works at the New York Botanical Garden, as the Horticultural Therapy Program Coordinator for THRIVE, program advisor to and
a faculty member of the HT Certificate Program at NYBG and has been an instructor for NYBG’s Edible Academy since 2011.
Anne serves on the accessibility work group for the Brooklyn Botanical Garden and as an
adjunct faculty member in the Biology Department at Manhattanville College, teaching
Therapeutic Horticulture. In addition, she provides therapeutic garden consultation, HT
programming and lectures on the importance of the “People-Plant” relationship through her own business, Planthropy LLC.

 

Listen, like, share and thanks for joining us to hear the stories! 

Marion Myhre

During today's episode we are chatting with Marion G. Myhre, the horticultural therapist at Perkins School for the Blind.  Marion has been in the field since 1984 and brings a lot of experience and knowledge with her.  Come join us to learn what her "ah-ha" moment was when becoming a horticultural therapist. 

Faryn-Beth Hart

Faryn Hart is a horticultural therapist based in the Bay Area CA. She runs HT programming working with woman and teenagers in residential eating disorder treatment, she works with homeless and low income families doing gardening and child development in the Mission District in San Francisco and also volunteers in San Quentin State Prison working with incarcerated men in the vegetable and flower gardens.

She is currently in graduate school pursuing her MSW.  

Hilda Krus

Our 5th episode is here!  We are excited to announce that we had the privilege of interviewing Hilda Krus, HTR.  Hilda is the Director of GreenHouse and Horticultural Therapy programs for the Horticultural Society of New York.  She talks about her time in Germany and how moments in her life shaped her and compelled her to enter the field of HT.  Hilda also talks about her work on New York's iconic Riker's Island's HT program. You won't want to miss this one! 

Erin Backus

Today, Irene Barber interviews her co-host Erin Backus. Erin tells us about her journey on becoming a Horticultural Therapist and her 'ah-ha' moment.