Floathouse Crew

I’ve always had an affinity for the water, and when I returned home to Petaluma from college and my post-graduation travels, I had enough money to buy a car or a boat. I bought the boat, and that began my affair with the Petaluma River. I was one of the founders of the North Bay Rowing Club in the early 80s and later, the Petaluma Small Craft Center. I have served on various City committees including the River Access & Enhancement Committee and the Petaluma River Access Partners (PRAP). As Executive Director of PSCC, I bring passion, determination (read “stubbornness”) and a “jack-of-all trades” experience to our efforts to help make a great RIvertown even better.

I grew up on the San Francisco Bay and I have raced sail boats on the bay ever since I was a young child. I have also taught sailing to adults and children. I was vice-president of Lokahi Outrigger Canoe Club in Petaluma and coached the long-distance crews as well as coached boys’ crews in sprint races. I am currently President of the Petaluma Small Craft Center and have been a strong advocate for improved river access for our community.

Not growing up particularly athletic, I was delighted to discover rowing and the wonderful lessons for beginners that are offered by the North Bay Rowing Club. Well, that was more than 15 years ago and I’ve been rowing ever since. I feel so grateful to get to enjoy the beauty of our river, its waters, wildlife, tides, and horizons. It’s my dream to have everyone in Petaluma be able to enjoy it as well through more activities and easy availability. I work as a private fiduciary with the Sonoma and Marin communities, volunteered for many years with Mentor Me Petaluma, and love rowing.

I am a co-founder of River Town Racers, a sprint kayak racing club in Petaluma, and the secretary of Petaluma Small Craft Center, parent nonprofit to The Floathouse. My dedication to water sports is a life-long passion from sailing the Pacific in my twenties to paddling our local waters in my sixties and much in between.

I’ve been paddling on the Petaluma River since 2003 when I started with Lokahi OCC, and helped found a new OC club, Ohana Wa’a in 2007. I moved on to He’e Nalu OCC in 2011 and eventually bought a Stand Up Paddleboard. I enjoy paddling it while picking up trash along the river. I was involved with the PSCC Summer Camps for 6 years, teaching the kids how to paddle an OC 6.

I’ve lived in Petaluma for most of my life. I grew up swimming, water-skiing, and boating on rivers, lakes, and oceans throughout Hawaii and California, including our lovely tidal slough. Water and water recreation are integral parts of my life.

My career as an Occupational Therapist informs my capacity on The Floathouse board with the mission of encouraging and including the community at large to utilize our river as open space using people-powered watercraft.

Watching The Floathouse come to fruition has been a great joy. Something magical happens when people get out on the river and interact with nature and water. Perspectives shift and moods lift. Often, there is a realization that the river was here all along, waiting to be enjoyed by the community that it runs through. You can find me at The Floathouse teaching SUP Yoga and volunteering on weekends.

“Rivers are places that renew our spirit, connect us with our past, and link us directly with the flow and rhythm of the natural world.” Ted Turner

I grew up in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where I first fell in love with rowing, but I left the sport due to life changes until I moved to Petaluma in 2013. There, I discovered the North Bay Rowing Club. I re-discovered my passion for rowing, met an amazing group of friends, and became part of a beautiful community. Although running has become my new passion, supporting the Petaluma River and its community remains very important to me.

I grew up in landlocked farm towns, in Illinois, Georgia and Pennsylvania because for some reason, my dad, originally from Bakersfield, loved teaching at state universities, which tend to be centrally located, often in farm country. When a job opened up for my husband in San Francisco, we found Petaluma, and I was immediately fascinated by this tidal slough running through it. I fell in love with rowing, but my new personal goal in life is to help as many people as possible experience the joy of interacting with the Petaluma River on people-powered water craft. There’s nothing else like it!