Aug 1, 2024 | News
Board of Directors Welcomes New Members
July 1st marks the start of a new fiscal year for the Garden and with a new year comes a new group of dedicated volunteers who choose to serve on our Board of Directors and Advisory Council. Click their names to read their Bios.
New Board Members
New Advisory Council Members
Carolyn Achenbach
Rusty Lilly
Bill Thompkins
Dorothy Thompkins
Jack Bocock is an experienced Board Member; he has served a variety of nonprofits and educational organizations including St. Paul’s Memorial Church, Piedmont CASA, and Virginia Union University. His specific expertise is in finance and investments. A former Naval Special Warfare Officer, Jack knows the value of service and how to get down in the weeds! He enjoys the outdoors in many ways, including hiking and skiing, and is excited to work on behalf of the Garden.
Christina Teague is a marketing and public relations consultant specializing in educational and awareness campaigns through print and social media. Her experience is in assisting nonprofit organizations and small businesses with branding, outreach, advocacy, development and media relations. She is excited to get more involved with the Botanical Garden after serving on the Garden’s Marketing and Development Committee. Christina enjoys her garden and is a member of the Albemarle Garden Club.
Keith Woodard became a registered architect in 1988. Woodard Properties began in 1980 when he established the business to design, build, and manage investment properties in and near Charlottesville. He and his family have resided in Albemarle County since 1977 and raised four children – all have completed college educations and now are ‘self-propelled’ and good citizens. His hobbies include traveling and ballroom dancing with my wife Adrienne, playing piano, wood-working projects and making things, landscaping and improving the house that I built and have lived in since 1978.
Over the past 40 years of living, working, volunteering and raising a family, Consi Palmer has made Charlottesville and Albemarle County her home. Holding both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from the UVA School of Nursing, she has worked in the field in various capacities for over 25 years, most recently teaching Community Health Nursing at the University of Virginia. She has enjoyed volunteering and board service at numerous non-profits in our community.
To Consi, the Botanical Garden of the Piedmont is a culmination of a myriad of interests and an opportunity to create a lasting legacy for the community that her family has lived in and loved for many generations. She passionately believes that the time is right to build a botanical garden in Charlottesville with a focus on native and site adaptive plants, discovery, and learning for all ages. She wants The Botanical Garden of the Piedmont to be a place for many levels of healing, both physical and spiritual for the individual, and for the community as a whole.
As a member of a local garden club, Consi strives to be a life-long learner of horticulture, native plants and garden design.
Consi is married to Jud, a Charlottesville native, and they have three grown children and six grandchildren.
