I grew up surrounded by Early American tools and craft and the people that love them. I have a BA in History with a minor in textile conservation, and enjoyed working in Museum textile collections both large and small. I have been attending EAIA annual meetings since 2016, and though I look forward every year to seeing friends and interesting new places, I most enjoy experiencing it with my son Sam, and have been so moved by the way EAIA members have included him and nurtured his interest in history. I spent 15 years working in the non-profit sector and serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Non-Profit Development Program (Morocco 2003 and Romania 2004-2006). Though my publishing background is in public health, I spent several years producing and reviewing scientific research and enjoy both academic scholarship and the peer-review process. I am very interested in the work EAIA does to support research and scholarship on the early American tools and trades. My personal tool fascination has grown as a “user” rather than a “collector”. My current trade is that of casket maker, specializing in handmade natural caskets for use in green burials. I am one of only a handful of willow casket weavers in North America, and practice using the same techniques and tools as has been used to weave willow baskets for centuries. I cultivate willow by hand on my 22-acre farm in North Carolina using traditional coppicing techniques. My business partner builds simple pine caskets, and we invite families to join us in the workshop, whether to participate hands-on, or just be present. The connection to the process of making something by hand is deeply present in many of us, and in times of transition and grief this tangible experience, holding the tools and forming the wood, can be transformative. I have been working with other casket weavers in forming a guild to promote our trade and develop programs for training and employing apprentices—the historic structures of artisan trades still have much to teach us, though we may also be writing our website content using AI technology!