((Left) Jeanne Carver | Photo courtesy of Jeanne Carver (Right) Photos courtesy of HDFFA)
The High Desert Food & Farm Alliance (HDFFA) invites the community to two special events on May 18 and 19 featuring Jeanne Carver, the Central Oregon rancher behind the wool used in Team USA’s Winter Olympic uniforms and founder and president of Shaniko Wool Company.
On May 18, Carver will share her internationally acclaimed presentation, From Ranch to Runway: An Evening with Jeanne Carver at Pine Meadow Ranch in Sisters. The presentation — which has recently been shared with audiences in Italy, China, and Australia — will offer a rare opportunity to hear firsthand how local ranching practices are shaping global conversations around sustainability, fashion, and land stewardship.
On May 19, HDFFA, Oregon Pasture Network (OPN), and Jeanne will host a film screening of Roots So Deep (You Can See the Devil Down There), a documentary series about regenerative agriculture, at COCC’s Willie Hall in Bend. The evening will include a panel discussion with Carver and OPN Program Director Mike Guebert, along with a locally catered meal from Spork.
Both events offer unique opportunities to connect directly with Carver and engage with the story behind Shaniko Wool, including a close-up look at the custom uniforms worn by Team USA’s Winter Olympians, sourced by Shaniko Wool.
Jeanne Carver has stewarded the land at Imperial Stock Ranch in Wasco County for more than thirty years, coming into deep relationship with the landscape and lifeways of the high desert. Her work has been featured on runways, in scientific publications, on the needles of fiber artists around the world, and in the official Team USA uniforms worn at the last five Winter Olympics.
She is one of many regional producers working closely with research and conservation groups. Her work is unique, though, with her message of conservation and craft attracting the attention of industry giants such as Ralph Lauren and the Textile Exchange’s Regenerative Agriculture Report, among others. While her vision has gone global and her Shaniko Wool Company now encompasses ecologically sensitive ranches across the American West, this work remains rooted in the landscapes of Central Oregon.
As HDFFA’s Small Farms Coordinator James Faughnan shared, “The contributions to ecology and culture by Central Oregon’s small farmers and ranchers can’t be overstated. They understand the urgency of protecting our soils and waterways and doing so in a way that’s joyful and brings us closer to our agricultural heritage.”
Learn more and reserve your spot at hdffa.org/events.
These opportunities are made possible by a Thriving Communities grant provided by Philanthropy Northwest. Ticket revenue will go to support further opportunities and scholarships for Central Oregon ranchers. To learn more about ways to support, please visit HDFFA’s website or contact Executive Director Kristin Points at kristin@hdffa.org.
HDFFA is a 501(c)3 nonprofit serving Crook, Deschutes, and Jefferson Counties, as well as the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. HDFFA’s mission is to support a healthy and thriving food & farm network through education, collaboration and inclusion.
