by Sue Matkin

I grew up in Irving and graduated from MacArthur High School. I did my undergrad at Stephen F. Austin University and graduate school at Penn State. My husband Dan and I live in Grand Prairie and are approaching our 47th anniversary this June!  Our son Trey and his husband live in San Francisco and our daughter Wendy, her husband and two boys live in Grand Prairie. We love being grandparents to Max and Leo.

As many military wives have done, I have worked in a variety of jobs, teaching high school, middle school and preschool. I worked in nonprofit management in Germany, Dallas and Fort Worth. The last thirteen years of my career were as Vice President of Community Development at United Way in Tarrant County before retiring in 2018. I currently serve on KERA’s Community Advisory Board and the Literacy Connexus Board.

We have lived in Kentucky, San Antonio, Pennsylvania, California and for six years in Germany where we went on Volksmarches (6 mile hikes) through many forests.  I have always loved being outdoors. I planted my first pollinator garden this past year with the help of the Texas A&M AgriLife Pollinator kit and enjoyed it all spring and summer. Hummingbirds, butterflies, dragonflies and rocks have been some of my favorite things for a long time. I really enjoyed being a part of the NTMN class of 2020 and was introduced to so many new things in nature. I also made a lot of new friends. Now I have many more favorite things to look for when outside and so much more to learn. I decided to volunteer and help others have the great opportunity to become Master Naturalists. Working with Nancy Wilson this year I will be ready to serve as the Director for the 2022 class.