Gloria Frazee

Maybe it was sitting on the front stoop as a child and observing the little red ants that sparked Gloria’s love of the outdoors… Somehow, this led to wearing Birkenstocks through mud seasons in Vermont, teaching aquatic chemistry, canoeing, and rock climbing at a science camp, and working on organic farms and vineyards. Photography, weaving, poetry and managing produce at the local coop were in the mix, too.

Obviously, the next steps to work high tech manufacturing (ick) and earn an MBA in marketing followed by a career in wine education and brand management. This included developing national training programs and an online wine school as well as interviewing winemakers on video, sharing their stories along with a blend of geography, geology, climate, agriculture, and history that comprise the terroir that shapes a wine’s character.

Gloria eventually “retired,” reclaimed her yard from the mow-and-blow crew, bought a reel-mower (a scythe is next), started watching bees and butterflies and planting natives that are slowly replacing the lawn with life.

Wanting to connect with her community in meaningful ways, she joined the East Hampton Energy & Sustainability Committee, where she is secretary, and ReWild, where she is co-chair of the Social Media & Web Committee and co-leader of the ReWild / South Fork chapter and its Summer Program for high school students. She is also the founder of East Hampton Compost, a ReWild initiative in collaboration with the Town of East Hampton. You can find her talking with folks about turning food scraps into soil food at the ReWild eco/ed table at Springs Farmers Market most Saturdays.