Ariel O’Jibway moved thirteen times by the time she was eleven–but has lived in either Michigan or Vermont for most of her life. She moved to Ypsilanti in 2016, with her partner in everything and of 17 years, Paul Stewart, and made a home with their co-op friends on Pearl Street. There they continued to garden in their front and back yard. Ariel is a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. She comes from a large extended family, which has always been hugely important to her. Her family instilled in her a fondness for animals, and the importance of protecting water and the natural world. Her mother, Lenore Rae O’Jibway, and the father who raised her up, James Paul, are the most wonderful parents anyone could ask for. Ariel earned her degree in English from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and currently works as an Information Resources and Outreach specialist at the University of Michigan. She is a doting dog mom who loves to cook and enjoys local food movements, Ojibwe horses, cooperative living structures, reading, dancing, learning, green building possibilities, Michigan native plants, libraries, animals, and so much more! Ariel’s fun fact is that she won a best actress award from the Lansing City Pulse.
