Anna Gardner (1958-2006) and her husband, David Marlow, designed and built their energy-efficient home in the mid-1980s above the Des Moines River in Boone County. They protected and restored the land near their home, and much of that land now has the protection of an Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation conservation easement. After Anna’s son Gavin grew old enough she no longer needed to be a full-time mother and earned a bachelor’s degree at Iowa State University in Biological and Pre-Medical Illustration and a master’s in interdisciplinary graduate studies with project components from art, english, and botany. For her master’s project, she designed the Grasses of Iowa website, an important reference for Iowa botanists and plant enthusiasts. She also served as webmaster during the early years of the INPS website and assisted with newsletter production. Anna was a botanist, artist, freelance botanical and medical illustrator, web page designer, organic gardener, and musician.