Life & Work with Stephanie Hunter of Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Hunter.

Hi Stephanie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My educational background is in business administration with an emphasis in finance and accounting. My professional background includes many diverse experiences: community banking; pricing mutual funds for daily inclusion in the Wall Street Journal; working for three elected officials; fundraising for animal welfare; providing search-and-rescue services for New Orleans’ pets after Hurricane Katrina; and residential real estate development – just to name a few.

In 2019, I wanted to do something different, and I saw an ad seeking a Development Director for Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy, which piqued my interest. I am an active contributor to the Austin community, a former member of the Junior League of Austin and a graduate of Leadership Austin. I have served on several boards and have volunteered for many non-profit organizations. Yet, out of more than 25 years in Austin, I had been only once to Zilker Botanical Garden for a plant sale. Revisiting the Garden, interviewing with Conservancy board members, volunteers, and City staff, I fell in love with ZBG and the potential for its future.

I began my new job in March 2020 with some challenges. On my first day, I was sent home – the Garden was required to close for the Covid pandemic. Because we are an outdoor space, we fortunately reopened sooner than most.

And even with the pandemic, our attendance has grown 25%; membership, 460%. “Grow” is an important verb to us. We are on a mission to grow our base of supporters and educate the public on the benefits of Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy. We are optimistic. We know that people are capable of growing and thriving after the turbulent two years we’ve been through. Our Garden continues to offer engagement with plants that connect us to nature, to our community and to ourselves on a powerfully intellectual, physical, and spiritual level.

Our school programs have grown with our new Education Director, Matthew Gaston, who has done a stellar job of reaching out to schools to bring students for education programming: more than 500 in 2022 to date. Our programming is growing: we have added Yoga in the Garden plus Music in the Garden. This year we debuted The Surreal Garden, six nights with more than 100 neon sculptures by Ion Art that transformed the Garden into an exciting, interactive art exhibit that made our Garden grow brighter.

Personal gardening also has seen a resurgence during the pandemic. Public gardens are sanctuaries for communities. They play a role in the advocacy of larger issues: By virtue or having important plant collections, we need to play a role in conservation, to have a position on climate change and to be a refuge for regional wildlife. In collaboration with our community, we inspire and teach.

ZBG has been part of the Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) since its inception and will always remain parkland. The Conservancy (ZBGC) was formed to guide, enhance, and grow a world-class botanical garden in the heart of Austin whose beauty will serve to inspire and educate all those who enter its gates and walk its verdant paths. Operational needs for a world-class botanical garden far outweigh what the City’s budget can afford. The Conservancy therefore is working to fund needed advancement, including a dynamic membership program, enhanced programming, restoration of the historic Butler Window, an upcoming Master Plan…and much more.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Fundraising is peppered with challenges. The pandemic has certainly been an ongoing dilemma for two-plus years. Also problematic, we are a relatively new non-profit raising money in a city full of non-profits. Then there’s the case that many, if not most, believe ZBG is funded by the City, which it is to an extent, but the Conservancy wants to enhance that funding to create a flourishing world-class botanical garden – as the 11th largest city in the country, we deserve it! Another issue: In the United States, Botanical Gardens at one time were highly racialized – assigned as an activity and identity for white, upper-class culture. Diversity was sorely lacking, yet most of us garden! ZBG sits in a unique sector – surrounded by the most popular park in Austin with Barton Springs, the fourth-largest natural spring swimming pool in the state. We are positioned to help form and inform ways in which public gardens are resonant, welcoming places for refuge; where educational and meaningful, relatable experiences are offered for the widest possible range of visitors. We have shed the prevailing notion that only garden lovers come to visit and that we’re only here to serve one segment of the population.

Several goals on which I am working on.

• Growing and diversifying our donor base.
• Building multiple sources of revenue.
• Ensuring that donating is easy.
• Finding perfect partners.Th
• Building long-term relationships.

I am not a gardener – although I am learning – but I believe in the power of nature to help individuals and communities heal, thrive, and unite in profound ways. I want to support public gardens that serve as a place of respite, reflection, solace, and well-being – and bring diverse communities together through an ecologically significant, large public spaces of beauty, utility, and integrity – right in the heart of our great city of Austin.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I‘ve had a multitude of diverse job experiences. And I have moved around a bit; Milwaukee, Boston, and Washington DC, but I always return to Austin. I love the laid-back vibe, outdoor activities, small-town feel for such a big city, the kindness of the people – the list is long.

Outdoor activities are at the top of my priorities. I was on an international tennis team as a teenager and now cycle regularly. I’ve always had a least one dog, usually more, currently two. They give me great pleasure as does a strong core of good friends. I thoroughly enjoy working with younger people. It energizes me and I learn more about social media, new technologies. It keeps me feeling young.

As for employment, I’ve never been able to answer, “What do you want to do when you grow up?” I’m grown-up, yet want to continue to learn, explore and serve my community. The most enjoyable aspect of working for a non-profit is creating partnerships between for-profit and non-profit organizations that benefit both. It’s the ultimate satisfaction to find a great match. For example, for years now, a local car dealership continues to dedicate a portion of its sales to care for needy animals.

I believe we are on Earth to find meaning. And meaning can be found only through knowing yourself and reaching your highest potential. Honesty is always foremost – first to ourselves. Respect diversity. Take only what you give. I’m therefore most proud of simply doing my best.

We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I am a most fortunate person. In 2004, I broke my neck in a freak accident. I cracked my head open and needed 13 pints of blood. And I am one of only 8% of people who fracture c4 and c5 and are not paralyzed. It was the day before a second date with my future husband. When he was notified, I was sure I’d never hear from him again. He came to the hospital, possibly to ensure I was truly injured and not just trying to cancel the date. He’s stuck by me ever since and is an active partner in my outdoor activities – plus he shares dog duties.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Mary Hunter, Stephanie Hunter and Michael Breen