Secretary
Barbara Derkacht grew up in the Seattle area but has lived in the woods outside Oregon City for the past 43 years. Everything was sailing smoothly along until one fateful drive with a friend in 2005 to pick up a tree. During that ride, she expressed great interest in becoming a beekeeper. Barbara’s son, who was along to do the heavy lifting, perked right up. A friend of his had just purchased what turned out to be a pickup load of used bee equipment and was looking for a place to put it. Suddenly this load of stuff is at her house, and it was really used. The lad who’d bought it spent one day with her trying to clean things up, told her to pick up some packets of bees from Ruhl Bees on a particular day, and left – not to be seen for years. (He’s returned a total of one time. She gave him some honey, and he disappeared again.) During those early years, Kerry Haskins generously mentored her in the fine art of beekeeping. She joined Portland Metro Beekeepers Association back when they were a small group of 10 or 15. Without those generous souls, things would have gone very differently. The bees just keep making honey – way more than she could eat or give away, so she and her friend, Sheryl Hall, formed Pure Heaven Honey, and now lots of people buy their honey! Winners all around.
Barbara went to the University of Colorado (attracted by their ski racing team – WAY out of her league, she says, as they were then coached by the US Olympic ski coach! What was she thinking?), but after two years, transferred to the University of Washington. A good choice as that meant the teaching certificate she earned with her English degree was actually good in the state she was living in. She taught junior high for six years, moved to Vancouver and taught high school for three more, and then quit to be a mom for a while. A friend knew she’d taught reading, and she was desperate – asked if Barbara come (the next week!) and start teaching at Clackamas Community College? Why, sure. And she was there for sixteen years. Her friends get her into all sorts of trouble!
Barbara looks forward to serving on the OSBA executive committee and continuing her bee education surrounded by the amazing bee people who also serve.