Executive Director

Beth Furgurson  (She/Her)

As a creative business owner for over 15 years, Beth has spent much of her professional life viewing the world through her camera lens. Her assignments have taken her around the state photographing some of the area’s best restaurants and most interesting dishes. She watched the Richmond restaurant scene begin to grow and was inspired by the many amazing chefs featuring local cuisine.

With the growth of the farm to table movement, Beth’s photography took her both to farms and to local restaurants serving their food.  This all coincided with a time when she began to focus on her health and the health of her family.  She began to wonder more about where her food was coming from and how it was grown.

Her search led her to a Certified Naturally Grown vegetable farm in Chesterfield County owned by Janet Aardema and Dan Gagnon. She spent the next few years volunteering at Broadfork Farm in any way Janet would allow. She worked to help grow the farm’s CSA program, increased marketing efforts, oversaw a video production, harvested vegetables, worked at the farmer’s market and assisted with events.  Beth joined Real Local in November of 2017, and has helped Real Local spread its roots within the local food system.  She is committed to supporting local food and looks forward to building many partnerships in the future.

Beth is a graduate of James Madison University where she captained the Division 1 women’s soccer team. She worked in marketing in the professional soccer world for a few years, but then decided to follow her creative passion and studied photography at the Art Institute of Atlanta. She is a Richmond native and lives in Bon Air with her husband and son. She is an active volunteer at her son’s school, helps coach a local girls soccer team, and has also volunteered her time with local non-profits Nurture and Mindful Mornings. She is at her happiest perusing local farmer’s markets, working in the fields at Broadfork, practicing yoga, and playing soccer with her son. She believes in the power of kindness and generosity and knows just a little bit can go a long way.

Contact Beth at [email protected]