Our Team

Owners Suzanne Willow and Lanita Witt are dedicated to the conservation of a 445-acre gem located at 5,000’ elevation within southern Oregon’s Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument near Ashland. Since 1985, they have focused on restoring balanced working forests and wetlands, and improving wildlife habitat. The owners are committed to land conservation, restoration, and regenerative organic agriculture.

To carry this commitment forward in perpetuity, they established The Forest Conservation Burial Ground as an extension of stewardship beyond their lifetimes.

Joanne Kliejunas joined our small team in 2019 as a volunteer eager to help us make natural burial an option in our community. Joanne has taught classes in the Ashland area to encourage end-of-life decision making by completing an advance directive and to prompt reflection and conversations with loved ones about life, death and their connectedness. As a textile artist, she encourages our clients to select shrouds repurposed from natural textiles that have been meaningful in their lives. She has also salvaged beautiful, slightly damaged table and bed linens and prepared them as shrouds for purchase from The Forest. Joanne’s professional experience as a non-profit manager has contributed to The Forest’s development and planning, as well as outreach in our community.

Laura joins our nimble team at Willow-Witt Ranch and The Forest Conservation Burial Ground as an experienced operations leader committed to developing and implementing sustainable business practices and people-first development strategies. With over 15 years experience at the intersection of business design, marketing and sales she is a savvy producer, project and people manager. Laura is an avid community builder, organizer, and event planner with an unwavering commitment to client satisfaction. 

Laura is the proud mom of two young girls, a seasoned trail runner, mushroom forager, and music appreciator. Her newest hobbies include perfecting her pizza recipes, setting new PR’s on the ranch’s Turtle Trot loop, and finding her way into birding circles. She also promises some day she will learn to sew and write her magnum opus on the guitar.