I recall that at a fairly early age I was fascinated by the natural world. Like many children of my generation, I played in the woods, plodded through streams and carried all kinds of creatures home. As an adult, I have supported conservation efforts, including serving on the board of the the Bur Oak Land Trust. I have long wondered if there weren't a more ecologically friendly way to bury ourselves and our loved ones. 

In 2017 at a presentation at the Unitarian Universalist Society I learned about conservation burial practices. Over the next couple of years I worked with the Bur Oak Land Trust to develop a proposal for a conservation cemetery. When Covid struck, I shelved the project. In 2022 Becky Hoffbauer called me and said she was interested in conservation burial, and that she would like to talk with me. Would I meet her for coffee? I did and over a couple of conversations we agreed to work together to establish a conservation cemetery in Johnson County. 

It is my hope that conservation cemetery practices will not only become the norm, but that conservation cemeteries will draw individuals back to the natural world and the importance of preserving it. 

Her story is being developed and will be available soon

Annie Brownsberger is the Co-founder and Executive Director of The Village Community, a non profit, disability service and advocacy organization founded in 2014. Annie is also the founder and owner of Peace of Soul, where she serves the community as an End-of Life Guide providing holistic, non-medical support to help people transition through the dying process with dignity and presence. 

Annie brings wisdom from her three decades of experience in nonprofit leadership, community building, and advocacy. Annie values connection and community and sees her role on the board of Back to Ground Conservation Cemetery as a way to uphold and center both.

His story is being developed and will be available soon

His story is being developed and will be available soon

Two parallel paths converged to create this conservation cemetery project. In one, I was hitching a ride along with some others in a Bur Oak Land Trust truck after a land tour of the Coriell Preserve with Jason Taylor, its Executive Director. I’d been interested in the natural burial movement for about a decade so asked Jason if this was something that Bur Oak would ever consider getting involved in. There was no clear yes or no answer, but he was personally interested in the idea and agreed to meet with me to have a conversation about it. A couple of meetings later I was able to bring along a mortician from a local funeral home, and we began more serious discussions and strategizing to figure out how to get something rolling.

Inflamed by a passion for the project and a hope that something could be made here in Johnson County, I’d already begun talking incessantly about it to friends and strangers and was trying to find others to agree to get involved. As a hospice caregiver and Death Midwife I knew a lot of people who are in death work, but wasn’t getting anywhere until someone suggested I get in touch with Jeffery Ford. By then I’d lost my mortician due to personal changes in her life. I called Jeffery, who agreed initially to share his papers from an earlier endeavor he’d made around 2018 to fan the fires of interest himself. When we met for a coffee chat, he’d made it clear that he wasn’t interested in stepping into any active role, but generously agreed to help me work a table at a local environmental group educational event put on by Bur Oak every spring, called Prairie Preview. He was knowledgeable and able to help me answer questions from many curious people who came by our table, perhaps drawn by two educational Barbie dolls dressed up to represent conventional burial and Natural Burial.

We talked all through the event and signed up over twenty-five people to our mailing list, including Bur Oak’s now Board President, Chris Jensen! This event (and the Barbies) showed Jeffery that I was serious about the project and he agreed to another meeting, where we began to pick up where I’d left off with Jason and the mortician.

The universe rained down all kinds of connections after that and I began to take every opportunity I could to use them to talk to people who might be interested. A presentation at the Iowa City Senior Center by Ken Holmes from Lensing Funeral Home garnered a few more signers to our mailing list, and one voice especially asking astute questions caught my ear. I kept looking back to make sure she didn’t leave at the end so I could talk with Jenni Rose, another Death Midwife, who became the third member of our cemetery group! 

Jeffery soon brought in Jennifer Wendt-Geisler, and later Pete Brokaw, but that is his story to tell. The universe soon nudged Bill Evans our way, an entrepreneur who runs Open Gates Group of Kalona. Then Michell Morrow, a Funeral Director from Cedar Rapids was linked to us through an appearance by her colleague, Trey Wentzien at a Conservation Burial Alliance start-up meeting that I reached out to. Shortly thereafter, Jenni asked Annie Brownberger, a Death Doula and non-profit Director to consider us and she did, much to our enrichment. We are blessed with a wonderful eclectic Board of passionate people!

His story is being developed and will be available soon

Growing up with a residential camp director for a mom, I learned the value and fragility of the natural world at an early age. The smell of the soil, decomposing leaves, and new green plant growth, the feel of rain, sun, and wind on my face, these are the things that bring me joy. Throughout my life, I have nurtured this deep love for the earth, which has been passed down to my children and grandchildren.

After working as a graphic artist for a major corporation, and at an age that most folks are on the backside of their careers, I chose to reinvent myself and went back to school. I obtained my degree in Mortuary Science, a profession that allows me to provide compassionate care and support to families during their most challenging moments. Along this journey, I found an exceptional group of folks dedicated to creating Back to Ground, a conservation cemetery that combines my passion for the environment with my unwavering compassion for the families I serve.

When I was "fished from the stream," to join B2G I was caught by Becky Hoffbauer at an Iowa City Senior Center community program. I raised my hand during the Q & A to ask Ken Holmes, from Lensing Funeral Home a question. Becky knew she needed to intercept me at the end of the program to add my name to her clipboard email list. At that time Becky couldn’t be spotted without her clipboard. A true mover & shaker. By the time we left the Senior Center, we had plans to tie in about taking a roadtrip to Casper Creek Natural Cemetery near Galena, IL. As we pulled into Iowa City at sunset I was in an excited trance & knew I needed to be a part of the movement to create the 1st Conservation Cemetery in Iowa.

During the Summer of 2023, I met up with Becky & Jeffery at Press Coffee, on Dodge Street, to continue getting to know each other and discuss next steps. We agreed to keep momentum and look for more future members to eventually be a part of the Back To Ground board. In the months to come Jennifer & Pete joined our round table discussions at Jeffery’s home. We met like this for roughly a year, until we had the opportunity to meet and add Michell, Annie, & Bill in 2024. At the beginning of 2025, things began to take the shape of working groups & the current quickened as we continued to be in conversation with Bur Oak about a future Partnership.