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. 

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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

When I first heard about conservation cemeteries and the return to traditional natural burial practices, I knew that this is what I wanted for myself after my own death. To be wrapped in only a cotton sheet and laid directly in the soil of Mother Earth. My own body will be my prayer of Gratitude to the Divine Mother: this thrills me! For every Gift, Grace and Blessing that I have received in this lifetime in the form of food, clothing and shelter to nourish and sustain me, I will offer to the living soil that feeds me and every sentient being. It is the perfect natural cycle. The burial of my body and others’ will provide the means for preservation of the land through a conservation easement.

Being on the land, being in nature is for me, Communion with the Divine. As a child, something in the natural world was always captivating and holding my attention and that hasn’t changed. Sometimes it was something dead that drew my interest: a glittering beetle on its back with its legs folded, a trapped fly being spun in silk by a black and yellow garden spider, the bones and a few blue feathers of a bird that had touched the neighbor’s electric fence. I think I’ve always been death-curious, which, along with years of providing Reiki to dying animals and people, was one of the elements that led me to become a Death Midwife in 2o2o.

Though I heard of renewal of this ancient burial practice many years ago, I didn’t imagine myself being a part of creating a natural burial cemetery until a chance conversation with Jason Taylor, the Executive Director of Bur Oak Land Trust and some Americorps workers spurred me to ask him if Bur Oak would ever consider such an enterprise. We are still having that conversation, though now with two boards of directors and the communities in which we live. Back to Ground Conservation Burial Cemetery will be Iowa’s first dedicated natural burial cemetery, offering not only sustainable practices, but enriching ones–for people and for the land.

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.