A graduate of VPI with a major in Animal Science and minor in Business, Birgitt started out with the Pillsbury Company in Eden, NC, selling Brewer’s Grain — a byproduct sold to dairy farmers as a cheap protein source — to a 5-state area. Birgitt met her husband, David, at VPI and moved to Rappahannock County after they were married in 1980. She then began with the Virginia Extension Service as an Agriculture/4-H agent and worked extensively with farmers and the schools to develop the county’s 4-H program. After Extension, she worked for Plow and Hearth developing products, traveling around the world, and ending that 2-year career as a Merchant. At Piedmont Technical School in Culpeper, she has volunteered to tutor clients in subjects needed to pass their GED and find better-paying jobs. She also taught painting classes at the school. Birgitt and David have 3 children, all graduates of VPI. They now also have 4 grandchildren, with 3 living in Rappahannock County. Including son Karl who came back to the county and is now running a cow/calf operation. Birgitt enjoys working with stained glass, helping her husband with farming, gardening, running her short-term rental business, church, and spending time with the grandchildren.