About the Pembina Fibreshed

Margaret Brook and Anna Hunter became colleagues and friends through their work on the Manitoba Fibre Festival. Recognizing a similar passion and desire to see local fibre production and promotion grow in the region they decided the fibreshed project would be an excellent conduit for this type of eduction, advocacy and promotion. Building on the incredible work of other fibreshed organizations around the world they developed a website and a plan to build a place-based community network that connects fibre farmers, processors, and artisans all situation in the Pembina River Valley Region. 

Margaret Brook 

Margaret is part owner of Leafhaven Shetlands, a flock of registered Shetland sheep, and an advocate for the Shetland breed locally. She loves time spent outdoors, especially on the land her heart calls home on the Birch River in eastern Manitoba. Margaret is the event co-ordinator for the Manitoba Fibre Festival, and is very happy to be working with Anna on the Pembina Fibreshed project.

Anna Hunter

Anna is a recent transplant to Manitoba from the West Coast where she owned a community-based yarn store. With a desire for a deeper connection to the source of her fibre (and food) she and her husband and two sons moved to Eastern Manitoba and started a sheep farm.  She is currently in the process of establishing a small-scale wool processing mill. Anna is passionate about building community and connecting rural fibre farmers with the urban crafters. When she isn't snuggling lambs she is exploring with her two sons, or nerding out about regenerative agricultural practices. You can read more about what she does at Long Way Homestead.

ORganizational structure

The Pembina Fibreshed is an affiliate member of the Fibershed project out of California. This program is:

"....an international grassroots network that promotes the development of regional fiber systems communities, including economic and non-economic growth, in the form of building relationships and new global networks."

Pembina Fibreshed is not a business, and as such, is not working to generate a profit.  All funds from the membership fees and workshop fees goes directly back into the organization to support producers and future workshops.

Future plans include hiring a full-time executive director, and engaging more of the membership on a board of directors.