Shannon Koyano, Operations Director

Shannon grew up in Seattle and has always had a love and admiration for the Volunteer Park Conservatory. She spent many hours as a child walking through the Conservatory with her beloved family matriarchs. Her grandmothers introduced her to the beauty and wonder of nature which has greatly influenced her utter joy and passion for working in the Conservatory. She has continued this family tradition with her own children.

Shannon joined the Friends of the Conservatory staff in the Fall of 2022 and has brought with her a vast array of professional experience including working in nonprofit and education, organic and natural healthcare, as well as owning and operating her own gift shop in the Madison Valley neighborhood of Seattle. Her shop closed in March of 2022 which led her to her role as the Operations Director. She is incorporating both her professional background and her Seattle roots (pun intended) into every aspect of her job.

Her past teaching experience along with her dedication to inclusivity and accessibility, have been a guiding force in how she approaches managing the gift shop volunteers. Working with volunteers is one of the greatest joys of her job and she feels that they are the backbone of this organization. Her goal is to create meaningful relationships with every single volunteer so that they always walk away with a feeling of being appreciated and cared for and above all, a joy for volunteering! Her hope is that people will want to volunteer here for years to come!

Shannon’s experience running her own gift boutique gave her many fundamental skills on how to have a successful and beautiful shop that creates a feeling of happiness and whimsy when visitors walk in. She also enjoys creating eye-catching displays and working with amazing local makers and artists, as well as searching the globe for vendors whose work belongs in this special shop.

Shannon’s degree from The Evergreen State College as well as her background in making organic plant-based healthcare products and her own passion for caring for plants have been a huge influence on her view of how and why plants and nature conservation are so fundamentally crucial for our future and for our planet.

Working within the Conservatory has been an absolute dream come true and she hopes to have a long-lasting career in this glorious living museum. When Shannon is not busy behind the scenes, you can find her sniffing orchids and laughing with the gardeners, greeters and volunteers most days of the week.