Who We Are

Marnie Ware

Co-founder / Director of Education School  Garden Coordinator

I have been a high school biology and environmental science teacher for 23 years. I try to teach science through the lens of individual health and ecosystem interactions.  Chicago Farm Lab is a 2 acre garden right in the middle of the school grounds that allows me to teach authentic, hands-on lessons about plants and animals, ecology, sustainable agriculture, self sufficiency, examples of entrepreneurship in local agriculture and much more.

In using the garden at Farm Lab, these lessons are not just theoretical but real, meaningful and on-going. The garden allows me to expand the classroom to 2 acres of pure, unadulterated learning.  Not only that, it is a place of solace and beauty for everyone in the school and the neighborhood.  Our students learn that there is in fact, a growing cultural movement away from mindless over-consumption and toward a more sustainable model of civilization.

In the words of Dr. Albert Schweitzer; Physician, Missionary, Theologian and Nobel Laureate- “The time will come when inhumanity protected by custom and thoughtlessness will succumb before humanity championed by thought. Let us work that this time may come. A man is ethical only when life is sacred to him, that of animals as well as that of his fellowman, and when he devotes himself helpfully to all life that is in need of help.”

Angelica Duran-Spinks

 Director of Community Outreach 

Angelica Duran is the Director of Community Outreach with Chicago Farm Lab and a member of the Prosser Community Garden. A resident of Belmont Cragin since 1999, she is deeply committed to her local community. Her journey into urban agriculture and arboriculture began in 2018 as a volunteer at the Garfield Park Conservatory. After becoming a certified TreeKeeper, Angelica's passion for trees and environmental stewardship grew.

As Director of Community Outreach and certified arborist, her goal is to engage residents in beautifying their community. She focuses on educating the public on arboriculture and the proper care of Chicago's urban canopy, helping to foster a healthier, greener neighborhood for everyone.

Jim Lichon

Co- Founder/ Farm Operations Director

I have been a part of the Prosser School community garden since 2014. I have enjoyed working with students and community groups from planting seed to harvest. It is a honor to take part in establishing a new urban farm. 

I have been gardening in my Chicago backyard in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood for over 25 years, maintaining several vegetable/ flower beds, fruit trees and berry bushes on my double lot property. We have also been keeping bees and tending to our flock of chickens since 2008. Working in this small urban setting I have learned what it takes to produce food in the city. I am committed to supporting the efforts of all those who share the work and vision of building a sustainable agricultural system in our community on the northwest side of Chicago.