The COVID-19 pandemic gave many people a chance to pursue new hobbies. Some mastered sourdough bread making; others learned new languages. Peoples Bank Vice President and Compliance Manager Amy Brock took steps to become an apiculturist – more commonly known as a beekeeper.
Amy didn’t always have an interest in beekeeping. “When the lockdown happened,” Amy recalls, “my husband Mike and I just started doing all sorts of projects outside. Once we had added a few fruit trees and created a small orchard, we started thinking, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun if we had some pollinators around?’ Bees just started to seem like the logical next step for us!”
After connecting with local resources for beekeepers in Whatcom County, Amy and Mike loaded 6,000 bees – enough for two colonies – into the trunk of their car and drove them to their five-acre property on the outskirts of Bellingham.
Tending to the bees has not been entirely straightforward. During last summer’s prolonged heatwave, one of the hives “swarmed”—meaning that half of the hive absconded with their queen. When the swarm failed to return, the hive had to be “re-queened” using a new queen bee developed by the other hive. The new queen, affectionately named Janice, got right to work. She and her colony successfully survived the winter, and the hive is still going strong.
The other hive sadly did not survive the February cold snap, but Amy and Mike are not deterred. The hive was cleaned out and is now ready for a new family of bees to move in later this spring, either through splitting the current hive, purchasing a package of bees, or possibly catching a swarm.
For the last three years, Amy has worked as a compliance officer at Peoples Bank, and she has noticed that her work with the bees draws on many of the same skills.
“There are some close parallels between my job and my hobby in terms of being detail-oriented and examining things closely. At work, I oversee regulatory compliance to ensure we follow the laws required within the banking industry. Inspecting the hives is similar. I’m always checking to be sure everything is ok and happening as it should be happening within the hive. It requires a lot of attention to detail and problem-solving. If something is wrong in either context, I need to figure out how we are going to solve the problem and how we can ensure it doesn’t happen again.”
Amy is now working toward her Apprentice Beekeeper Certification, which requires completing coursework administered through the Washington State Beekeepers Association and one year of keeping bees. In the meantime, Amy hopes she’ll have another bumper crop of fruit this year.
“Last summer we harvested more raspberries, blueberries, and grapes than we have in the past,” Amy says. “While we can’t be completely certain, we’re betting it was because of the bees!”
Peoples Bank is committed to celebrating the diversity of its employees and communities. We believe each person’s unique background and personal experiences make us stronger as a whole. In honor of Amy and her bees, and in recognition of Earth Day on April 22, Peoples Bank is donating $5,000 to Wild Whatcom, a non-profit organization in Whatcom County committed to fostering lifelong connections to nature.