Meet the Maker

It is a new year! Perhaps you received a bar of Clara’s Creamery goat milk soap for Christmas. Maybe you picked up a bar or two at a craft fair. To new customers and returning customers, welcome! It is a good time for me to introduce myself.

My name is Wendy Smith and I am the soap maker, the goat milker, the craft fair vendor, the “hard working woman” powering Clara’s Creamery! I am wife to Kevin, who is a taxidermist. We are a blended family and have been married for 12.5 years. I have an 18-year old daughter, who is a freshman in college and a 16-year old son who is a junior in high school. I love my family tremendously and they are my priority.

I was raised in Hodgdon, Maine, in Aroostook County, within sight of the Canadian border, on the same dirt, dead-end road that my grandmother was raised on! A unique and favorite part of my childhood was Potato Harvest. Schools closed for 3 weeks and we earned money by picking potatoes! What a treasure!

I have lived in the greater Bangor area for the past 19 years. I love living in Maine! With my family I enjoy playing games, hiking, camping, kayaking, fishing, and cross country skiing. I work part-time at an office. This is my 8th year homeschooling. My daughter homeschooled for grades 3-8. My son homeschooled for grades 1-6, and then again for grade 10-present.

I have enjoyed every aspect of homesteading that we have tried. Gardening, canning, hunting, trapping, chickens & goats. I have an interest in foraging and so far have tried two types of wild mushrooms and cat tail shoots in addition to the more typical foraging finds: fiddleheads, wild berries and maple sap. I enjoy experimenting with fermentation and have successfully made wine, cheese, kombucha, kvass, apple cider vinegar and an assortment of fermented veggies.

My hobbies are reading, knitting, cooking, and scrapbooking. Spending time with my family, including extended family, is important to me. My nieces and nephews, (currently ages 3-8), are a special priority! I love and value children. I believe that every person should have an opportunity every day to learn something and to teach something. Currently a role I have is Troop Coordinator for a local American Heritage Girls troop, a Christian scouting troop.

I love expensive ice cream, wool socks and hot coffee. Rich Mullins is my favorite singer. I like watching movies. I require alone time. I love Jesus and being home. I have fantastic friends.

I value authenticity and justice. It is important to me that we steward the planet well and that we help those who need help. I think every person is valuable. I am curious and interested in others. I think we should listen to children and to our elders. I’m incredibly grateful for my life.

And… I am the woman who milked the goats, -goats she never, ever, EVER thought she would have- who makes the soap and who enjoys meeting YOU. I get to meet interesting people, with stories to tell, and experiences and wisdom to share! THANK YOU for purchasing my soap.