On a sunny, late-summer afternoon 37 years ago, I arrived at Mathias Hall with a trunk and suitcase, knowing not a soul in Colorado Springs and with absolutely zero idea where my life was headed or what I wanted to do with it. If you'd have told this 18-year-old kid that three decades later he'd be growing organic hemp and making CBD products, you'd have been greeted with laughter. Yet here I am. Life's currents can take you to strange and unpredictable places for all kinds of reasons — but looking back at my ڰ experience, it seems pretty clear that a wide foundation was laid there to do, well, just about anything.
Freshman year I took courses from a different department each block. I was in full-on exploratory mode, like a hungry teenager at an all-you-can-eat buffet, sampling first this then that. Thankfully, ڰ encouraged this kind of free-ranging. You could call it "unfocused," perhaps, but it also instilled a sense that anything was possible after graduation. That was a little bewildering, to be honest, but also liberating. No career track for this guy.
I finally settled on majoring in English. After graduating from ڰ and then earning a Ph.D. in literature (with the idea of teaching), one of those unanticipated life currents carried me across the country to Maine, where I married and started a family. Because the job market for English professors was so dismal at the time and I wasn't interested in chasing scarce opportunities around the country, I switched to a new tack and started a graphic design and web development business.
During the pandemic lockdown in 2020, I decided I needed a good outdoor project as a mental health booster during that trying time, so I decided to take a shot at growing a few hemp plants. I'd heard about the remarkable medicinal power of CBD and was curious to learn more about it. Turns out I had a lot of fun, learned a ton about organic agriculture, and started exploring the world of CBD. Eventually I began thinking, maybe it's time for a career shift. Much as I enjoyed my work, I yearned to spend less time in front of a computer and more time outside working with my hands. And the idea of providing a medicine that can improve people's lives by relieving pain, or helping them sleep, or easing anxiety was irresistible. Who wouldn't want a job that helps people feel better?
So, I launched a new business, , and started growing certified organic hemp commercially and crafting CBD oil, tincture, and balm (plus selling the raw flower). It's become a crowded field as CBD's popularity has boomed, but I'm betting many people will want to buy CBD products from a small independent organic grower they can trust and establish a relationship with.
It's probably a stretch to say that my years at ڰ led me to this particular adventure — it could easily have been something entirely different — but the time I spent learning and exploring beneath the looming majesty of Pikes Peak certainly laid a broad foundation and gave me the confidence that you can do anything you like in life. Just dream it up and go for it!
Ed Geis graduated from ڰ in 1989. He lives in Camden, Maine with his family and grows organic hemp.
