Marilyn Bay

Marilyn Bay grew up on a crop and sheep farm in northern Colorado, near the land homesteaded by her great-great grandparents. As a child, she was thrilled to learn that she was a small part Native American. Unfortunately, her part-Sioux grandfather, because he was born in the early 20th century, was embarrassed to talk about his Native heritage and probably knew few details because his parents were even more reticent about it. The lack of information led her to read and research Native...See more

Marilyn Bay grew up on a crop and sheep farm in northern Colorado, near the land homesteaded by her great-great grandparents. As a child, she was thrilled to learn that she was a small part Native American. Unfortunately, her part-Sioux grandfather, because he was born in the early 20th century, was embarrassed to talk about his Native heritage and probably knew few details because his parents were even more reticent about it. The lack of information led her to read and research Native Americans as well as the origins and historical treks West by the settlers with whom they interacted, and, in some cases, intermarried. Today she lives on and is tangentially involved in the farming operation on which she was raised. She independently operates Prairie Natural Lamb, raising lambs and marketing them directly to her 40-plus customers. She enjoys riding and training horses and is a certified Colorado 4-H horse show judge and level rater. Marilyn has written and edited newsletters and magazines and also has handled public relations and promotions for clients, including the National Bison Association and the American Grassfed Association. In addition to her writing career, she serves as executive director of the Colorado Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association. Previously, she held communications positions for the National Farmers Union, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union and the U.S. Meat Export Federation. She started her career in promotion and public relations in 1986 when she joined the Taiwan public relations branch of Saatchi and Saatchi Advertising, then the world's largest advertising agency. At the age of 21, she spent six months in rural Costa Rica on the International Four-H Youth Exchange (IFYE). She is fluent in Spanish and speaks conversational Mandarin Chinese. Marilyn has a bachelor's degree in journalism news writing from the University of Northern Colorado. She has two adult daughters, Kelly and Shannon. See less