One of the four original founders of Tilth, Becky Deryckx was also responsible for suggesting the name for the newly-formed organization. Along with Mark Music, Woody Deryckx, and Gigi Coe, Becky was instrumental in helping to organize the first Tilth “Northwest Conference on Alternative Agriculture” that was held in Ellensburg WA in 1974; and during the following 10 years she was a regular writer and editor for the “Tilth Newsletter”. While living and working at Pragtree Farm in Arlington, WA, she helped to bring that collectively-held land (and the Prag House, its urban counterpart in Seattle) under the protective umbrella of The Evergreen Land Trust. Subsequently, she lived and farmed commercially in the middle Skagit Valley; and during two of those years, she served as a grants evaluator for the Washington State Department of Energy’s Alternative Energy Small Grants Assistance Program.

Now semi-retired after working for more than 40 years as a health-care provider, Becky remains an avid organic gardener, is actively involved in regional efforts to restore salmon habitat in northwest Washington, and is a lifetime member of the Skagit Valley Food Coop in downtown Mount Vernon.