Meet Farideh Goldin

Farideh was born and grew up in Iran. She came to Portsmouth, VA in 1975 to improve her English. Farideh studied at Pahlavi University in Shiraz, Iran, and transferred to ODU for her senior year and earned a BA in English. She went back to ODU for graduate degrees in Humanities with emphasis on World Literature and Women’s Studies, and later Creative Writing. She also has a graduate degree in journalism from Georgetown University.

Farideh has worn many hats in the business world. She sold imported leather goods in New Orleans and later sold jewelry at Adlers in New Orleans. She did accounts payable for her husband’s office for awhile before being hired to teach at TCC and later ODU.

Farideh enjoys challenging herself and becoming a master gardener fulfilled that desire. She took the class because it was completely out of her comfort zone, having studied mathematics in high school in Iran. She never had a course in biology or entomology or horticulture. Nevertheless, she loved every single class and found them fascinating!

She has had a vegetable garden since she was 8 or 9 years old, and even now with only a second-floor deck, she plants vegetables in pots.

To obtain her fifty hours Farideh worked in many vegetable gardens such as the Zoo Garden, Potager Garden, the Fred Heutte Square Foot Garden. She also enjoyed working at the Butterfly House at Norfolk Botanical Garden and the Weyanoke Bird and Wildflower Sanctuary. She is eager to try other projects. Going forward she plans to participate in all the vegetable gardens as well as adding new activities.

When Farideh is not involved in master gardener projects she plays pickleball and mahjong. She likes to hike and write and has a food blog: foodmemory.net.

Farideh has three daughters and four grandchildren with a fifth on the way. She loves taking care of her grandchildren.

When you see Farideh, be sure to introduce yourself and welcome her to the NMGV.