Spring Contributors

Marion Hodgson

Marion was born in Yorkshire, England and immigrated to Canada as a child. She studied design and illustration at Sheridan College and Ontario College of Art & Design. After working as a creative director, she now enjoys the freedom associated with freelance work. She has worked for In The Hills designing advertisements for local businesses for more than 20 years.

Marion lives with her two dogs (a pug and a golden retriever) and two children in the Amaranth countryside, where she indulges her passion for gardening. “You can never have enough plants or trees,” she says. She can be seen hiking daily on the Island Lake Trail, where her love of animals inspires her to slow down and observe any wildlife she encounters. In her spare time, she is writing a book, planning her next travel adventure with her children, proceeding through several home renovation projects and sketching out her next creative project.

Erin Fitzgibbon

Erin is an artist, photographer, writer and teacher living in Orangeville. Her artistic work explores the use of art to help in the process of healing from trauma. As a member of Headwaters Arts, you’ll often find her work in the Alton Mill. She’s also a member of Southampton Arts and the Ontario Society of Artists. Erin’s writing focuses on travel and adventure. Her latest book, 500 Hidden Secrets of Toronto, uncovers small out-of-the-way nooks and crannies of the city. Erin also leads art and yoga classes for adults and youth, combining the physical and meditative practices.

Erin is the magazine’s go-to photographer for our “At Home in the Hills” department. In this issue she also dives into the history, treaties and agreements behind local municipal land acknowledgments. It’s a topic Erin takes a personal interest in as her family history includes connections to Indigenous and French ancestors who worked as fur traders in present-day Algonquin Park and the Ottawa Valley.

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Alison McGill

Alison is an award-winning editor, writer, brand strategist and podcast host. She is the former editor-in-chief of Weddingbells and is a contributor to others including The Kit and MoneySense. Alison hosts a wedding and lifestyle podcast, Aisle Seat, and is a guest on TV’s Cityline, Breakfast Television and The Social.

Although her media career has always been city-based, home is in the countryside of Halton Hills. For this issue, Alison writes the inaugural Country Living 101, a new recurrent department, this one a primer on three rural-focused tax incentive programs. She also tours a quiet yet powerful rocky flower garden in Caledon and interviews its creator. Finally, Alison canvases local vegetable gardening experts for advice on starting from scratch, advice she’s planning to put to good use. “As a person who has never grown anything but basil in a patio pot, I am ready to put my new gardening education to work. I’m currently calculating where to put a vegetable patch, and what to plant!”