Background
She was the youngest daughter of three children.
She was the youngest daughter of three children.
She attended Saint Nicholas School, an independent, private all girls school, now part of Lakeside in Seattle and played volleyball in school.
In 2006 she was designated a Women"s History Month Honoree by the National Women"s History Project. Her family historically philanthropists. Her brother, Doctorate.E. Ned Skinner helped to improve Seattle life during the 20th-century and helped create the 1962 Seattle World"s Fair and would help fund the restoration of the 5th Avenue Theatre.
Nordhoff described her home life as "broken." Her parents were divorced by the time she was five.
She grew up living with her mother, who was a career volunteer. In 1954 she graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in chemistry.
After school she would go on to get her pilot"s license and would fly a single engine Piper Tripacer across the country during her early days of philanthropy, between 1955 and 1957. They would be married and have three children.
At the age of 50 Nordhoff quit all volunteer projects and bought a van and drove traveled the country, which served as her mid-life crisis.
Through her travels she sought to find herself and explore her place in the world. This time would provide the inspiration for the Hedgebrook Retreat Center. Still an active philanthropist.
Nordhoff lives in Langley, Washington with her spouse Lynn Hays.
After graduating school she dove into philanthropy. She did work with the United Way and the Skinner Family Foundation.
In 1985, after her mid-life crisis, Nordhoff built and founded the Hedgebrook Writer"s Retreat. A retreat center that overlooks the Puget Sound, the center serves to encourage women to empower themselves through writing.
The center provides full support for attendees, providing them food, accommodations and travel stipends.
In 2006 Gloria Steinem spent three weeks at the retreat center. Nordhoff also utilizes her philanthropy to support environmental causes. She donated and built a downtown park to the city of Langley, Washington.
In Langley she also funded the restoration of an old farmhouse for the conference facility of the Whidbey Institute and donated 24 acres of wetlands for salmon conservation.
The Fund has renovated historical areas of the island, including the Bayview Corner and Greenbank Farm. Nordhoff has also financed projects through the National Women"s History Project.
Foreign over 25 years she has served as a funder and advisor for the Women"s Funding Alliance of Seattle.
Nordhoff"s work is primarily focused in the Seattle and Langley, Washington regions, where she works to empower women, support rural communities and promote environmentalism of Washington"s flora and fauna. In order to support her philanthropic work in the area, she founded the Goosefoot Community Fund, a non-profit corporation, which helps to sustain the "rural character" of Whidbey Island through environmentalism, sustainable development, affordable housing and rural economic support.
