Debi McSwain - Vice Chair/Liasons

Being a Southern California native, I love to be outdoors  - hiking, horseback riding, camping, swimming, biking or just sitting and breathing in and out. I’m an avid trail rider and love to take my horses camping. It saddens me to watch the open space disappearing before our eyes and I feel that working towards developing trail systems is extremely important work for the present and future health of our communities.

 I earned a Fine Arts degree with a French minor from Chapman University in Orange, California. I also hold a state teaching credential from UC Irvine.  I studied French language at the Sorbonne in Paris and while there studied painting at a little academy studio near the Pére Lachaise cemetery (where Jim Morrison is buried).

 I live and work on a small farm in Valley Center with my husband, Dan, who is managing editor for the North County Times in Escondido. We share our place with Dan’s 91-year-old grandfather, four horses, three dogs and two cats. My grown daughter graduated from UC Berkeley and is currently living and working with her husband and baby daughter on an organic vegetable farm in Ukiah, CA.