Hootenanny Bread was founded by me; Derek DeGeer in 2011.  I had just moved back from NYC with my wife and 9 month old daughter Frances after having been chasing an art career around the city for a decade.  I went to the first Kneading Conference and was blown away about how far down the rabbit hole there was to go with artisan bread. I began baking feverishly and was giving it out as gifts to the families in my music and movement class (Hootenanny). One of the parents in my class (a farmer) suggested that I apply for the local farmers market; their baker had just quit.