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Sandy Haynes’ love of working the soil started early in life. Growing up in Denver, Colorado, her job was to tend her dad’s roses and her grandmother’s quarter-acre vegetable garden. She learned a lot about gardening from her grandmother and enjoyed the hard work of outside chores. When she was 12 years old, she became a hand on a cousin’s dairy farm one summer, driving tractor, laying irrigation pipe, driving cattle, milking cows, and tending the fields. Other summers were spent camping, fishing, and exploring the Colorado Rockies.

When she grew older, Sandy attended Regis University in Denver on a volleyball scholarship and graduated with a degree in English and Sociology. For four years after college, she worked as a nanny for a wonderful family who nurtured her love of gardening by helping her attend the Denver Botanic Gardens’ Master Gardner program. In need of a financially secure, professional career, Sandy got her real estate license and sold houses for two years. Though the money was descent, she felt drawn to her love of gardening and the information she’d learned in the Master Gardner program. Wanting to regain the satisfaction she felt when doing hard physical work in the outdoors, she gave up real estate to try to make a living in landscaping. She landed an entry level job in that field, working for $8 an hour. While she sacrificed income for the opportunity to do what she loved, it didn't take long for her gardening skills to earn her a raise. Within a few months she was promoted to foreman.

Working outside and maintaining beautiful landscapes satisfied her. Over the years, she continued to fine-tune her skills and learn the landscape business, working for three more companies and attending many educational programs to increase her knowledge of landscaping. When the time was right, she felt ready to apply her knowledge and expertise to launch her own business. She saw a need in the industry for a landscaping company that tended to its clients as much as it tended to its designs. In 2002, she joined forces with Leslie Ebert to start Stonegate Gardens.

In addition to handling the day-to-day office duties that come with running a business, Sandy loves creating Stonegate Gardens’ signature patio, deck, and terrace planters. She also enjoys doing Pilates, spending time with her dogs, riding her motorcycle, hanging out with friends and family, attending garden tours across the United States, and volunteering for Habitat for Humanity.