Ken and Karin Faulk are helping restore natural upland prairies and oak stands on their 40 acres near Wren

Ken Faulk is the reigning Oregon Tree Farmer of the Year, but he and his wife, Karin, care about much more than just growing the best fir trees, chopping them down and making a buck.

The couple is helping restore natural upland prairies and oak stands on their 40 acres near Wren.

“You don’t need to produce a tree on every acre,” Ken said.

Ken is helping Benton County develop its habitat conservation plan and also assisted the state a few years ago when it created a wildlife conservation plan.

Since the 1980s, he and Karin steadily purchased land, even as they were working for other people. Now their own business is their sole gig.

Besides land near Wren, they have 115 acres near Monroe and another 160 in Douglas County that they share with friends.

Until 2003, though, the Faulks never lived on the timberland they worked, and that meant an hour’s drive to do any pruning or thinning.

That year, they finished building their Wren-area house. Now all Ken has to do is walk out the door and he’s among Douglas fir trees.

The house is a gorgeous place, and not just because of the siding and flooring from timber on the property. There’s also a magnificent view from the back porch.

“On a clear day, we can see all the way south to Spencer’s Butte in Eugene,” Ken said.

The duo met in a drugstore 42 years ago in Eugene. Karin was working in the office, and Ken was a delivery boy there.

They got married after three weeks of dating. On Halloween. In a combination wedding chapel and mortuary. They couldn’t find anybody to wed them in a cemetery, Karin said.

“We acted like kids, but we weren’t,” she added.

Karin had been on her own for three years, and Ken had been in the Air Force for five.

Many of the trees on the Faulks’ property will be around long after they’re long gone. They’re hoping that their daughter, Elizabeth Faulk, will take over the family business.

Kyle Odegard covers Philomath and rural Benton County for the Gazette-Times.

Ken and Karin Faulk

Ages: 67 and 62.

Residence: Wren.

Occupation: Tree farmers; Ken was named Oregon Tree Farmer of the Year in November.

Education: Ken is an Oregon State University graduate. Karin also attended Oregon State but left school to help her husband pay for college.

Family: Daughter Elizabeth Faulk and dog Six (named for the animal’s $600 price tag).

Misc.: The couple were married on Halloween.