BOULDER'S PURVEYORS OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA A COLORFUL BUNCH

Professionals, Unemployed Among Industry Hopefuls

A former satellite engineer, a father-and-son team and an airline
instructor are all among the often colorful cast of business owners,
financiers and employees seeking to claim a slice of the burgeoning
medical marijuana industry in Boulder.

City records show that the individuals behind Boulder's dispensaries
and greenhouse operations come from all over the world and have a wide
variety of backgrounds.

They include Colorado natives, recent transplants from California and
people who were born abroad in places such as the Philippines, France
and South Korea.

Many of the applicants describe themselves in city documents as
self-employed business owners, while others say they have been
unemployed or were laid off in recent years.

Some applicants have professional backgrounds that shatter stereotypes
about medical marijuana businesses.

Take Sarah Meiser, for example.

Meiser worked as a senior research scientist for Lockheed Martin in
Louisville from 2006 until 2009.

"I designed and built laser radar systems" designed to fly on
satellites, she said. "When the economy turned bad, I got laid off and
a friend was starting off in this business."

Meiser became a co-owner of Boulder Vital Herbs, but she's since
reduced her role to dispensary manager. She said the company --
located at 25271/2 Broadway -- was initially denied a license for
being too close to a school. Now, she said the city has agreed to
grandfather the business in and resume the licensing process.

She said she doesn't plan on going back into the field of research and
development.

"I didn't really like that lifestyle," she said, adding that the
dispensary allows her more time off to do the things she enjoys.

Other applicants come from a wide variety of backgrounds.

Guy Benson, of 11:11 Wellness, is an after-school teacher at the YMCA
of Boulder; David Cole, of Health Alternative Choices, lists his
current occupation as a senior systems engineer for Oracle; and
Katherine Bales, of Kind Love, was an instructor for United Airlines
for 14 years before getting into the medical marijuana business.