Growing up on an acre of land filled with organic fruit trees, grapevines, vegetables, and herbs, he developed an early love for nature and a keen eye for creative grade design . “I was learning horticulture before I even knew the word,” he often says.
His first job at a garden center in high school set the course for a career that has spanned nurseries, landscaping, and hands-on horticultural work. Over the years, Evans has worked in plant nurseries, served as a gardener and landscaper, and even spent time in the horticulture department at the Kansas City Zoo. He has also applied his skills to carpentry and graphic arts, reflecting his belief that patience, craft, and careful attention and creativity apply across all fields.
Alongside his work with plants, Evans is known for bringing people together through music. A lifelong percussionist, he leads drum circles, teaches drumming and Native American flute, and volunteers as the facilitator for the Asbury Drum & Dance community in New Jersey. His sessions emphasise connection, creativity, and shared experience.
Evans has a long history of service, including coaching for the Special Olympics, supporting recreation programmes for special-needs residents, and volunteering in environmental clean-ups. These experiences strengthened his belief that communities grow stronger when people take part in simple, meaningful actions.
Today, Evans Chigounis is recognised for his steady leadership, wide skill set, and commitment to helping others reconnect with nature, rhythm, and community life.
Growing up on a one-acre property in Clifton was like living in a small ecosystem. We had fruit trees, grapevines, vegetables, herbs—everything. I didn’t see it as work. I saw it as exploring. Later, I realised I had learned a lot about soil, seasons, and how things grow. That early exposure stayed with me and made the horticulture industry feel natural when I entered it.
My first job in high school was at a garden center I was a teenager learning how to repot plants, talk to customers, and understand what different species needed. I liked the pace of the work and the sense of care involved. That job confirmed that I could build a career in this field.
I’ve worked in landscaping, gardening, carpentry, and graphic arts. I also spent time in the horticulture department at the Kansas City Zoo in 2017, which was one of the most interesting jobs I ever had. The plants there support animal habitats, and we grew nutritional herbal culture for the animals like prairie bundle flower, and wild grapevine so your work affects the whole environment. It showed me how valuable horticulture is in public spaces and for other animals around the world.
I always good at drawing at a young age. After high school, I took illustration classes at Bergen Community College and majored in Art. That led me into pre-press and graphic work. I became a Mac retoucher and worked in that field for 13 years. It taught me precision. Whether you’re editing artwork or pruning a plant, you need patience and detail.
Every New Year’s Eve our parents will allow us to bang pots and pans with spoons on our porch to ring in the new year. That evolved over the years into real instruments like shakers and tambourines. For my 11th birthday my father bought me a drum kit which in time I learned well enough to play in a small band with my brother when we were teenagers. What mostly came out of that experience was my unique ear for picking out rhythm patterns, and melodies in music and reproducing them with percussion. Years later, that turned into my desire to instruct. Now I facilitate drum circles, teach and perform. Percussion has become second nature to me.
“Music lives inside all of us, an instrument is just a tool to release to the world”
It means connection. Every circle brings together people from different backgrounds and ideologies. “Creating music together gives strangers something to create together we build bonds and friendships ” I have made so many meaningful friendships at the drum circles that I have played and facilitated at around the country I know that I can move to any state in the union and as long as they have drum circles there I will always be able to make friendships, feel at home and welcomed. Being able to hold space for that kind of connection feels meaningful.
Service was part of my life early on. I was delivering food to the needy as early as age nine. My Uncle would drive my brother and I to the homes of elderly relatives and friends who he knew were on a fixed income or get out to shop for themselves for simple essentials like bread and milk. I learned the value of giving from the heart with nothing in return but a smile. In my twenties, I coached the Special Olympics in Clifton. I also helped the recreation director organise events for special-needs children and adults. Later, I volunteered for the Passaic River cleanup in Morris County. These experiences showed me how small actions can make a real difference.
It taught me timing. I was ahead of the trend. Today, organic herbs are everywhere, but back then, people weren’t ready for it. Even so, the experience taught me about production, quality, and how to bring a product to market.
People often see plants as decoration, not as living ecosystem systems that not only provides beauty, but sustenance and nutrition and medicine. A healthy landscape takes planning and research to fit the needs of the individual, good soil, and consistent care which should not be a chore, but a joy. It’s not just about making something look nice. It’s about long-term growth and development meant in one’s own soul.
“In the garden, everything teaches you if you’re willing to open your eyes to possibilities and have patience because gardens don’t happen overnight”
They all involve building something and using your creativity—whether it’s a garden bed, a drum rhythm, or a restored piece of wood. You use your hands,your imagination, you pay attention, and you try to create something that lasts as a thing of beauty to share with the world. Those values stay the same across every field.
Growth. Not just plant growth, but personal growth. I enjoy learning new things and helping others learn too. When someone joins a drum circle for the first time and expresses to you, childlike joy or plants their first garden and feels pride and accomplishment, I get to see that spark. That keeps me inspired.
Start small. Plant one thing you love. Learn one rhythm. Attend one community event. People think they need big plans, but progress happens in simple steps. If you stay curious and patient, the rest follows. “ when you have courage, imagination and tenacity, anything is possible”
Read more:
Evans Chigounis: A Life Rooted in Craft and Community
