Help Michele's fight to keep bees

My name is Michele (aka The Bee Lady). I started beekeeping in April 2021 after spending more than a year preparing for this adventure.

I live in a beautiful neighborhood that is governed by a homeowner's association (HOA). I did my due diligence and checked state, county, and city laws before I started studying beekeeping. I also reviewed my HOA's Community Covenants and Regulations (CC&Rs). I was specifically looking for wording such as "no apiaries or bees allowed." I saw "only dogs, cats, and birds as pets allowed." Bees aren't pets, so I thought I was good to go.

I was wrong. My HOA was not happy that I had bees and within days of installing them, I received an email that set off a storm.

There is so much to this situation and I could literally write a book. It comes down to these points.

• The HOA attempted to disregard their own procedures by now informing me of the proper appeal process in the hope that I would just give up and move the bees out of the neighborhood
• Subsequently, I met with three male members from the HOA and Agricultural Control Committee, which was supposed to be a way to resolve the issue peacefully and amicably. I offered several accommodations to ensure comfort for the HOA. These included limiting my hives to two colonies only, moving them to a more discreet location that is less visible from the street, decreasing visibility by building an ACC approved fence or screen around the hives, having an EpiPen on hand that I purchased out of pocket, and offered indemnity to the HOA should a resident attempt to sue. The members in this meeting offered no solutions at all and spent their time telling me why my offers wouldn't be acceptable
• In this meeting, I experienced sexism, male toxicity, and misogyny. I was interrupted, spoken over, and spoken to with condescension - that is, when I wasn't being ignored as they preferred to speak to my husband (who is not a beekeeper). One member even used his body to block me from joining the conversation at one point. It was a circle of men, talking about bees, without me - the beekeeper
• In a phone call with the HOA president and a member of this meeting, I brought up the treatment I experienced. I also asked him why he had emailed my husband earlier in the day to speak to him and not me. He said that because I had cried and was emotional during the meeting, he felt it was better to let my husband decide how the bad news was to be shared with me
• I was told I was violating the animal clause of our CC&Rs and even though they know there are other pets besides cats, dogs, and birds, and even though I have support of residents, they would not allow an exception to the rule. He also continued to state that the HOA insurance agent refuses to cover beekeeping because it is a liability to the HOA
• I then retained a lawyer for assistance, as the arbitrary enforcement of the animal clause is unfair and an abuse of power. Additionally, the HOA is not liable for any potential injuries that may occur as a result of beekeeping. The bees are on my private property and are not located in a common area. I have yet to find an insurance agent that says otherwise
• With research, my attorney sent a letter regarding their abandonment of the animal clause due to their inconsistent enforcement and refuted their liability claim. He once again reiterated the accommodations that I offered to make
• The HOA responded by saying that they would not accept any accommodations and that the bees must be removed. I was also threatened with a possible defamation suit due to my exposing their sexist treatment towards me in our neighborhood Facebook group that is not affiliated or managed by the HOA. The negativity towards the HOA that resulted from their behavior towards me, as well as towards other residents and blatant abuse of power, has not settled well with the HOA. They included screen shots of my posts in the group

I am continuing this fight, because both my attorney and I believe that the HOA has abandoned their animal clause in the CC&Rs. The HOA admits to inconsistent enforcement, saying they pick and choose what animals they do and don't allow. Bees are not pets, they are not animals. They are insects, and beneficial ones at that.

The HOA has one thing at their disposal that I do not - money. I am hoping to keep this fight going so that I can continue beekeeping on my property. Beekeeping has been an amazing experience for me and has had the unexpected bonus of boosting my mental health. I'm as safe and responsible as I can be when I work with the bees. I don't want anyone getting hurt and no one has!

If you can, please consider helping me fight the HOA and help me keep my bees. I may not win, I want to be upfront about that. I can't guarantee that your donation will lead to victory. But it's going towards to a good cause. Funds that are raised will go towards my legal expenses as my attorney researches their claims and case law regarding HOAs and beekeeping. Any funds left over will be donated to a vetted charity to benefit pollinators of all kinds.

I have been so humbled by the support I have received from neighbors, friends, and family. Your kind words, emails, phone calls, and visits have meant the world and keep my spirits up. I owe you all honey!

Thank you!