Ines is the quintessential producer—a teacher of the heart, someone who quietly makes things happen without seeking the spotlight. Her first job at CooperRiis in 2003 was to lead the housekeeping team, which at the time included residents. From there, she opened our animal program, welcoming chickens, ducks, rabbits, a pregnant donkey, and two miniature horses. One of those horses was Skylar, who is still part of the CooperRiis family today.
Ines worked alongside our garden crew in the greenhouses and, for 10 years, led the Tryon/Mill Spring Community Program before we consolidated all Community Programs into the Asheville Community Program. Somehow, every job she took on became her favorite—at least for a while.
For the past five years, Ines has led our “Campus Crew” program, collaborating with residents to create art and artistic expressions throughout our community. Together, they transform dining tables and ordinary spaces into meaningful expressions of creativity, beauty, and hope—turning pain into art and giving residents another way to share and tell their recovery stories.
Ines has never needed the spotlight. Her gift is creating, nurturing, teaching, and bringing people together in community—leaving every place she touches a little more beautiful than she found it.
Perhaps the best way to describe Ines is in her own words: a wise older woman with silver hair, sitting in a rocking chair, watching it all unfold.
If her last name sounds familiar, it’s because she is married to our horticultural therapist, Markus Wullimann. Both are founding staff members, and we have had the privilege of having them as part of the CooperRiis family since 2003.