My Story
My name is Karen Langford.
Growing up, our elderly neighbor had a small koi pond. I can still remember helping her clean it out once a year—even after we moved. I always loved going over to feed the fish; it was something I looked forward to.
I also enjoyed visiting our local park, which had koi—or koi-like fish—and a beautiful Japanese bridge. That bridge was donated to the city in 1977 by Japanese Major General Mikio Kimata, and it added so much character to the space. Some of my favorite places to visit were SeaWorld and various zoos, where I could spend hours watching the animals and fish.
In 2021, my husband and I decided to remodel the pond in our backyard. He wanted to turn it into a koi pond. At first, I wasn’t on board with the idea—but that changed quickly. Once the pond was complete and I picked out my first koi on Mother’s Day weekend in 2022, I was completely hooked.
In 2024, we added a water lily garden, and I’ve since gotten into growing lilies and lotus plants alongside keeping koi.
I now love learning everything I can about the hobby and enjoy helping others who are just getting started.We’ve become much more selective with our fish over time, and I can’t wait to build our next pond.