A Health Crisis, an Idea, and a Journey I Never Expected
I’m Karen Ross, founder of Wellness Alaska and creator of The Probiotic Jar.
In 2006, I founded Wellness Alaska out of a passion for helping people improve their health and quality of life. That mission became deeply personal during a devastating illness that would shape nearly 15 years of my life.
During those years, my husband, Robert, and I raised three wonderful children while navigating health challenges that sometimes made ordinary daily life extraordinarily difficult.
I spent years researching nutrition, digestive health, and traditional fermentation, searching for answers and a way forward.
One of the most important things I learned was that the environment inside a fermentation vessel matters enormously. I became convinced that the quality of the seal—and the ability to release fermentation gases without allowing outside air to enter—was critical to producing the fermented foods I wanted for myself and my family.
But I couldn’t find a product that met these criteria.
Why We Created The Probiotic Jar
With the support of my husband, the expertise of a talented engineer, and an extraordinary amount of research, testing, and determination, we developed The Probiotic Jar.
We weren’t trying to manufacture the cheapest fermentation vessel. We wanted to make an exceptionally good one.
Every detail mattered: the quality of the Italian glass, the precision of the opening in the lid, the smooth finish that protects the grommet, the reliability of the airlock, and the gasket and closure that help maintain an airtight seal.
The result was a carefully engineered fermentation system designed to allow gases to escape while preventing outside air from entering.
It isn’t necessarily the easiest system to assemble. Precision sometimes requires an extra step or two. But those details are there for a reason, and I remain enormously proud of what we created.
To understand why the seal matters, explore our educational discussions, “It’s All About the Seal” and “Environment Is Everything.”
The Remarkable People Who Helped Make It Possible
No account of The Probiotic Jar’s development would be complete without acknowledging the people whose knowledge, encouragement, and friendship helped shape our journey.
My introduction to whole-food nutrition here in Alaska was greatly enriched by Margaret Loew, founder of Wholy Living in Palmer, Alaska. Margaret’s teaching and commitment to wholesome food became an important part of my health education.
Through Margaret, I met two women who would become invaluable to the mission of Wellness Alaska: Linda Cox and Kelly Caraway.
Linda and her husband, Ed, devoted more than three decades to missionary service overseas, including Bulgaria. After returning to the United States, they eventually settled on a small farm in Indiana, where Linda continued sharing her remarkable knowledge of nutrition, traditional food preparation, and fermentation.
Linda was an extraordinary teacher, encourager, and supporter. Her influence was fundamental to what we were trying to accomplish, and her unwavering encouragement helped turn an idea into reality.
I can say without hesitation that The Probiotic Jar would never have happened without Linda Cox.
Linda passed away in January 2026. Her friendship, wisdom, and generosity remain among the greatest blessings of this journey, and I will remember her with profound love and gratitude.
Kelly Caraway also became an important part of the Wellness Alaska story. Her unwavering support, friendship, and commitment contributed meaningfully to our educational mission. Together, with the help of many wonderful supporters, we traveled across the United States and taught approximately 20 comprehensive fermentation seminars.
Those experiences created lasting friendships and helped us share practical knowledge with families and communities far beyond Alaska.
In early 2017, the Foundation for Functional Fermented Food was established to help carry this educational mission forward.
Through instructors, community classes, educational resources, and countless people sharing what they learned with others, our work spread far beyond what we originally imagined.
We believe this network has influenced the health journeys of tens of thousands of people around the world—not only through The Probiotic Jar, but through the knowledge, practical skills, and encouragement that people carried back to their own families and communities.
As I look back on this journey, I see God’s hand in it in ways I could not fully appreciate while living through it.
Again and again, the right people came into my life at the right time. Their knowledge, friendship, encouragement, and willingness to contribute opened doors I could never have opened alone. What began as a desperate search for better health became a mission that brought people together, created extraordinary opportunities, and reached far beyond anything I could have planned.
I believe God called me to this work. I don’t believe The Probiotic Jar, Wellness Alaska, and all the relationships and opportunities that grew from them were simply a series of fortunate coincidences.
And I am humbled by how much good came from something that began during one of the most difficult periods of my life.
A Gift to the Fermenting Community
Now that we’ve recovered the costs of producing our Comprehensive Functional Fermenting Seminar, we’re preparing to make the recordings available to everyone at no charge through FermentingSeminar.org.
This would never have been possible without the many people who purchased the seminar recordings over the years, often making a significant investment in their own education. Their support made the production and continued availability of these educational resources possible.
We cannot adequately express our gratitude to those early supporters. Because of their purchases, we’re now able to share this knowledge more widely and make it accessible to people who might otherwise never have had the opportunity.
It’s a wonderful way for the educational mission to continue.
Wholesome Food Co-op: Another Part of the Mission
In 2018, during a slower winter season in my new real estate career, Kelly Caraway, several dedicated supporters, and I established the Wholesome Food Co-op here in Alaska.
It was a natural extension of everything we had learned.
We recognized that another important foundation of good nutrition is reliable access to high-quality, fresh, wholesome foods—particularly organic produce.
For those of us living in Alaska, that access can be especially challenging during the long winter months, when fresh food must travel great distances and availability and quality can be inconsistent.
The co-op was created to help families obtain better food through cooperation, shared purchasing, and a commitment to quality.
What began as another small community effort continues in full force today.
I’m enormously grateful for the volunteers and members who have made it possible to continue serving our community.
Robert: The Foundation Beneath It All
There is one person whose contribution to this story cannot be overstated: my husband, Robert Ross.
Robert has been an unwavering supporter of every endeavor I’ve ever undertaken.
Through the long years of my illness, raising our children, developing The Probiotic Jar, teaching classes and seminars, building the co-op, and eventually beginning an entirely new career, he has stood beside me.
He has supported ideas that sometimes seemed impossible, stepped in when I didn’t have the strength, and helped turn my determination into accomplishments that neither of us could have imagined.
Following a workplace accident that forced him into retirement, Robert continued contributing to the work we believe in. Today, he serves at Wholesome Food Co-op twice each month, helping make its operations possible.
I genuinely don’t believe I would have recovered my health, created The Probiotic Jar, or accomplished so many of the extraordinary things that have followed without him.
His contribution may not always be visible to the people who know our work, but it is woven into everything we’ve built.
And I am profoundly grateful that we have walked this journey together.
An Unexpected New Career
In 2018, I tiptoed into an entirely new career—with considerable trepidation.
My health was still fragile, and I wasn’t certain how much work I could sustain. I chose real estate largely because of the extraordinary flexibility it offered. I hoped it would allow me to work around my physical limitations, and I hoped I wouldn’t hate the work!
What I didn’t expect was to discover that I absolutely loved it.
Even more unexpectedly, I discovered that I was extraordinarily good at it.
Over the years, I became a high-producing, award-winning real estate professional, earning recognition for my performance and consistently excellent client reviews. In October 2026, I was honored to be featured in Real Producers, a professional publication recognizing accomplished real estate professionals.
My real estate career has become an extraordinary blessing to our family. As Robert has grown older and navigated the consequences of his workplace injury, my success has made it possible for me to assume the primary responsibility for earning our family’s income.
Sometimes I look at how life has unfolded and marvel at the unexpected ways one chapter prepares us for another.
And I haven’t forgotten how important Probiotic Jar has been to this journey.
I genuinely don’t believe I would be where I am today without what I learned about fermentation and the importance of using a properly engineered vessel. Improving my nutrition and finding a way of preparing fermented foods that worked for me became an important part of my personal health journey.
The Probiotic Jar was never just another product to me.
It was part of finding my way forward.
A Personal Invitation
Karen Ross
Realtor
If you’d like help finding an accomplished real estate professional in your area, please contact me through Probiotic Jar and mention that you’re requesting a real estate referral. I’d be delighted to help.
Looking Toward the Future
After so many years devoted to The Probiotic Jar, I’m approaching a season when it will be time for me to step away from its day-to-day operations.
Our faithful fulfillment partner in Utah, who has carefully packed and shipped our orders for years, is also preparing for a new chapter in her own life.
These changes mean that, in time, The Probiotic Jar will need a new home and a family in the contiguous United States who can carry the mission forward.
My hope is that the next chapter will be guided by the same principles that shaped its beginning: a commitment to quality, thoughtful engineering, honest education, and a genuine desire to make a difference in people’s lives.
This has never been a business built around producing the cheapest possible product. It has been a labor of love, grounded in the belief that the quality of the tools we use matters.
I’d love to see that commitment continue in the hands of people who value it as deeply as we have.
With Gratitude
When I look back, I see a journey filled with hardship, perseverance, remarkable people, unexpected opportunities, and blessings beyond anything I could have imagined.
I see three wonderful children raised through years of illness. A husband whose loyalty and support helped make everything possible. Friends and teachers who shared their wisdom. Families who embraced our work. A community that came together around better food. And a new career that opened doors I never dreamed would be available to me.
And through it all, I see the hand of God, bringing people and opportunities together in ways I could never have orchestrated myself.
What began as a search for better health became a calling that shaped our lives and touched the lives of others.
The Probiotic Jar represents that entire journey, and I hope the knowledge and values behind it will continue helping people for many years to come.
Thank you for being part of our story.
Karen Ross
Founder, Wellness Alaska / Probiotic Jar
service@probioticjar.com
3060 N Lazy Eight Ct #2, PMB 194
Wasilla, AK 99654