BUSINESS JOURNAL PHOTO | MARCUS R. DONNER

When she isn't tracking down tech news, reporter Emily Parkhurst likes to brew beer. And she's already planning to check out the upcoming chocolate beer fest at The Pike Brewing Co., where she's seen above.

Oddly enough, Maine native Emily Parkhurst was first introduced to Washington state because of her passion for the clarinet. She was a member of a university orchestra that toured Western Washington — and she fell in love with the place.

Now Parkhurst is back – as a staff writer for TechFlash and the Puget Sound Business Journal, covering technology. Her first day on the job was Feb. 6. Coincidentally, that was the same day that TechFlash interim editor Greg Lamm left for a one-week vacation.

Parkhurst arrived in Seattle after driving from Portland — that’s the other Portland, the largest city in Maine. It was a cross-country trip of about 3,100 miles, which Parkhurst and her husband completed without running into a single snowstorm. They made the trip in five days, with a 24-hour rest stop in Salt Lake City.

Before joining the TechFlash/Business Journal staff, Parkhurst was a senior reporter covering government and education for The Forecaster, a community newspaper based in Falmouth, Maine, just north of Portland.

In 2010, Parkhurst won a national award for investigative reporting from the Society of Professional Journalists for a series of stories about educators restraining students in Maine public schools. The story prompted the Maine Department of Education to update its rules on the restraint and seclusion of students.

Here in Seattle, Parkhurst has settled into her newsroom cubicle, which for some reason includes the newsroom’s collection of unopened beer bottles. And how appropriate, considering that she and her husband, John Davignon, like to brew their own beer as a hobby.

Parkhurst is a news hound, and we’re looking forward to seeing her dig into the diverse and lively tech sector in the central Puget Sound region.

Reach her at eparkhurst@bizjournals.com or 206-876-5441. Follow her on Twitter: @emilyparkhurst