Like most creatures on Earth, Matt has been drawn to water as long as he can remember. He spent his childhood creek-walking, digging, climbing trees, and blazing trails which instilled a level of gratitude for nature and the joy he found in it. One of his fondest memories was gifting his mother a small, dead bluegill he found while exploring Beargrass Creek.

These and other experiences led him to study horticulture at the University of Kentucky, and complete the practical experience portion of his degree in Australia. He spent an amazing year down under, working for the first eight months at two nurseries, and traveling the eastern half of the country for the remaining four months. It was a profoundly wonderful, life-changing experience for him.

After returning from Oz to his hometown of Louisville, KY in August of 2000, he connected with a local pond business in need of someone to grow aquatic plants. While there, he built 2 3000 sq ft greenhouses, propagated thousands of plants and helped with pond maintenance and construction.

He enjoyed the work so much that in 2002 he was inspired to start his own business and Branching Streams was born. He started an aquatic plant nursery, performed pond maintenance and landscaping services. As the years passed he moved away from growing aquatics and landscaping to focus on building and maintaining water features.

Incorporating all of the wisdom and experience of 20+ years in business, Matt has taken his craft to the next level by teaming up with an internationally known waterscape business, Aquascapes. He is more skilled, capable, and inspired than ever before, greeting each day with gratitude for the opportunity to help others realize their dreams of having an amazing space to unwind and reconnect by incorporating the innate healing properties of water.

As an avid lover of the outdoors Jonathan Brame, more well known as Jonny, fell in love with water features as soon as he became part of the Branching Streams team. Through his travels, backpacking in deep woods and forests, he has always been inspired by the beauty of the nature he has experienced. The streams and waterfalls he has come across quickly became the ingredients to beautiful designs and ideas for many of the Branching Streams projects.

In 2001, at the age of 12, Jonny developed Type 1. This led him to develop a personal intuition and maturity that seeped into the rest of his life. Faced with this life altering diagnosis Jonny did not despair, and instead allowed it to embolden him. With an overachieving work practice, a consistent pattern of good habits and continual upkeep on subjects that need attention, he has overcome the weight that burdened his young shoulders. It was a wonderful learning experience that continues to help in his everyday life.

After joining Branching Streams in April of 2014 Jonny was taught the ways of waterscaping by one of Matt’s longest running employees, Isaac Raymond, and soon became the only employee when Isaac ventured into another workforce. Jonny was able to take the tasks, ideas and lessons learned and improve on them with each water feature. He takes every visit to each feature as a fresh experience so he can better the customers’ appreciation visually or mechanically.

Also pursuing a life of live music, fortes in banjo and slide guitar, Jonny has discovered a passion and appreciation for the world of waterscaping that will only grow and mature. He loves his customers, looks forward to his work every day. He will do whatever it takes to better your water feature and your enjoyment!

Jessica Lees came to Branching Streams in June of 2021. She helps to keep the ball rolling as our administrative superstar. Jessica and her husband moved to Louisville in 2017 and quickly planted roots. She is a mom to two littles and appreciates a walk in the park and good beer. She truly brings balance and optimism to our crew here at Branching Streams!

Currently studying marketing at the university of Louisville, Bryson is the youngest member of the branching streams team. Although he is new to working with waterscapes as a full time job , he has been exposed to them for a majority of his life. With his stepdad being employed by one of the longest standing pond stores in the Louisville area, Bryson was able to experience what it was like to work hands on with these structures from a young age.

Outside of work, Bryson is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. He enjoys gaining new experience, and coaches middle school football during the fall season. Bryson has a passion for traveling and takes any chance he gets to travel to new places.