POTOMAC VALLEY AUDUBON SOCIETY
OFFICERS AND BOARD MEMBERS
2008-2009
OFFICERS
Peter Smith, President
Peter retired in 2002 as director of public affairs for the Association of American Universities, a post he held for 15 years. Previously he had worked as a journalist and served as press secretary to three different U.S. Senators. He joined the PVAS Board in 2004 and chaired a Board Development Committee that developed a 2005 plan for restructuring the organization. He has a longstanding interest in conservation issues and is a member of The Nature Conservancy. Locally, he is a member of the Shepherdstown Rotary and has also served on the boards of the Friends of the Shepherdstown Library and the Shepherdstown Men's Club. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
Nancy Kirschbaum, Vice President
Nancy taught elementary school in Baltimore County, Maryland for thirty years. She recently retired, moved to West Virginia, and joined the PVAS Board as Program Chair in 2005. She is an active birder and is a member of the Maryland Ornithological Society and The Nature Conservancy. She has a Master's degree in Education from Johns Hopkins University.
Mina Goodrich, Secretary
Mina retired in 1999 after a long career in health care with the Department of Veteran's Affairs, both in Martinsburg and Washington, D.C. A native of Shepherdstown, she has been a member of PVAS since its early days. She previously served as Secretary from 2001 to 2004. Mina has also been active on the boards of the Friends of the Shepherdstown Library, the Jefferson County Animal Welfare Society and the Shepherdstown Men's Club. She also volunteers regularly at the Shepherdstown Library. She has a Bachelor's degree in Social Work from Shepherd University and an M.B.A. from Frostburg State University in Maryland.
Lex Miller, Treasurer
Lex and his wife Pam have been Shepherdstown residents since 2004. Before retiring to Shepherdstown, Lex was an actuary for Watson Wyatt and Company, an employee benefits consulting firm. Since retiring, he has been active in the AARP Tax-Aide program, serving as District Coordinator for the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia from 2005 to 2008. He is also active in the Shepherdstown Film Society and Good Shepherd Caregivers. He has a B.A. in Mathematics from Lehigh University and an M.A. in English Literature from the University of Maryland.
Diana Mullis, Immediate Past President
Diana retired in 2008 after working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and US Geological Survey for 37 years. Her 23-year dedication to the Potomac Valley Audubon Society includes service as president from 2000 to 2006. She has also long served as the organization's wildlife rescue coordinator.
BOARD MEMBERS
Alice Barkus, At-large Board Member
Alice and her husband, Neal, are native West Virginians from Charleston. They built a house in Jefferson County in 1998 and have been active in the local community since that time. Alice served on the board of the United Way of Jefferson County from 2003 through 2005 and is currently Secretary of the board of the new United Way of the Eastern Panhandle. She is also a member of the board of the American Conservation Film Festival, which is based in Shepherdstown. She has an undergraduate degree from Denison University in Ohio, and a Masters in Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.
Wayne Braunstein, At-large Board Member
Wayne has been a member of PVAS for 20 years. He is a past editor of the chapter newsletter and served two terms on the Board of Directors in that capacity. He currently heads the PVAS Board Development Committee. He has also served on the PVAS Yankauer Committee and as a volunteer for various activities over the course of the years. In addition to his work with PVAS, he volunteers with the Friends of the Peter Burr Farm, Inc., a local living history museum, in an effort to restore and preserve an historic site and to offer the legacy of living history to the residents and greater community of the eastern panhandle. He is a secondary education teacher by profession who is certified in business and information technology. He and his wife are supporters of many conservation projects and organizations, both national and regional in scope. He has a BA in Secondary Education from Shepherd University, a BS in Business Administration from the University of Maryland, University College, and a Master's in Computers in Education from Shenandoah University.
Susan Brookreson, At-large Board Member
Susan is a founding member of PVAS who has held various positions in the organization, including the presidency. Over the past year, she served on the PVAS Board Development Committee and as the liaison between the PVAS Board and the Yankauer committee. She has been a National Audubon member and avid birder since the 1970's. She is also a member of The Nature Conservancy, the West Virginia Environmental Council, and the National Wildlife Federation. She is an art educator by profession and recently was education director at the Martinsburg Arts Centre. She has a Bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland and a Master's from West Virginia University.
Clark Dixon, At-large Board Member
Clark retired from the National Park Service in 2003 following a long career with the agency that included postings in West Virginia, Maryland, Washington, D.C., Arkansas, New Jersey, and Georgia. The positions he held included Resident Youth Worker, Recreation Specialist, Park Technician, Supervisory Park Ranger, Nature Center Director, Park Manager (superintendent), and Program Manager for the Southeast Region Career Internship Program. He currently works as a substitute teacher in Berkeley and Jefferson County School Systems. His interests include gardening, nature study, camping, and backpacking. He has a Bachelor's degree in Secondary Education from Shepherd University.
A. R. (Rob) Hoxton, At-Large Board Member
Rob is president of Hoxton Financial, Inc., a financial planning firm with offices in Shepherdstown, Winchester, and Chambersburg. Prior to joining the firm, he worked with American International Group (AIG), a financial services provider in New York City. He is a graduate of North Carolina State University and of the Certified Financial Planning Professional Program of the College for Financial Planning in Denver Colorado.
Leigh Jenkins, At-Large Board Member
Leigh has lived fulltime in Morgan County, WV since 1989, after moving there from the Washington, D.C. area. She was raised in El Paso, Texas where she was an active member of the Trans-Pecos Audubon Society. She worked as an Environmental Specialist for Gifford-Hill and Company, a cement corporation, in Texas before moving to the Washington, D.C. area. She presently teaches Advanced Placement Biology and Advanced Placement Environmental Science, as well as Advanced Biology, at Berkeley Springs High School in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. She is a member of the Morgan County Master Gardeners and is currently enrolled in the Potomac Valley Master Naturalist Program. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from Texas A & M University and a Master of Arts in Sociology from the University of Texas at El Paso. She returned to Shepherd College in 1994 to receive her teaching certification in Biology and is currently a candidate for a Master of Arts degree in Science Education/Curriculum and Instruction at Shepherd University.
Georgia Jeppesen, At-Large Board Member
Georgia is employed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Conservation Training Center as an Education Specialist in the Division of Education Outreach. She has worked in the environmental education field for over 20 years including a conservation nonprofit, state education and natural resources agencies, and as an independent contractor. She has been a member of PVAS since moving to West Virginia in the late 1990s, and has served on the Yankauer Advisory committee for the past five years. She received a Bachelor's degree from the University of Utah in the biological sciences and a Master's from Florida State University in Science Education/Curriculum and Instruction.
John Reisenweber, At-Large Board Member
John is an Executive Banker at Centra Bank in Martinsburg. Previously, he was District Representative to Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) from 2002 to 2007. Prior to 2002, he was a Senior Consultant with Booz-Allen and Hamilton, a Buyback Specialist with the National Marine Fisheries Service, a Fisheries Specialist with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and a Research Assistant at Duke University's Marine Lab in Beaufort, NC. He is a member of the Martinsburg Rotary Club and has served on the boards of a variety of major local organizations, including the Region 9 Economic and Planning Development Council, the United Way of the Eastern Panhandle, and the Berkeley County Development Authority. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Washington and Lee University and Master of Arts in Political Science from Oregon State University.
Carolyn Thomas, At-Large Board Member
Carolyn is a visiting assistant professor at Shepherd University in the Department of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Sports. She is an avid gardener. She has a Bachelor's degree in zoology from University of Maryland, a Master's degree in Physical Education from the University of Montana and a Master's in Teaching from Marshall University. She began work toward a Ph.D. at West Virginia University in 2006.