2006 Crew Leaders

VYCC works with the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation to manage five Vermont State Parks. Park Crews are responsible for all aspects of park management including visitor education, managing the camping reservation system, registering park visitors, maintaining and improving the grounds and facilities, and managing concession sales.

Elmore State Park will be led by Katie McKay and Beth Turcotte. We are excited to have Katie return to the VYCC for her second season as the Park Ranger at Elmore. She spent her winter at Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area in Utah. Originally from Utah, Katie received her Bachelor of Education in Parks and Recreation from Utah State University. She also has worked as a Ranger Assistant and Off-Highway Vehicle Specialist at Hyrum State Park.

Beth Turcotte is joining VYCC for her first season as the Crew Manager at Elmore. She received her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from Roanoke College in Salem, VA. Beth served at the Nevada Outdoor School were she worked closely with the Bureau of Land Management to protect wilderness areas. She has also worked at the Great Harvest Bread Company in Tucson, AZ.

We are excited to have Derek Zember return to the VYCC after a season at Emerald Lake State Park as an Assistant. Originally from Ohio, this year Derek will be managing Allis State Park. He received his degree in Geography and Planning from the University of Toledo. Derek has taken part in a National Outdoor Leadership School course in the Yukon. He has also worked for Ohio Citizen Action.

It is great to have Scott Renker returning to VYCC to lead the crew at Lowell Lake State Park. He started with the VYCC in the summer of 2005 as a Roving Crew Leader and led three Disaster Relief Crews in Louisiana. Originally from New York, Scott earned his Master of Education in Health and Physical Education from East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania. Scott has spent three years in the Peace Corps in Thailand.

North Hero State Park will be managed by Charles Stone and Jodi Anderson. Jodi received her Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Management from the University of New Hampshire. She also taught outdoor environmental education and facilitated ropes courses at YMCA Camp Thunderbird in South Carolina. Originally from Massachusetts, Jodi has held many different positions including, Fish and Wildlife Service Public Use Intern at Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Environmental Educator at Broadmoor Audubon Society Day Camp and Whale Watch Intern at the New England Aquarium in Boston, MA.

Charles Stone originally comes from Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Management from the University of New Hampshire and has worked with the Student Conservation Association as a Bear Technician in Sequoia National Park and most recently was an Instructor at YMCA Camp Thunderbird in South Carolina, were he taught outdoor environmental education and facilitated high and low ropes courses.

Joining Natasha at Branbury will be Park Assistants Sara Hanson and Mark Turnbull. Sara returned to Branbury after serving as a Corps Member at Branbury in 2005. She recently graduated from the University of Maine at Farmington with a Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Special Education.

Mark Turnbull is returning for his second year as Park Assistant with VYCC. He also served on two VYCC Disaster Relief Crews throughout the winter. Before working for the VYCC, Mark was a Recreation Assistant with the City of Henderson Parks and Recreation Department in Henderson, NV. He has a Bachelor of Science in Outdoor Management and Education from Paul Smith's College in New York.

Jason Berard and Lucy Parker will be joining the Elmore State Park Leaders as Assistants. Lucy returns to VYCC with years of experience as both a Corps Member and an Assistant Leaders. Lucy was a National Direct AmeriCorps Member as a Park Assistant at Branbury in 2005 and has been an Assistant Crew Leader and Corps Member in the past with VYCC. Lucy is currently attending Sterling College in Vermont. She has also attended Paul Smith's College and the Audubon Expedition Institute in the past.

Jason Berard has three previous years of experience with VYCC. He as been a Corps Member and Senior Corps Member at Silver Lake and then took on the role of Concessions Assistant at Emerald Lake State Park in 2005 as a National Direct AmeriCorps Member. Jason is currently working on his Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Engineering and Management at Clarkson University Potsdam, NY.

This season the VYCC will field four Wilderness Crews. Crews live and work in backcountry locations while working to maintain significant portions of trails. This season, the crews will work on the Appalachian Trail and the Sunset Ridge Trail on Mount Mansfield. The following Crew Leaders will supervise these crews:

Wilderness 1 and 3 will be led by Lisa Passerello and Matthew Dragon. Lisa has recently graduated with her Masters Degree from the University of Vermont's Field Naturalist program. Originally from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Lisa has done biological field work in California and Hawaii. Lisa brings experience in environmental education and will round out her experience with VYCC as an AmeriCorps VISTA member during which she will develop new alumni programs for the organization.

Matthew Dragon originally comes from Eastern Pennsylvania and earned a degree in Outdoor Education from Northland College in Northern Wisconsin. Matthew has worked for the Forest Service as a Wilderness Ranger and Wildland Fire Fighter and led crews for the Student Conservation Association throughout the U.S. Matthew has recently started as a Technical Development AmeriCorps VISTA member at VYCC headquarters in Richmond..

Wilderness 2 and 4 will be led by Sarah Garvey and Christian Bell. Sarah graduated from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona with a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance in 2004. Originally from Wisconsin, Sarah brings a background in conservation work and has led youth corps crews for the Student Conservation Association in Arkansas, Washington, Texas, and with the National Park Service in Oregon. She has also been an instructor for Vertical Stronghold Climbing Gym in Appleton, Wisconsin.

This year the VYCC will field twelve Roving Crews. These crews will complete projects for state and federal agencies such as Vermont Agency of Transportation and the U.S. Forest Service. Typically, they spend two weeks at a time on a project such as watershed restoration, trail construction, historic preservation, or bridge construction. Often they will use a State Park as a base camp and then move to a backcountry location. The following Crew Leaders will supervise these crews.

Roving 1 and 7 will be lead by Kimberly Wortley and Andrew Magee. Kimberly, originally from Connecticut, graduated from the University of Connecticut with a Bachelors of Science in Finance in 2002. Kimberly has been a Corps Member with AmeriCorps' National Civilian Community Corps (*NCCC) in Denver and has most recently been a ski instructor for the National Sports Center for the Disabled in Winter Park, Colorado.

Andrew Magee is returning to the field for his second year as a Crew Leader with the VYCC. After last season Andrew became the Youth Development AmeriCorps VISTA member at VYCC headquarters where he has developed connections with local schools to help expand VYCC's capacity and reach youth year-round. Andrew received his Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology in 2002 from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. Andrew brings experience in trail work to the VYCC as he has worked as a member of the Long Trail Patrol with the Green Mountain Club in Vermont.

Roving 2 and 8 will be led by Christine Severson and Riley Stark. Christine, originally from Minnesota, completed her Master of Arts degree in Recreation Administration at University of Nebraska, Omaha in 2005. She returns to VYCC for her second season as a Crew Leader bringing a background in Outdoor Education from her experiences as a Recreation Supervisor at Yellowstone National Park and as an Adventure's Manager in the Stout Adventures Program at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. The past winter she worked at Copper Mountain Ski Resort in Colorado and volunteered with the Copper Mountain Special Olympics.

Originally from Oregon, Riley Stark will be joining VYCC after completing the spring semester at the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana where he is majoring in Forest Resource Management. He brings a background in trail work and conservation from his experiences as a Corps Member, Youth Leader, and AmeriCorps Leadership Development Program Participant with the Northwest Youth Corps.

Roving 3 and 9 will be led by Mary Letourneau. Mary returns to VYCC for her second season as a Crew Leader and where she integrated her counseling and teaching experience into her crews in 2005. Originally from New England, Mary received a Bachelor of Arts in History and Anthropology from the University of Massachusetts at Boston. She has worked for Eckerd Youth Alternatives with at-risk boys at a therapeutic wilderness camp in North Carolina and as a Residential Counselor for The Home for Little Wanderers in Massachusetts. Most recently she has been working for Spectrum Youth and Family Services and is also a nursing student at Community College of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont.

Roving 4 and 10 will be led by Karen Thompson and James "Cody" Cote. The VYCC welcomes Karen having recently completed her third year at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario in the Honours Environmental Sciences Program. Karen worked as Off-Campus Don, coordinating activities and events for Western's freshman students. She is active in Environwestern, a student activist group where she has helped conduct waste audits and spearheaded travel mug sales in a an effort to reduce disposable cup use and helped coordinate plantings of native trees on campus.

After leading two Roving Crews last year, James "Cody" Cote is back again! Cody worked on two Leadership Crews with the VYCC last fall and then spent his winter in Telluride, Colorado. He graduated from Winona State University with Political Science and History Bachelor of Arts degrees. After graduation, Cody worked for the AFL-CIO as an intern and then as a full-time labor organizer in Minnesota. He eventually left the labor movement to spend more time in the great outdoors and pursue a career in conservation.

Roving 5 and 11 will be led by Mary McQuiggan and Luis "Ricky" Chavez. Mary is back for her sixth crew with VYCC! She has been a Corps Member on five VYCC Wilderness and Roving Crews. Mary is now finishing her second year at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York where she is majoring in Landscape Architecture. Mary has been guiding and instructing with a number of Cornell's outdoor programs, including leading trips for first year orientation. She also recently completed a dog-sledding and winter camping trip in Northern Minnesota.

Luis "Ricky" Chavez received an AA in Business Administration from Pima Community College in Tucson, AZ. Ricky has been a Corps Member and an Assistant Team Leader with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) in Charleston, South Carolina in 2003-2004. Most recently he has worked as an Assistant Crew leader with the Coconino Rural Environmental Corps in Flagstaff, Arizona. He will be continuing his studies at Sterling College, Craftsbury, VT this coming fall.

Roving 6 and 12 will be led by Juliana Hanson and Matthew Callman. Juliana hails from Ohio where she is working to complete her Bachelor of Science in Parks and Recreation Management at Kent University. Juliana brings experience as a Camp Counselor for Camp Rim Rock for Girls Inc. in West Virginia and as a Swim Instructor and Lifeguard at Lifeworks of Southwest General Health Center.

Matthew Callman comes to the VYCC from Florida where he graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 2004. Matthew has spent several summers at Camp Chateaugay in Merrill, New York where he led wilderness-based adventure trips. Most recently Matthew has worked as a Ski Instructor at Snowbasin Ski Resort in Ogden, Utah.

Community Crews

This year the VYCC will operate four Community Crews. These crews are non-residential and work Monday through Friday. Community Crews focus on conservation projects within the local community. Typical work projects include urban greenways work, trail maintenance, light carpentry, and historic preservation. This season we will field Community Crews in Burlington, Montpelier, Brattleboro and Woodstock.

The Burlington Community Crew will be led by Gregory Rosewell and Kristen Kozik. We are excited to have Gregory return to the VYCC after being a Wilderness Crew Corps Member in 2004, during which he completed trail work on Blue Ridge Mountain. Gregory received a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies with an English Minor from the University of Vermont in 2006. He recently worked at the Intervale Conservation Nursery where he collected cuttings and seeds from natural areas across the state, which were then stored until they will be propagated and harvested in spring.

Kristen Kozik received her Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Recreation and Tourism with a concentration in Parks and Protected Area Management from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO. Originally from Massachusetts, Kristen also was an Assistant Leader for the Green Mountain Club last year. She as also worked on a Appalachian Mountain Club Trail Crew in 2004.

The Montpelier Community Crew will be led by Sarah Hays and Kathleen Coons. Sarah received her Bachelors of Science in Environmental Studies from the School of Natural Resources at the University of Vermont. She also attended the Rocky Mountain National Outdoor Leadership School. Sarah most recently was working at Hand in Hand Creative Learning Center as a Preschool Teacher.

Kathleen has a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Saint Michael's College in Vermont and brings her crew leading experience from the Steamboat Springs Community Youth Corps in Colorado. She has worked as a Science Teacher with Mount Mansfield Winter Academy and Outdoor Education with YMCA Camp Chingachgook. Kathleen has also worked for the Smithsonian National Zoo's Conservation and Research Center as both an Environmental Education Intern and Ecology Field Crew Intern. Kathleen was a Corps Member with VYCC in 2001.

Drew Cameron and Anya Schwartz will lead the Brattleboro Community Crew. The VYCC welcomes Drew back for his first season as the Community Crew Leader having been a Corps Member in 2005 on the Burlington Community Crew. Drew is currently a part of the Vermont Army National Guard as the Patient Administration Specialist and has been the Assistant Section Chief for the United States Army. Drew is also currently working on his undergraduate in Forestry at University of Vermont in the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources.

Anya Schwartz brings a wealth of experience and education to VYCC. She received her Masters of Science in Botany in 1995 from the University of Vermont and she received her Bachelors in Biology in 1993 from Grinnell College in ... . Anya has recently been working as a Student Outreach Specialist for Linking Learning to Life/Spectrum Youth Services. She also has experience as the Director of the Twin Hills Girl Scouts Day Camp.

The Woodstock Community Crew at Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park will be led by Ben Turati and Jennifer Trombley. Ben brings a background in trail work to the VYCC from his work as a Recreation Ranger with the Conservation Department of Amherst in Amherst, Massachusetts and as a Trail Crew Chief at Unity College in Unity, Maine. Originally from Massachusetts, Ben is currently working to complete his Bachelor of Science in Parks, Recreation, and Ecotourism at Unity College.