Staff

Elizabeth Lunney - Executive Director

Elizabeth has served as the Executive Director for Washington Trails Association since 1999.  She arrived in Washington via the Pacific Crest Trail in 1997 and has hardly left the state ever since.  Before WTA, she worked with grassroots environmental groups at the Environmental Support Center in Washington, DC, helped implement a major gifts program at the Appalachian Trail Conference (Harpers Ferry, WV), fundraised for the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance, and received a Master in Fine Arts from American University.  Elizabeth serves on the boards of the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust and the American Hiking Society. Her favorite hike is Green Mountain, though note that the road to the trailhead was washed out in the 2006 floods. Check our Road & Trail Conditions link to see if it has reopened. Email: elizabeth@wta.org

Jenni Blake - Trail Programs Director

Jenni has worked in wilderness, recreation and trails most of her adult life and has a passion for sharing the discovery of the outdoors with others.  Jenni began her outdoor career volunteering for the Payette National Forest in Central Idaho on a two person, self supported trail maintenance team.  The simplicity and self reliance that she discovered while living in the wilderness changed her life forever.  She moved to Idaho after graduating from St. Lawrence University and continued her career in wilderness and trails with the Forest Service.  Jenni is relatively new to Washington and WTA but has truly been loving her job as the Trail Programs Director.  This job has allowed her the opportunity to continue sharing her passion that was discovered years ago in Idaho.  When Jenni is not supporting volunteer trail efforts in Washington, she is usually out running the trails with her dog Flossie.  Her favorite hike is the up Stafford Creek towards Navajo Pass.  Email: jenni@wta.org

Lauren Braden - Communications & Outreach Director

Given her passion for hiking trails, Lauren jumped at the chance to join the staff at Washington Trails Association as the Communications and Outreach Director in 2003. Lauren coordinates WTA’s media relations, messaging, program communications, and publicity. Lauren enjoys hiking, gardening, birdwatching, and traveling with her husband, especially to countries where she can practice her Spanish. She is former co-chair of the Seattle Women’s Commission and serves on the Board of Seattle Audubon.  Her favorite areas to hike are North Cascades National Park, Umtanum Canyon, and anywhere with lots of Ponderosa Pine.  Email: lauren@wta.org

Kara Chin - Membership Manager

Kara has spent her life playing in the diverse bio-niches of the Pacific Northwest.   Kara first came to WTA as a trail maintenance and TrailsFest volunteer, then as an administrative intern in 2000 while pursuing her graduate degree.  After a brief interlude to New York, she returned in search of evergreens and moss.  She now takes care of “all things membership” at WTA.  Although trained as an artist, choreographer, and costume designer she has always found inspiration in her extended backyard.  If you’re lucky, you’ll run into Kara on trail - or catch her in the WTA office next time you’re downtown.  Email: kara@wta.org

Krista Dooley - Youth Programs Coordinator

Krista is a Washington native who has been working at outdoor youth programs since 2001 in various regions of the US and Switzerland.  Since the beginning of 2007, Krista has been organizing and guiding WTA's youth programs, including Youth Vacations and the Families Go Hiking guided hike series.  Before WTA, Krista spent two years as Program Director for Camp Highland Outdoor Science in southern California, but she decided she missed the seasons and big trees of the Pacific Northwest and returned to Washington to pursue graduate studies in Environmental Education at IslandWood and the University of Washington. Her love for the outdoors keeps her working and playing in the woods year round. Krista enjoys hiking anywhere in the Goat Rocks Wilderness.  Email: krista@wta.org

Susan Elderkin - Web Content Manager

After nine years as a board member and volunteer at WTA, Susan joined the staff in August 2007.  She acts as webmaster and provides content for the website and Washington Trails magazine.  Previously, she served as development and organizational director at Futurewise for seven years, where she launched three website redesigns, edited the newsletter, helped lead a rebranding process, and did a whole lot of fundraising.  When Susan isn't working, she's examining bugs and rocks with her young son Aidan. Her favorite hike is Hidden Lake Peaks in the North Cascades in September.  Email: susan@wta.org

Andrew Engelson - Editor, Washington Trails Magazine

Andrew is the editor of Washington Trails magazine and also posts daily on WTA's Signpost Blog. Andrew grew up in Washington state and was first exposed to the outdoors on family camping expeditions in the soggy forests of Olympic National Park and the sagebrush and pines of the Methow Valley. He worked as a freelance journalist and writer for six years until finding a regular day job with WTA in 2003. He has written previously for Backpacker magazine, the Seattle Post Intelligencer, Seattle Weekly, and many other publications. His writing has won multiple awards from the Western Washington chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He enjoys introducing his favorite trails to his two young daughters:  Miner's Ridge-Image Lake near Glacier Peak, the Cape Alava Loop on the coast of Olympic National Park, and Hannegan Pass-Copper Ridge in North Cascades National Park.  Email: andrew@wta.org

Jonathan Guzzo - Advocacy Director 

Jonathan joined WTA six years ago after working in the non-profit sector for seven years.  As Advocacy Director, Jonathan charts the policy course at WTA, working with politicians and National Forest and Park Service staff to make sure that the decisions they make are good for hikers.  He spends most of the winter months in Olympia and visits Washington, DC at least once a year to make sure that our state and federal representatives and senators hear from hikers.  Jonathan has hiked all over the Northern Midwest and Washington.  His favorite hike:  Juniper Ridge in the Dark Divide Roadless Area, Gifford Pinchot National Forest.  Email: jonathan@wta.org

Alyssa Kreider - Volunteer Coordinator

After serving for three years as WTA’s Mennonite Volunteer, Alyssa joined the permanent staff in 2005.  She manages more than 1,750 volunteers each year, taking them through the entire volunteer process from recruitment to recognition. In her five years at WTA, she has spent more than 200 days in the field working alongside these volunteers. Alyssa grew up in Ohio and learned to love hiking through an annual trek to the Great Smoky Mountains, where she summited the Chimney Tops multiple times as a youth. She graduated from Goshen College in Indiana in 2002. Her favorite hike is the Weden Creek Trail in the Darrington Ranger District. Email: alyssa@wta.org

Alan Carter Mortimer - Field Director

Alan has been a volunteer with Washington Trails Association for 11 years and a crew leader since 1998.  As WTA's new field director he oversees the planning and implementation of trail construction and maintenance projects.  He also trains volunteer crew leaders for the trail maintenance program.  In addition, he brings to WTA important expertise in computer mapping through his previous work as a GIS technician for tribes and an environmental consulting firm.  Alan's favorite hike is the Copper Pass - Twisp Pass loop on the Okanogan National Forest.  Email: alan@wta.org

Mike Owens - Chief Crew Leader

Mike leads mid-week trail maintenance crews throughout the year and has a strong following of volunteers who come back time and again because of his fun work parties.  Mike led 161 crews in 2007 and has more 1,400 days on the trail under his belt. Chances are you'll see him if you sign up for a work party Tuesday through Friday.  And you're sure to have a good time.

 

Kindra Ramos - Outreach Coordinator

Excited to put her personal passions and professional experience together educating and engaging hikers, Kindra came to WTA in December 2006.  She helps trail enthusiasts better understand their connection to parks, forests, and policy, what WTA’s role is, and what hikers can do to make a difference. Prior to coming to WTA, Kindra worked in Washington, DC doing outreach and advocacy for several non-profits. Her favorite hike: (mid-week during huckleberry season) Heliotrope Ridge in the Mount Baker Wilderness.  Email: kindra@wta.org

Dona Snow-Miller - Office Manager

Some of you may know Dona from the trail, where she can often be seen wearing an orange hard hat. She’s been volunteering as an assistant crew leader for five years now. That’s a pretty good trail resume. Her other resume has 20 years of administrative support at Seattle University. A Seattle native, backpacking is one of Dona's all-time favorite pasttimes.  She likes anything above treeline, and is especially fond of the alpine areas to found around Glacier Peak. Email: dona@wta.org

Lace Thornberg - Development Director

Lace graduated from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota with degrees in Writing and Communication/Theater Arts.  After moving west (where mountains and ocean would be nearby), she took on short stints at the Seattle Fringe Theater Festival and Heronswood Nursery before landing her ultimate gig at Washington Trails Association, where she currently serves as Development Director. She's the friendly face behind the fundraising letters and the creative force behind great events like Hike-a-Thon.  When she isn't working, Lace spends her free time getting scraped up while hiking, biking, climbing, and gardening.  Her favorite hiking haunts include Yellow Aster Butte, Ingalls Lake, Sahale Arm, and anywhere with ample ripe huckleberries. Email: lace@wta.org 

Tim Van Beek - Program Coordinator

Tim spent far too many years stuck inside office buildings keeping track of things. Mercifully, he was laid off Feb 2003. Having run across a WTA crew on Tiger Mountain and learning what they were up to, he went on a few day trips and fell in love with trail work. After a year of volunteering, he was asked to work for WTA helping out in the Gifford Pinchot NF and the Skykomish Ranger District. In 2005 he began crew leading Volunteer Vacations around the state.  His favorite hike is High Divide by Mt. Baker or anywhere in the Enchantments.  Email: tim@wta.org