KENAI WATERSHED FORUM - Key Persons
Alexis is from Walnutport Pennsylvania and is set to graduate from Paul Smith's College in May of 2024 with a major in Environmental Science and a minor in Chemistry. In the summer of 2022, Alexis had the opportunity to work with KWF as a Stream Watch Intern, and she is beyond excited to be back at the forum for another summer! In addition to her passion for conservation and restoration, Alexis also loves rugby. When not exploring the mountains or the river, she can often be found playing rugby on a pitch somewhere.
Ashlynn was originally born in Colorado but has since moved over 12 times and grew up in many parts of the world. She attended the University of Pittsburgh and has received a double degree in Environmental Studies and Communications and a certificate and distinction in Sustainability. Ashlynn is strongly interested in environmental conservation, invasive species research, fisheries science, and environmental communication. In her free time, Ashlynn loves to spend time outside kayaking, camping, hiking, hammocking, stargazing, etc. She also likes reading, film/photography, journaling, learning new skills/recipes, and meeting new people. Ashlynn looks forward to being a KWF Conservation Intern as she is interested in pursuing an M.S. degree in Fisheries Science and believes this experience will help expand her knowledge, experience, and skillset within the diverse field of environmental conservation!
Ben grew up in Wasilla, Alaska and holds an M.S. in Fisheries from University of Alaska Fairbanks. Benjamin has worked throughout Alaska in diverse natural resource management professions including wildland firefighting, science consulting, and tourism. Outside of Kenai Watershed Forum you can find him working on converting an old bus into an RV, coaching Junior Nordic at Tsalteshi Trails, or watching his dog chase squirrels. He loves reading and hearing about Alaska history.
Bonnie joins the Kenai Watershed Forum with over 10 years of experience in field botany & ecology, and 9 years of Alaskan residency. Their work at the KWF includes survey and monitoring efforts, geospatial analyses, and various kinds of fieldwork in support of native vegetation research and invasive species management. When not thinking about plants, Bonnie enjoys reading with her cat, making art, and skiing/hiking far off into the wilderness.
Brandon was born and raised in Michigan, and attended Michigan State University for a double major in Environmental Studies and Sustainability & Sustainable Parks Recreation and Tourism with a minor in Environmental Economics. Brandon has enjoyed the outdoors for as long as he can remember, with his favorite hobbies being fishing and hunting. Brandon started as a KWF intern in 2021, but has since made the jump to a full time employee and Alaskan, managing the Stream Watch program. Brandon spends most of his time working and interacting with various volunteers on projects including trash clean up, education/outreach, and stream bank remediation and protection.
Brandon also has a new found passion for volleyball and can be found playing or training when he isn't busy getting lost in the woods.
Ceili is originally from Winona, Minnesota, nestled right on the Mississippi River. She is a recent graduate from St. Olaf College where she majored in Biology and Environmental Science. Over the past few summers while in school she has worked in a variety of outdoor roles including working as a sea kayak guide for the nonprofit Wilderness Inquiry, partaking in prescribed burns and land management, and also working as a student researcher. Her academic interests have led her to use remote sensing for research in Northern Manitoba looking at forest fires, and also to a geospatial services internship where she first got connected with the Kenai Watershed Forum while looking at anadromous stream network mapping in the Kenai Peninsula. She is thrilled to spend her summer on the peninsula, meeting wonderful new people and working for the watershed!
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Dave Atcheson recently retired from the University of Alaska. He has written for a variety of periodicals, from Outdoor Life to Boy's Life, and his latest book is Dead Reckoning, Navigating a Life on the Last Frontier, Courting Tragedy on its High Seas, a memoir on his days as a commercial fisherman. He is also an avid fly fisher, teaches fly fishing at Kenai Peninsula College, and is the author of the guidebook Fishing Alaska's Kenai Peninsula, as well as National Geographic's Hidden Alaska, Bristol Bay and Beyond. He currently makes his home in Sterling, Alaska.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- Secretary
- Treasurer
At age nineteen, David was teaching metal working skills as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the western African country of Senegal. Returning to Pennsylvania and continuing his schooling, he studied Biology. David received a BA and a MS in Biology from Clarion University in Pennsylvania. Moving on to the University of Pittsburgh, he earned a PhD in Biology. David became a Professor of Biology for 22 years at East Stroudsburg University in PA. Along the way he earned a JD degree from Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan and was admitted to the Bar in both Pennsylvania and Alaska. David and his wife Kathleen moved to Kenai Peninsula in 1997 where he had been doing research on aquatic insects of Alaska. He discovered several new species of midges and identified the Chironomidae (midges) found in the Kenai River. The University of Alaska Anchorage, Kenai Peninsula College, hired him as a Professor of Biology and he taught there for 18 years before finally retiring from another job that he loved. David has been an active volunteer his entire life, serving as a volunteer EMT and Paramedic for 17 years and a volunteer National Ski Patrol member for 30 years. In Alaska, he has been very active volunteering for the Tustumena-200 and the Iditarod Sled Dog Races as well as helping on a variety of Rotary Club projects. His continual pastimes are flying his airplane, riding a snowmobile, camping, hiking, gardening, and fishing anywhere there are fish. He became a board member of the Kenai Watershed Forum in 1998 and has enjoyed guiding and supporting the services provided by KWF.
Ellis grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and currently attends the University of Vermont. She is a junior Natural Resources major with a minor in Geospatial Technologies. Ellis has spent previous summers and semesters working extensively with drone systems, GIS, and botanical research. For the 2024 season, Ellis will be one of the Stream Watch Interns at the Kenai Watershed Forum. This summer, Ellis is looking forward to exploring the Kenai Peninsula and working to help conserve this important ecosystem.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Gary has lived in Alaska for 26 years, with three years in Fairbanks, two in Ketchikan and 21 in Soldotna. He presently lives on the Kenai River and participated in the 50-50 Cost Share program with the Kenai River Center to stabilize his riverbank and install light penetrating walkways. Gary received his master's degree in mass communication and pursued PhD. coursework in human communication at Denver University. Gray Joined the Air-Force and retired in 1994, then served as the continuing education coordinator, and communication instructor at the University of Alaska Southeast-Ketchikan Campus. He then became a NASA public affairs program manager at Marshal Space Flight Center in Alabama. In June 2002, Gary was hired as the director/CEO of Kenai Peninsula College. He retired in July 2021 as the longest-serving director in KPC's history and was named Emeritus Director. Gary co-founded the Kenai River Guide Academy, founded the Kenai Fishing Academy, and resided as a board member for the Kenai River Sportfishing Association for 11 years. Gary served on the Alaska Select Committee for Legislative Ethics from 2006-17, and was named the 2012 Soldotna Chamber of Commerce Person of the Year. He is a member of the American Legion, VFW and the Air Force Public Affairs Alumni Association. He is married and enjoys spending time with his son and grandsons, and watching them play hockey and fish.
Job Titles:
- Natural Resources Technician
Katrina Danzinger will join the invasive species team this summer season as a natural resources technician. In a hybrid position, she'll work with Homer Soil & Water Conservation District (HSWCD) and the Kenai Watershed Forum (KWF) on terrestrial plant projects, Elodea surveys, and certified weed-free gravel inspections and outreach. Katrina interned with KWF in the summer of 2023 and worked as a GIS technician in Minnesota during her winter away. She brings with her some great technical skills and lots of local, on-the-ground knowledge. We're sure glad Katrina decided to spend the summer with us!
Job Titles:
- Kenai Peninsula Fish Habitat Partnership Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Lorraine "Sammy" Crawford came to Alaska in 1968 after receiving her B.S. and M.A. from the University of Nebraska. She taught in central Kenai schools and was honored to be selected as Teacher of the Year. She's been a community activist and volunteer to many organizations including League of Women Voters, Kenai Peninsula School Board, Caring for the Kenai, Performing Arts Society, Soldotna Rotary Club, Kenai Community Library, KDLL Public Radio, Tsalteshi Trails, Women's Investment Club, and a member for 30+ years in her local book club. She has traveled to nearly 100 countries and plans to visit more. She's always had a great deal of respect for the environment and this amazing place on the planet where we live. She's eager to work with the Kenai Watershed Forum board and continue their important and challenging work.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- President of the Board of Directors
Matthew Pyhala, D.C. has served on the Board of Director of the Kenai Watershed Forum since 2012. Dr. Pyhala is a life-long Alaskan and grew up on the Kenai Peninsula, in Anchor Point. He is the grandson of Earl and Margarite Johnson, Anchor Point homesteaders. Matthew grew up on the homestead overlooking the North Fork of the Anchor River. His youth was spent traversing the banks fishing for Rainbow Trout and Dolly Varden and exploring the rich watershed below his home. He commercial fished on the family set gillnet sites on Kalgin Island, then drift gillnet in Cook Inlet and Bristol Bay along with halibut longline fishing. He graduated from Homer High School in 1993, then attended Gonzaga University, earning a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science in 1997. Following his undergraduate studies, he enrolled at Western States Chiropractic College, earning his Doctor of Chiropractic in 2001. Immediately following graduation from chiropractic college, he returned to the Kenai Peninsula where he has since lived and practiced as a chiropractic physician. Dr. Pyhala has served on several boards for various nonprofit organizations. He is an active Rotarian with the Rotary Club of Soldotna. He is an avid sea kayaker and holds a level 4 Coastal Kayak Instructor certification through the American Canoe Association. He and his wife, Sarah, own and operate a small paddling instruction company, Immersion Paddling Academy, LLC, focusing on safe paddling and skill progression. Matthew has two children, Moira and Tabor. Moira is a recent UAA graduate and now lives and works in Anchorage. Matthew, Sarah, and Tabor live in Kenai near the river mouth. Matthew is happiest when he's outdoors experiencing nature.
Job Titles:
- Kenai Peninsula Fish Habitat Partnership Coordinator
Introducing Melissa Smith! Melissa started as the new Coordinator for the Kenai Peninsula Fish Habitat Partnership in late November. She was born and raised in Alaska and has always enjoyed the bounty of the State's natural resources; from backpacking in the Kenai Mountains to filling her freezer with the most pristine fish and game meat on the planet. Melissa has held various natural resource jobs, which has cultivated a strong sense of connection to and concern for the sensitive fish habitat on the Kenai River and surrounding salmon streams. Melissa is excited to take on this new role, so she can continue to protect and enhance fish habitat through partnerships that actively seek to foster fish habitat conservation on the Kenai Peninsula. You can email Melissa at fishhabitat@kenaiwatershed.org.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
It was a dark and stormy winter night when Mitch and his family flew into Kenai from Maine 25 years ago, but his experience working with natural resources didn't start there. Mitch has gained experience with a wide array of local associations, and recent natural resource issues and solutions. A forester by education, Mitch has always stayed on the fringe of the woods, working with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Maine on water quality and riparian management, and in Alaska on reforestation, wildlife, and water management with Native Corporations. He has even spent time on the edge of the Sahara, slowing desertification with the Peace Corps. His transition from the USDA-NRCS to the US Forest Service allowed him to stay closer to home as the Vegetation Manager/Forester for the Chugach National Forest, the headwaters of the Kenai River. Mitch is currently working with a number of not-for-profits on planting trees, assisting international students, supporting public radio, soil and water conservation projects, and health care. He also works as a commercial fisher in the Cook Inlet. KWF was on his list for greater involvement and he was excited and honored to be asked to help KWF move into a new era.
Row grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is a rising junior at Columbia University majoring in Biochemistry. She is interested in environmental conservation and restoration as well as climate change research. She is very excited to spend the summer exploring Alaska and improving the Kenai Peninsula. Her hobbies include hiking, reading, learning new ways to cook eggs, and volleyball.
Job Titles:
- Environmental Scientist / Development Coordinator
Sara is originally from Friendswood, TX and attended Louisiana Tech University, where she majored in Environmental Science. She has spent many summers in the Moose Pass area, hiking, kayaking, and fishing with her family. After graduating college, Sara immediately moved to Alaska full-time and began working at the Kenai Watershed Forum.
Sara spent her first year working with and getting familiarized with each department at the KWF. She has since taken on the role of Development Coordinator. In this role, she hopes to reenergize KWF membership base, and show our supporters how much we at the Kenai Watershed appreciate our community members and their support. Sara looks forward to getting involved around the peninsula, meeting people, and working to protect the area that means so much to her.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
The Kenai River was the background for most of Terri's childhood experiences. It is the ribbon that laces her memories together. Born in Soldotna and raised in a cabin her family built on the banks of the river, she personally witnessed the impacts of development and increased use and is compelled to be involved in advocating for the health of the river rather than any specific user group. She has served 6 years on the Kenai River Special Management Advisory Board and now serves on the board for the Kenai Watershed Forum. Terri has a master's degree in Elementary Education Curriculum Integration and is in her 23 rd year of teaching for the Kenai Peninsula School District. Every year she takes her class rafting on the river as they study the science of the watershed, history of its people, and the life cycle of the salmon. She wants to encourage the next generation to love the river and empower them to protect it.
With an impressive background in fisheries management and aquatic habitat restoration, Dodson brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the organization. Dodson has been an engaged community member and professional in the field since 2001, making significant contributions to various organizations in Alaska like Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association, Cook Inlet Regional Citizen Advisory Council, and the Kodiak Regional Aquaculture Association. Expressing his enthusiasm for returning full time to the Central Kenai Peninsula, Dodson is eager to leverage his skills and expertise to advance KWF's initiatives.