PRESS ROOM - Key Persons
David Savinar is a native Oregonian and has fond memories of the Maryhill Museum of Art. He has served on the Maryhill Museum of Art Board of Trustees in the past, and returns to the board enthusiastic about what he can do for Maryhill. Currently he serves on the Board of Governors at Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA). David is very involved in the arts in the Northwest and has a background in marketing. David has two boys living in New York and Mexico City.
Job Titles:
- President of the Beaverton Arts Commission
Jim McCreight has served as president of the Beaverton Arts Commission, Beaverton Arts Foundation, Beaverton Chamber of Commerce and is President/Chairman Emeritus of the Museum Trustee Association. He served as a trustee at The High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon 2005-2013. Service on Maryhill committees includes Executive, Finance, Strategic Planning and Development. Jim joined the Maryhill Board of Trustees in 1995, served as treasurer in 1998 and was president from 1999 to 2002. He retired from board service in 2004 but again returned to service from 2005 to 2014. He retired again and returned to service on the Board of Trustees in 2015. Jim has a B.S. degree in history from Portland State University. He is currently Executive Director, Oregon Technology Business Center in Beaverton, OR.
Laura Cheney is a longtime resident of White Salmon and closely involved with the family lumber business. Laura graduated from the University of Oregon with a BA in Social Science and from The Katherine Gibbs School one-year administrative secretarial program for college graduates in New York City. She and husband John lived in Omaha, Nebraska, where she worked as secretary to the vice president of a brokerage firm while John completed his tour with the Navy at SAC Headquarters. Living in White Salmon since 1972, they raised three children while being active in the Community. Laura volunteered for 10 years with the Boy Scouts of America, holding various positions from den leader to Mid-Columbia District Commissioner. She participated in bringing AYSO soccer to White Salmon as well as PTA, serving as president for 2 years. She served as Klickitat County Chair for the Republican Party from 2001 through 2011. Interested in the arts, she and husband John are members of the Portland Art Museum and involved in a foundation whose focus is gifting to the arts annually.
Nancy Leahy grew up in Lake Oswego, Oregon and graduated from Purdue University in Speech and Hearing Pathology. She was speech and hearing pathologist in Walla Walla and Richland, Washington. Nancy taught in the Yakima School District, at Central Washington University and served as Station Manager of KYVE TV (PBS). In Arizona, she was Executive Director of Make-A-wish Foundation International and in Colorado, coordinator of the Early Care & Education Council of Boulder County. For six years she coordinated the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in Central Washington, and in 2010 was named Executive Director of the Yakima Valley Hearing & Speech Center which transitioned to being the Director of Astria Hospital Foundation i Sunnyside. She is currently Director of Development of Grand Columba Council Boy Scouts of America. Nancy is a 25-year member of the Rotary Club of Yakima and a member of the Yakima Rotary Trust Board. She has served on the boards of the Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce, Yakima Youth Baseball, Colorado American Legion Baseball Association and is currently Vice President of the Parker Youth and Sports Foundation in Yakima. She was an advisory board member of KCTS-KYVE TV (PBS) for nine years and has been on the Yakima Schools Superintendent's Advisory Committee for twelve years. Nancy has directed educational and fund-raising banquets, auctions, athletic tournaments, virtual and livestream productions during the past 40 years. She has three grown children and is at home in Yakima, Washington. Nancy was first elected in 2018.
Richard Wattenberg teaches theater history, literature, and criticism at Portland State University. His research interests are in American theater, and for some years he has focused on plays dealing with the American frontier experience. His book Early-Twentieth-Century Frontier Drama on Broadway: Situating the Western Experience in Performing Arts was published by Palgrave, Macmillan in 2011. Professor Wattenberg's articles have appeared in a number of journals including Journal of American Drama and Theatre, American Drama, Modern Drama, Essays in Theatre, and Western American Literature. As a theater professor, he has directed a number of full productions and stage readings. For over twenty years, Richard worked as a freelance theatre reviewer, publishing some 400 reviews in The Oregonian. Professor Wattenberg received his Ph.D. in Theater and Drama from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Due to the volume of research inquiries the museum receives, we request that all inquiries be submitted via email to collections@maryhillmuseum.org or in writing to: Collections & Curatorial Department, Maryhill Museum of Art 35 Maryhill Museum Drive, Goldendale, WA 98620. Please note that the museum cannot identify, authenticate, or appraise your collection.
Job Titles:
- Visitor Services & Museum Store Manager