MEET OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Board members
Board members volunteer their time to serve for a minimum three-year commitment. Members come from a variety of backgrounds and are always eager to speak with you about the Clubs.
Feel free to stop one of us on the street when you see us and ask how YOU can CONNECT with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Chaffee County. We are always looking for passionate folks to serve on our board from anywhere in Chaffee County.
Gwen Allen
Board Chair
Since moving to Salida in 2013, Gwen has been a stalwart supporter of the Clubs. When she and her husband, Brett Eakins, purchased Central Colorado Title, they continued that business's longtime investment in the Clubs.
Gwen's daughter attends the Salida Club so she knows how important the programs are to our youngsters. As an attorney and one who helps new families coming into our valley, she brings amazing skills to our board!
Cara Larimer
Vice Chair
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Cara joined the board in January 2020, even with a growing family. (She had recently given birth to her second child.) Her older son is a Club member, and Cara realizes the value of this great organization.
Cara's dad has served on a Club board in Arkansas for many years so she knows what it takes to make a Club successful. She currently serves as co-chair for our Building Great Futures Buena Vista Committee between her busy work travels and family duties.
Deb Payton
Secretary
Deb is an RN and has worked as an ER, ICU, and PACU nurse. She served as PTA president and ran the foreign exchange program at her children’s schools and also started reading-incentive programs. Here in Salida, she has served on the Board of Salida Sunrise Rotary, head of the Budget and Finance Committee and started the Career Day in conjunction with the Salida Schools. She also heads the Junior Achievement Program in the schools as well as the Interact Club in the Middle School. Supporting youth has been a lifelong passion for Deb!
Deb loves the active lifestyle of Salida and is happiest outdoors. She was instrumental in our Salida Capital Campaign; we wouldn't be in our new building without her!
Jan Schmidt
Treasurer
Following a 20-year corporate career that started as an auditor for Deloitte & Touche and included years preparing public financial reports and managing teams for multi-national firms, Jan moved to Salida and continued her career in the government sector. Currently the finance officer for Chaffee County DHS, she spent the previous 8 1/2 years as the city's finance director.
Jan has served on the boards of statewide and local nonprofits and is excited to contribute her accounting and management skills to our Club. An avid outdoor enthusiast, Jan enjoys spending as much time as possible on trails, rivers or ski slopes.
Marji Ackermann
Marji brings a wealth of communications experience to the board, having worked in the editorial, corporate and nonprofit sectors during a 40-year career, most recently as the retired director of marketing and public relations at Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center. She believes Boys & Girls Clubs play a critical role in Chaffee County, both for the children who participate in the After-School and Summer programs and for the working parents who depend upon the Clubs. She currently serves as chair of the Resource Development committee.
After discovering Salida in the early 2000s, she and her husband relocated here and spend as much time as possible hiking in the mountains with their two golden retrievers.
Felicia Hermosillo
Felicia Hermosillo is an exceptional learning specialist at Longfellow Elementary School in Salida. She has worked in tandem with the Boys and Girls Club to ensure her students are receiving support both in and outside of school. She is passionate about equity and justice and speaks up on behalf of students and families who may otherwise be excluded from the machinations of decision-making.
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Felicia is bilingual, having lived in Mexico for three years during her previous career as an engineer. In her spare time, she likes to be outside as much as possible trail running, hiking, backpacking, climbing peaks, and maintaining trails.
Kristen Hussey
Kristen Hussey joined the BGCCC Board in January 2023, after volunteering on the BGCCC Finance Committee since Fall 2021. She is a CPA and is currently the Assistant Finance Director at the City of Salida. In addition to working in government, Kristen has prior experience as a Big Four auditor, preparing tax returns, and performing various bookkeeping duties. In her free time, Kristen enjoys spending time with a good book or outdoors with her husband, son, and dog.
Dustin Nichols
Dustin joined the BGCCC board in 2018 and currently serves as chair of the Facility committee. His children attend the BV Club so he knows how vital this organization is.
Dustin is a VP, senior relationship manager and market manager for TBK Bank in Buena Vista. He also serves on the boards of Chaffee County Habitat for Humanity and Chaffee County Community Foundation and has a great passion for helping others!
Chas Weaver
Chas is the Buena Vista Commercial Loan Officer for High Country Bank. She has over two decades of lending experience and has served her community on a University of Arkansas Alumni Board and been active in Rotary, Kiwanis, and the Chamber of Commerce Leadership Programs of Northwest Arkansas.
She is fond of the quote, “Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see.” She believes the way we improve the world is to make an impact on the lives of our children, and Boys & Girls Clubs are crucial to the communities they serve by allowing parents and guardians to work while making a positive impact on the adults of tomorrow.
Mitch Wright
Mitch owns Mitch Wright Insurance Agency in Salida and has tons of enthusiasm for our organization. He is currently the head of our vital Safety Committee and has helped implement a variety of safety initiatives for both Clubs since the safety of our members is our #1 priority!
Emeritus Board Members
These folks have distinguished themselves by previously serving on the board of directors.
Though not currently on the board, they continue to serve in a variety of capacities including fundraising, event operation, finance, facilities, and making the community aware of the importance of this organization.
Marilyn Box
Marilyn served on the board from 2011-2013 and lives in Buena Vista. During her career, she worked as an educator for more than 30 years. Marilyn still does literacy consulting for schools in the Southwest. She believes that her work on the board was a natural extension of her professional efforts to support children and families.
Marilyn has seen the work of the Clubs contribute daily to the positive development of Chaffee County's children and teens and strengthen the community overall. She continues to help with events and document design.
Gloria Broudy
Salidan Gloria Broudy served on the board to become part of an organization that helps make a significant difference in the lives of children.
Gloria's career included teaching, educational testing and educational-program management. She enjoys playing tennis and pickleball, traveling and taking photographs.
Irv Broudy
Irv served for seven years on the board and was instrumental in bringing 21st-Century technology and statistics to our organization. He lives in Salida with his wife, Gloria. He knows from personal experience how important organizations like the Boys & Girls Clubs are for kids. Irv enjoys working with children and has been a volunteer and spearheaded the online tutoring program Kahn Academy.
His career included educational testing, research, college admissions and teaching. He directed SAT, PSAT and AP programs and taught and consulted in China, Lebanon and the U.S. Irv enjoys biking, hiking and pickleball (which he brought to our county)!
Duncan Campbell
Duncan worked for the Hewlett Packard Company for 34 years in California and Colorado before retirement. He believes the Chaffee County Clubs provide key benefits to the community to enhance academic success, citizenship and healthy lifestyles for boys and girls.
Duncan views the Chaffee County Boys & Girls Clubs as the "Gold Standard" in youth development by serving 800+ kids per year and delivering a high quality Club experience for every kid. Duncan has a love of the outdoors and is a ski instructor at Monarch Mountain. He served as board chair for five years.
Karen Dils
A Buena Vista teacher for 24 years and river outfitter for 25 years, Karen, now retired, initially volunteered on the Steering Committee to bring the Clubs to Buena Vista. She sat on the board for nine years, the majority of that time serving as board president, stepping down in 2015. She still serves on the Resource Development Committee and says her experience as a teacher showed her the importance of other adults in a child’s life.
Karen believes kids and families need a safe, productive and fun place to be after school. She has seen children at the Clubs learn character development and good citizenship and contribute to their communities in ways that they were not able to do at school. Karen has always loved sports and continues to participate in activities such as pickleball, rafting, fly fishing, skiing and backpacking.
Oren Dreeben
Oren is a transplant from Texas and is amazing with people! He volunteered with our Club members for years before serving on the board. His easygoing personality and love of life just attracts youngsters. His passion for helping young people was exemplified by his longtime association with Texas nonprofits. Oren is a talented harmonica player you might encounter in musical gigs around town.
Scott Erchul
A banker and founding board member, Scott served for six years – as vice president, president, and a member of the Resource Development, Finance, Human Resources, Facilities and Marketing committees – before becoming an emeritus member. He currently sits on the Resource Development Committee and serves as co-chair to the Building Great Futures Buena Vista Committee.
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Scott was initially recruited to the board by a steering committee attempting to organize local Boys & Girls Clubs as a replacement for an outgoing after-school program in Salida. He agreed to join the efforts because he believes the Clubs have proven themselves nationally, had good potential for success, and the need within the community for such a program was evident. Scott was certain the impact of forming the Clubs would be widespread for the children, families, schools and communities within the county. Since then, he has seen measurable results for area youth.
Scott likes to spend as much time as possible with his family, including three grandchildren, enjoying outdoor activities.
Art Gentile
The former president of Collegiate Peaks Bank, Salida resident Art joined the board to become part of a group that plays a vital role in developing a child’s learning ability in a supervised and fun environment. He sees the Clubs' STEM program as a "game changer" for youth.
Art believes the Boys & Girls Clubs provide different learning opportunities for children and give kids a place to go instead of hitting the streets and potentially getting in trouble. He has served on the Finance, Governance and Fundraising committees. In his free time, Art enjoys golf and fulfilled a bucket-list wish when he attended the Masters Golf Tournament in 2016.
Jack Lee
Jack lives just west of Poncha Springs with his wife, Cheryl, and their dogs and horses. For nine years, Jack was a vital part of our Finance, Resource Development, and Facilities committees, taking us through some very trying times. He joined the board out of a desire to get involved in a community organization which fills a real and significant need for parents and children of the county.
Prior to his retirement, Jack worked for nine years for Sears and Eastman Kodak before running his own business for 30 years. In his free time, Jack loves antique cars and being outside and canoeing.
Amy Stanley
Amy Stanley moved to Salida in 2015. Joining the Boys & Girls Clubs board was a great way to get to know her new community and make a meaningful contribution.
From serving in AmeriCorps after college to her career in higher education, she's always worked with youth in some capacity. Currently she is the assistant dean of student affairs for Colorado Mountain College in Chaffee County.
Jeanine Zeman
A former corporate-event coordinator, Jeanine began her relationship with the Club as a volunteer. She coordinated all the volunteers for fundraisers and then became not only part of the board, but also board president.
As a retired realtor, Jeanine knows how important an organization such as this is to families moving to the area. In her free time, Jeanine and her husband enjoy fixing up old houses.