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Michigan LCV Staff

 

Lisa Wozniak, Executive Director, lisa@michiganlcv.org
 
I love Michigan because people who have never been here don't believe that it could possibly be this beautiful or that that Lakes could be so vast. I love Michigan because once you've been here and experienced the sugar-sand beaches and sand dunes, the forests, the rocky shores of Lake Superior and the incredible beauty of the Keewenaw Peninsula, the endless and perfect expanse of Lake Michigan while the sun is setting, you wonder why you've ever been anywhere else. And, I love Michigan because I always believed, as a kid growing up in the Mediterranean, that all seas were salty. Not this one.
 
Lisa comes to the Michigan League of Conservation Voters with a long history in both the environmental and political worlds. Between 1996 and 2005, Lisa served as the Great Lakes Regional Director for the national League of Conservation Voters, overseeing programs and projects in Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio and Wisconsin, with an enormous focus on keeping the Great Lakes Congressional caucus in check. Prior to that, Lisa cut her teeth on Lana Pollack's1994 heart-wrenching U.S. Senate campaign and on Alma Wheeler Smith's successful campaign for state Senate. Bitten by the political bug, Lisa was destined to deal with Michigan's current political challenges, which includes the world of term limits, reapportionment, and a bi-partisan log-jam.
 
Lisa is adept at working with a broad array of people and organizations and brings a strategic vantage point to almost any discussion. Although she may deny her expertise (and the years behind her), Lisa  is thought of as a key leader within the conservation community in Michigan. With degrees in French and History of Art, Education and Social Work--all from the University of Michigan--Lisa's strong interdisciplinary background clearly influences Michigan LCV's approach to problem solving, collaborative campaigns, and political change.
 
Many may consider Lisa an extravert, but a deep, dark secret is that Lisa recharges by being alone!  Give her a good book, time to tend to the garden or do yoga, a run with her dog, and Lisa is good to go.... peaceful, calm, measured, attentive. And, meshed between the politics and the garden is Lisa's beautiful family: husband Kenny, hip young sons Zachariah and Benjamin, and lovely dog, Santosha.
 
Lisa serves on the board of a number of local, state and national organizations, including the Advisory Board of Growing Hope, the fundraising committee of Friends of the Rutherford Pool, and the boards of the Michigan Environmental Council and the national League of Conservation Voters Education Fund.
 
Pam Bierzynski, Director of Operations, pam@michiganlcv.org
 
I love Michigan. It’s that simple. I can’t explain why, I just do.
 
Pam’s official title is Director of Operations, but we’ve been thinking about changing it. So far, we’ve come up with “point guard,” “master juggler,” “production director,” “life manager,” “IT specialist,” or “Pam of all trades.” If it weren’t for Pam, we’d need a larger office to host more staff. It’s safe to say while you are reading this, she is probably busy trying to find a way to help our organization run more efficiently and effectively. Her duties include managing the Michigan LCV newsletter and assisting in all facets of our programs, development, and administration.


Since childhood, Pam has always loved the outdoors, whether playing soccer or camping with her family. Eventually, her deep appreciation for nature –combined with her skills on the soccer field – led her to Aquinas College (a school known for its beautiful forested campus). There she earned degrees in Geography and Sociology, and was awarded Geographer of the Year and Academic All-American honors on the soccer field. Upon completing her studies, Pam worked as a City Year Detroit Americorps member and as an Associate Financial Representative with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network before being recruited to join the Michigan LCV team. We’re happy to say, she’s ours now.


A hard-core vegetarian, Pam lives in Plymouth with her husband, Tim, an environmental consultant with AKT Peerless Environmental & Energy Services ,and her two cats, Harley and Tanqueray (currently both cats are unemployed). When she’s not daydreaming about riding motorcycles, Pam enjoys spending time outdoors experiencing nature through the lens of her camera. In her free time, she also assists KMS Photography LLC in Dearborn.

Ryan Werder, Political Director, ryan@michiganlcv.org

Ryan has lived in seven different cities and five different states and, while he can’t exactly call himself a Michigan native, he certainly does call Michigan home.  As a kid, he would look forward to summertime when he would head off to participate in, and years later ultimately lead, wilderness trips that would take him rock climbing, mountain biking, canoeing, or simply hiking in Northern Wisconsin (or just south of the UP, as he would more likely say now).
 
Ryan’s early exposure to the beauty of the Great Lakes region led him to remain deeply interested not only enjoying the outdoors, but protecting it, as well.  Immediately out of college, Ryan was fortunate enough to work and learn from one of America’s greatest conservationists, Congressman John Dingell, who passed the majority of America’s landmark environmental legislation over the past fifty years. In Rep. Dingell’s Michigan office, Ryan was responsible for operating across all political levels and for translating the debate in Washington into tangible assistance for the constituents of the area.
Ryan’s greatest passion during his time in the Congressman’s office, however, was the opportunity to work many exciting hours guiding and growing the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge.  For those of you have not yet had the chance to visit one of the most remarkable urban refuges in North America, and the only international one, please stop reading this bio immediately and head toward the Detroit River now.

 
Before diving headfirst into Michigan politics and conservation, Ryan was well occupied as a student at the University of Michigan.  On campus, he founded The Michigan Independent – a progressive monthly magazine that, within three months, attained a circulation of over 5000 students.  Ryan also was also responsible for the communications and policy work for the largest College Democrats chapter in the country.  Forecasting the future, his place of employment his senior year was the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. While in Ann Arbor, he also picked up his degree in Political Science.

 
Ryan’s current role at Michigan LCV as Political Director involves managing the annual Scorecard, endorsement and PAC recommendations to the Board, and overseeing the overall political operations of the organization.



Outside of work, Ryan can generally be found drinking an Oberon on his back porch or running around the region’s many expansive parks in funny shoes.  On the weekends, odds are he is either at Eastern Market, cooking something up that he bought there, or otherwise boosting Michigan’s economy by eating at any number of the state’s incredible restaurants.

Erica Bloom, Program Manager, erica@michiganlcv.orgphoto erica bloom

I love Michigan for the beauty of its changing seasons, the wildness of its northern waters, and the creative spirit of its major city Detroit.  

Erica recently moved back to Michigan to start as the Programs Manager for MLCV. Prior to this job she lived among the mountains and rivers in Missoula, Montana where she received a M.S in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana. There, she worked on campus sustainability campaigns and interned at the women’s environmental health organization Women’s Voices for the Earth. She has a strong interest in environmental health and justice issues specifically related to women’s involvement in the anti-toxic movement.
 
Erica feels most inspired when outside in the woods or around water, and often craves a good hike or a camping trip. 

Phil Skaggs, West Michigan Director, phil@michiganlcv.orgphoto phil skaggs

Phil was born and raised in Ohio, but moved to Michigan at the first available opportunity. He attended the University of Michigan, majoring in Russian studies as an undergraduate and Russian history as a graduate student. After getting married, spending time in Washington D.C., Moscow and other cities in Russia and Ukraine, Phil returned to Michigan in 2000. In Grand Rapids, he settled into his chosen profession – teaching history and humanities first at Grand Valley State University and then Aquinas College. A few years back, unexpectedly, he was bitten by both a political bug and a profound desire to improve his community rather than just complaining from his ivory tower (seriously, it actually had ivory). At a crossroads, Phil decided to leave academia and join the MLCV as the new West Michigan Director in March 2011.

Phil’s love for Michigan blossomed during summers on the family cottage on the shores of Burt Lake. Phil is looking forward to working in West Michigan on regional politics and policies related to water protection, healthy communities, energy policies, and public transportation.

Phil lives in East Grand Rapids with his wife Beth and their two daughters Lainey and Julia as well as a dog, two cats and the longest living goldfish in West Michigan. When he finds free time, Phil takes in the occasional opera, watches Michigan football and hockey, goes to his daughters’ swim meets, and generally hangs out with family and friends. He prides himself on raising two pure Michigan daughters: they wear shorts while there is still snow on the ground and hate the ocean, frequently wondering, “why is there salt in this water?”

Zane Corriveau, West Michigan Organizer, zane@michiganlcv.orgphoto zane corriveau

Zane was born in Columbus, Ohio but had the good sense to move to Grand Rapids, Michigan before he learned to walk or talk. He studied Political Science at Michigan State University, graduating with a B.A. in 2009. After college, Zane worked as a House page, intern and volunteer for political causes around Lansing. After years of bugging his friends and family to get involved in causes, Zane landed a job as a field organizer for Repower America, and began to bug his loved ones professionally. Now with Michigan LCV, Zane is extremely happy to be organizing in his home city of Grand Rapids.

Zane currently lives in the woods of northern Grand Rapids, with his two cats and one very loud wild turkey. Zane loves the spending time outside (when its not freezing), watching movies inside (when it is freezing), and cheering for the Tigers all summer long.

photo starla mcdermottStarla McDermott, Moms Clean Air Force Organizer (West Michigan), starla@michiganlcv.org

Starla was born and raised in northern California but has lived in the Midwest for 18 years and in Grand Rapids, Michigan for almost six years. She can honestly say, after living in five different states, which included Idaho and Virginia, West Michigan is her favorite place to live. She loves to camp and kayak in northern Michigan and looks forward to the time when everyone can kayak down the Grand River, right through downtown Grand Rapids. Starla is the mother of three children; one in college, one in high school and one in middle school. In the past year she has begun running and has participated in several local 5k's or dashes and, for the first time ran in the Fifth Third River Bank Run along the Grand River last spring.

For the past 20 years or so, Starla has been in sales and marketing within the natural and organic food industry and have worked for large companies such as Tree of Life/Kehe Foods and The Hain Celestial Group. She is a huge proponent of sustainable, organic foods and has enjoyed working with locally owned natural food stores throughout the Midwest.

Within this past year, Starla changed career paths and went back to school to study Non-Profit Management. Before joining Michigan LCV, she worked part-time with the West Michigan Environmental Action Council, planning events around water quality such as the Grand River Water Festival and The Grand River Clean Up.

She is excited to be apart of Michigan LCV and the Moms Clean Air Force, and feels that it is the natural next step in her quest to help make our earth healthier for all.

photo wibke heymachWibke Rebecca Bettina Heymach, Moms Clean Air Force Organizer (Southeast Michigan), wibke@michiganlcv.org

Born and raised in Berlin, Germany, Wibke grew up politically in and around the Green Party, and was involved with them for years before moving to the United States. Since her name - Wibke - is a bit of a mouth full, people have grown accustomed to calling her “Vee” for short...for those of you who don't speak German, a “W” is pronounced like a “V”. Growing up Vee has always enjoyed the great outdoors; camping, canoeing, horse back riding, skiing and hiking all over Europe.

While finishing her degree in North-American history and politics at Freie Universitaet Berlin, she was offered an internship with the Macomb Democratic Party and so began her love-affair with Michigan. During her first visit in 2006 she fell head over heels for the beauty of the state and its people. Vee officially moved to Michigan in 2007 to complete her Masters degree in Industrial Relations at Wayne State University. She has lived in Ferndale ever since and enjoys Oakland County for its plethera of cities that offer diverse restaurants and bars, as well as great micro-breweries, galleries and events throughout the year. Vee also enjoys spending time in Detroit as it has often been compared to the industrial urban feel of her hometown, Berlin.

She has worked on various campaigns during her time in the U.S., and later on worked for the Michigan House of Representatives. Always interested in Union political work, Vee worked for the UFCW’s Legislative and Political Office before joining Michigan LCV as a Mom’s Clean Air Force Organizer. Having worked in the political field for many years, she is very excited to work for a single cause and utilize her organizing chops in a different approach to community organizing.

Making sure the communities we live in and that our children are raised in a healthy and pollution free place is a high priority for Vee. She is happy to work with mothers and caregivers to help raise awareness and mobilize citizens in support of the Clean Air Act.