Wendy has over 32 years of financial services experience. She is a founding partner of Champlain Investment Partners and oversees compliance and operations at the firm. Prior to joining Champlain, Wendy was a Registered Principal at Equity Services, Inc., where she managed the home office operations of the broker-dealer. Prior to that, she spent 14 years at Scudder Kemper Investments. In her most recent role at Scudder Kemper, Wendy was Vice President of The Regulatory Oversight Group; her group was responsible for all non-routine regulatory interactions, oversight of the Code of Ethics, as well as the compliance audit function. Wendy also held management positions in distributor and advisor compliance and investment operations. Wendy graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Vermont and earned her Masters of Business Administration degree from Boston University. Wendy currently serves on the boards of University of Vermont’s Grossman School of Business, Green Mountain Adaptive Sports, and Vermont Youth Conservation Corps.

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George Russell is an 8th generation Vermonter who left the state for college and returned in 2009 to be close to family and his roots. His corporate career involved selling and servicing products used by farmers and contractors both in North America and globally. He is founder of Machinery Advisors Consortium whose several independent consultants advise machinery manufacturers and their dealers in North and South America, and Europe. His corporate leadership positions have been in marketing, product development, strategic and business planning, and international dealer sales management. He and his wife Judy lived and managed for Case and CNH Industrial in Italy and France, where he was last Regional Vice President of Sales and Marketing for construction equipment in Europe, Africa, Middle East and CIS. His history honors thesis at Harvard was about agricultural development in Addison Country and his MBA from Chicago was in Strategic Marketing. He lives in downtown Burlington and serves on several local boards including The Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History in Middlebury, which provides the opportunity to check on the family farm in New Haven dating back to 1788. The Vermont legacy and future is his driver to help VYCC deliver on its mission.

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Jenny is an Executive Director and Banker at J.P. Morgan Private Bank in Boston and has been working with wealthy families for almost 25 years. Bringing to bear the full resources of the firm, Jenny helps to provide her clients with J.P. Morgan’s expertise in investment management, banking, fiduciary and wealth advisory services.  Prior to J.P. Morgan, Jenny spent 15 years with Goldman Sachs in Private Wealth Management where she orchestrated a full array of client services to affluent individuals, families, and organizations. She is passionate about the state  of Vermont and spends a significant amount of time here with her family, enjoying camping, skiing, taking advantage of  the local food scene and photographing the beautiful VT landscape. Jenny is former chair of the Finance Committee for Mercy Connections in Burlington and joined the board of VYCC as a strategic advisor. Jenny is an avid photographer in all her free time, loves to travel, and resides in the Boston area with her husband, two children, and two English labs.

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John has spent the last 17 years working in executive positions with two of Vermont’s premier family-owned food businesses. As CEO of Butternut Mountain Farm John led a team that significantly expanded that business and the promotion of Vermont Maple Syrup. Most recently John was the COO and CFO of Lake Champlain Chocolates, joining at the onset of the COVID 19 pandemic. At Lake Champlain Chocolates John worked with an executive team to address the pandemic and position the business for continued growth. Prior to these roles in finance and operations John was a CPA and commercial banker, most recently at KeyBank of Vermont. His experience in public accounting and commercial finance provided a wealth of experience and a broad overview of business and organizational management. John enjoys working with mission driven organizations seeking to do business the right way by focusing on the well-being of employees, community, and environment. John is a graduate of the University of Connecticut where he earned a BS in Accounting. He also earned a MS in Finance from Bentley College. He is an advisory board member to Lawson’s Finest Liquids and Lake Champlain Chocolates. He is a volunteer member of the Investment Committee of the Flexible Capital Fund (an investment fund of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund). John and his wife, Diane, and their dog, Luke, live in Hinesburg, Vermont where they enjoy working on their property, hiking, and Nordic skiing. Their favorite times are with family sharing a good meal or around the firepit sharing stories.

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Ezra joins the VYCC board after being a Project Lead with the Food and Farm Program in 2019, and participating in the Racial Equity Leadership Team in 2022. He is eager to continue to support an organization that has been so pivotal in his professional and personal growth. Having grown up near VYCC and hearing lore from his mom who served with the Vermont Conservation Corps in 1975 and 1976, you could say it was only appropriate that VYCC is again a part of Ezra’s life. Currently living in NYC, Ezra is the Greenmarket Operations Manager for GrowNYC. He supports a team that oversees over 45 producer only farmers markets through the city that support more than 200 farmers, bakers, and food business owners. Ezra enjoys being able to visit markets and neighborhood throughout the 5 boroughs! In his free time he enjoys biking and finding the city’s best fried chicken sandwich!

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Bo’s first job was as a Corps Member in the summer of 2010. That initial stint building bridges along the Catamount Trail left him wanting more, and he returned the next year for the full season. The experience made an indelible mark on him. He found tremendous satisfaction in working towards tangible goals and felt connected to land and community. Subsequently, Bo has spent the bulk of his professional life in education. He’s an experienced teacher who holds his master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. He’s taught in public, private and therapeutic schools, while always bringing a passion for outdoor, experiential learning into his lessons. Bo’s thrilled to return to VYCC and for the opportunity to connect a new generation with meaningful work that he firmly believes benefits both our society and the planet. Other interests include: songwriting, running, and performing in his band, The Burning Sun.

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The VYCC board includes a rotating 1-year staff position as an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors.

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Anne Adler, a graduate of Wheaton College (Norton, MA) and Boston College Law School, practiced securities law for 15 years. While raising 5 sons and a daughter she did volunteer work and then became webmaster for an independent day school from 2002-2010 working with the communications, alumni and development teams. Her volunteer work included serving on multiple boards acting as counsel and/or overseeing the organization’s website, including being President/Board Chair of The Keewaydin Foundation based in Salisbury, VT.  Anne has also served on the parents boards of her children’s schools, the Junior League, and Women of Vision.

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Debbie Archer is a lover of learning by following your curiosity, which is really helpful for her work as an environmental educator. She earned her BS in Biology from James Madison University in Virginia and MS in Environmental Science from Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs.  She gained experience in outdoor education working as an educator, naturalist, and camp program manager at environmental education camps in Alaska and California. She got into this field while serving with AmeriCorps, first as a Youth Crew Leader with Southeast Alaska Guidance Association in 2012. She is currently the Education Program Manager for Audubon Vermont where she has worked since 2015. Debbie lives in central Vermont with her partner Ira, their dog, cats, and chickens. She enjoys hiking, birding, and cross-country skiing at a thoughtful pace

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Mallory has been serving in the conservation corps world since 2018. She got her start right here with the VYCC! After graduating with an environmental biology degree from Appalachian State University, she decided to get out of her home state of North Carolina. While Mallory got her start as a Conservation Crew Leader with VYCC, the next season she crew led for the Montana Conservation. Following her term in Montana, she found herself in a program staff position as a Field Training Coordinator with the Northwest Youth Corps in Oregon and Washington as well as their sister corps, the Idaho Conservation Corps! In 2021, Mallory decided to be closer to family and friends and moved back home. She is currently a Program Coordinator with Conservation Corps North Carolina! During her time with VYCC, Mallory fell in love with conservation corps work and the growth that service can bring into young people’s lives. She is so excited to serve the conservation corps world in this capacity, especially with the corps where she got her start. When she’s not in the world of conservation corps, you’ll find her curled up with a good book, on a hike, or in the best local coffee shop. 

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Julius Rosenwald has lived in Pownal, Vermont, for over fifty years. Upon graduating from Williams College, he began teaching grades one through three in a two-room schoolhouse in Woodford. He then moved on to Buxton School in Williamstown, MA, where he taught courses at the high-school level. A change of direction landed Julius in the restaurant business and ultimately he moved on to the job of freelance journalist. Over many decades, he has remained devoted to his adopted town of Pownal. He served on the Select Board, oversaw the implementation of a public water system, and continues to be a board member of the town’s Solomon Wright Public Library. In addition, he is on the boards of Shires Housing in Bennington and Second Chance Animal Center in Arlington. A constant in his life has always been the bicycle. His curiosity and fascination with the unknown have taken him via two wheels to all parts of the world. From the beginning, he realized how much his values and those of VYCC dovetailed: stewardship, cooperation, self-reliance, and common sense.

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Blake is an entrepreneur and recovering New Yorker whose work has crossed the industries of film, tech, marketing, and events. He grew up on a sheep farm in central Virginia where early experiences in farming and adventuring set the tone for many of his interests in life. Middlebury College somehow let him attend their institution, where he received his degree in the decidedly liberal-arts combination of Eastern Religion and Film. Blake started his first company while traveling abroad in India, Tibet, and Nepal during his junior year in college, importing art and decor from various parts of Asia and later opening an art gallery in Bali, Indonesia. The dingy streets of Brooklyn drew him to New York City, where he joined the tech start-up Vimeo.com in 2007. Blake rose through the ranks quickly, helping ideate, create, develop, and market most of the core features and revenue-generating products on the site. Blake left Vimeo as VP of Creative Development, with the products he helped co-create accounting for over 20mm users and $30mm in gross revenue. After 13 years in Brooklyn, Blake finally came to the conclusion that he enjoyed mountains and rivers more than ones and zeros and left Brooklyn to travel the world for a year, eventually settling in Vermont. He now advises and invests in early-stage start-ups and is currently developing a boutique lodge and wellness retreat in the mountains of Stowe. Blake is an avid adventurer, traveler, skier, photographer, and sauna enthusiast. He hopes to write a book one day so he can lead this bio with that  seemingly impossible accomplishment.

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