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Our Staff

Our Mission: Our vision is a clean and healthy Sound, teeming with fish and wildlife, cared for by people who live here.


People For Puget Sound Staff

Executive Director: Tom Bancroft
Complete listing of our Staff

 

People For Puget Sound Board

William Derry, Board President
Complete listing of our Board of Directors

 

Enjoy the Sound with Us

Check out our events calendar and join us for restoration events, beach walks, Pier Peer events and much more.

 

What others say about us:

On September 24, 2011 the Tulalip Tribes honored People For Puget Sound at their “Raising Hands, Celebration of Community” dinner.  We are very grateful for this acknowledgement from such worthy partners in protecting Puget Sound, and glad we can share this video tribute with you.

Tom Bancroft

Tom Bancroft

Executive Director

Before joining People For Puget Sound in April 2011, he was Chief Scientist and Vice President of the National Audubon Society. Prior to that he was Vice President of The Wilderness Society. In 2010, he headed up National Audubon’s scientific evaluations of the massive BP oil spill in the Gulf. He has worked for many years on restoration and management of the Everglades, and he is familiar with Puget Sound and its watersheds from his work with The Wilderness Society.

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Rein Attemann

Rein Attemann

Advocacy Manager

My roots go deep into the colonial lands of New England where the summers are hot and muggy, fall foliage is best ever, winter harsh and cold but snowy, mud season a challenge, and spring, ah, so long awaited. I had visited Puget Sound regularly and moved here in 2004 and began work at People For Puget Sound in 2006, organizing folks to take action to protect and restore our beloved Sound. San Juan Island's beauty and its archipelago landscape bring solace, calm and appreciation to my well being. Plus, I love picking my own oysters at the Westcott Bay Oyster Farm.

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Rachel Benbrook

Rachel Benbrook

Restoration Ecologist

I was born in the wilds of north-central British Columbia and grew up on a working farm on the East Coast. While working towards my BA in Biology at Grinnell College, I traveled to the remote West Coast of Vancouver Island to study nearshore and old-growth ecology- and fell in love with the temperate rain forests and rocky coasts of the Northwest.

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Dhira Brown

Dhira Brown

Restoration Ecologist

I was born and raised in northwestern Pennsylvania (north of Pittsburgh) and have lived and worked in the Puget Sound area since 2006. Right now my favorite place is Orcas Island because it is beautiful and special to me because that is where I got married, but I know there are many other jewels of the Sound that I have yet to explore. I've worked at People For Puget Sound since December 2007.

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  • phone: 206.382.7007
Ann Butler

Ann Butler

Director of Community Education

I grew up on Long Island Sound and have lived in Puget Sound since 1989. Eld Inlet in Olympia is one of my favorite places. I like to swim, walk along the beach, catch the sunset and see all the people playing in the summer sun. I've worked many years in environmental protection and began joined the staff at People For Puget Sound in the fall of 2008. I enjoy working with the amazing people who work and volunteer for this vital organization.

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Mary Beth Dols

Mary Beth Dols

Internship Coordinator

I was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, so salt water was a totally foreign concept to me until I came to Seattle in 1986! When I moved into a house on the shoreline of Salmon Bay in Magnolia (by the Ballard Locks), I became fascinated by the wildlife in the neighborhood. Fabulous salmon runs, great blue herons, sea lions and harbor seals, kingfishers and rafts of wintering ducks...what a saltwater spectacular in that little bay. People For Puget Sound works with property owners to strengthen and enforce protections of the shoreline so I knew I had to join the effort. I came to work here in 2003, and have been busily engaged in working to keep the wildlife habitat healthy in Puget Sound ever since.

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Christina Donehower

Christina Donehower

Restoration Ecologist

I grew up exploring the mudflats and beaches of Puget Sound on my family’s property near Gig Harbor and began working for People For Puget Sound in October 2009. Although my previous jobs took me far away from the Pacific Northwest, far away to tiny seabird islands in the Atlantic and to remote Hawaiian Islands, I am happy to be back and am looking forward to the muck, drizzle, and gray skies that make me feel at home.

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Chas Dreyfus

Chas Dreyfus

Donor Database Coordinator

I am a 2nd-generation Californian, born and raised in San Francisco, and my wife, Peggy, and I moved here from Cupertino, which is part of Silicon Valley and home to Apple Computer, in August 2003. I began work at People For Puget Sound in October 2009, and what I like about it is managing data to contribute to our operational success. I'm discovering favorite places in Puget Sound and the Cascades all the time! To pick one... Port Townsend for Sound views, beach-walking, and Silverwater Cafe. Larabee State Park is another, for the tidepools. Peggy and I are so grateful that our daughters, sons-in-law, and grandsons are close-by. Our youngest was attending the University of Puget Sound when the rest of us arrived within 6-month of each other.

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Elaine Heim

Elaine Heim

Donor Relations Coordinator

The gift of Puget Sound in my backyard is one of the things I enjoy most about the Pacific Northwest. Every day is an adventure. It’s never difficult to find a new beach trail, sleepy island back road, or rambling forest path to explore. The immensity of this region’s gifts—and the custody of them—can be overpowering, but when I return from travels elsewhere and see this region with fresh eyes, I realize anew how fortunate we are to be surrounded by such an abundance of riches. The safekeeping of those riches falls to each one of us. I’m privileged to be part of People For Puget Sound and the passionate, dedicated, growing number of people who work so diligently to safeguard our Sound treasure. See you on the shore!

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Tim Heimerle

Tim Heimerle

Director of Development

A Chicago native, Tim started work as Development Director in September 2010. He moved to Seattle from his previous job as Assistant Director and Director of Development and Marketing for Queens Botanical Garden in Flushing, New York. "People For Puget Sound is an organization working where the rubber meets the road. The arts are wonderful but I'm excited about working to make a real difference by supporting work touching the lives of people and saving Puget Sound." Tops among Tim's priorities are expanding the base of major donors and establishing a Puget Sound Legacy Fund.

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Matt Lider

Matt Lider

Major Gifts Officer

I have a deep appreciation for the outdoors. Growing up in North Idaho, my summer weekends were spent camping, backpacking and fishing. From a very young age my values for conservation and sustainability were developed through experiencing first hand the wonder and beauty that exists here in the Northwest.

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Franziska McKay

Franziska McKay

Education Program Manager

Franziska moved to Seattle in 2008. She joined People For Puget Sound in March 2011 as the Community Educator for the central Sound area.

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Connie Moffit

Connie Moffit

Foundation & Corporate Manager

My first trip to Seattle was in summer 2001, when I drove down from Canada (I’m a dual citizen) to meet an old friend from NW Pennsylvania where I grew up. We met at Alki Point, where I was astonished by the awe-inspiring beauty of the Sound, the vast expanse of sparkling water, so refreshing and relaxing – and so accessible to the city! In 2003 I was lucky to be able to move here from Vancouver, and since September 2009, have been even more fortunate to be directly involved with wonderful people raising resources to protect the precious treasure of Puget Sound.

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Keeley O'Connell

Keeley O'Connell

Restoration Program Manager

"I spent my early years in Raleigh, North Carolina, and most of my growing up was in Fayetteville, Arkansas. I’ve lived in the Puget Sound region for eight years, and began work at People For Puget Sound in 2003. I love to be knee deep in mud in a mudflat, all squishy and lovely and full of fascinating creatures. At work, I enjoy getting to know all the people who volunteer for restoration and ripping out invasive plants."

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Janet Stannard

Janet Stannard

Director of Finance

I grew up near the eastern shores of Lake Washington. Since then I have lived in Eastound, Bellingham, La Conner and Seattle – always near or on the water. My favorite place in Puget Sound is Garrison Bay. That is where I did my first archaeological fieldwork and could see how people have an impact on sensitive areas over time. The best part of my job is knowing that I am supporting an organization actively protecting and improving our Puget Sound.

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Brenda Tincher

Brenda Tincher

Director of Individual Giving

Born and raised in Missoula, Montana into a family that hunts and fishes and gardens, I was aware at an early age of our dependence on our natural environment. "While in school at the University of Oregon and working at the University’s Outdoor Program, I was drawn to anything related to water including sea kayaking, rafting and camping on the coast. A love of water and interest in learning to sail helped draw my husband and I to Seattle in 2006. "Through fundraising, I’ve been fortunate to be able to combine my love of nature with my passion for nonprofit work, most recently at The Nature Conservancy. I’m thrilled to be helping save Puget Sound by connecting generous individuals with People For Puget Sound’s visionary programs.

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Heather Trim

Heather Trim

Policy Director

In Los Angeles, she worked for the Regional Water Quality Control Board on water quality standards, regulatory permits, and pollution assessments of both surface and ground water for Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. She then was staff scientist for the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council focusing on various projects leading to the greening of the rivers, including water quality, stormwater issues, pollution assessments and habitat renewal.

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