Sharl Heller, President
Sharl is a founding member and the current president of the Southeastern Massachusetts Pine Barrens Alliance, a founding member and former president of Friends of Myles Standish State Forest. She co-founded and serves as a facilitator for the Massachusetts Forest and Park Friends Network and is a Massachusetts Keystone Cooperator. Sharl is always willing to travel throughout the Commonwealth to support Friends groups and advocate for state forests and parks. Saving what's left of the Massachusetts Coastal Pine Barrens Ecoregion has become her mission in life.
Frank Mand, Vice President
Frank is a creative writer and journalist who has received awards for poetry, humor columns, news writing and photojournalism. A former editor of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Frank has written for and edited a number of publications, published his own weekly newspaper, and in 2013 received four awards and was named Feature Writer of the Year for Gatehouse Media (300+ newspapers in 27 states coast to coast). Frank has a BA in English Literature from Boston College, an MBA from Northeastern University, a Certificate in Professional Publishing from Stanford, and a Certificate in Web Management from Emerson College. Recently, Frank taught himself how to make charcoal circa 1825, which he ably demonstrated at SEMPBA's Pine Fest. Frank believes that preservation begins when you first begin to care about where you live, and is spearheading our 'Where Do You Love' campaign.
Linda Lancaster, Treasurer
Linda retired from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2014 after 25 years in Information Systems and Finance positions. Prior to MIT, Linda worked in the computer industry and as a mathematics editor for Houghton Mifflin. She has a B.S. in mathematics from Simmons College and an MBA from Babson College. The 2006 film An Inconvenient Truth “connected the dots” for her and was a call to action. Since then, Linda has been following climate change, working to reduce her household’s carbon footprint and since retirement, on supporting carbon pricing legislation at the state and national level. In addition to her work for SEMPBA, she also chairs the South Shore and Cape chapter of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby.
Denise Stowell, Secretary
Denise Stowell, presently serving as the Board's secretary, brings a career in textile design to the board (she hand-painted a mural of a coastal plain pond on the wall of our former HQ) and is also our expert and advocate for preserving native and fighting invasive plants. She also has a deep interest in natural burials as a way to conserve natural lands and open space.
Dodie Frank, Biologist, SeaNet Coordinator
Judy Whitehouse, Archivist
Judy Whitehouse joined the board in 2015 and and has served since then in many capacities including secretary, and 'moth ball' volunteer. Judy is willing to assist with just about every event and is always a cheerful friend to both SEMPBA Board Members and nature.
Lisa Meeks, Volunteer Extraordinaire
Lisa Meeks joined the SEMPBA Board in 2017. She is no longer a board member but still manages our Red-Bellied Cooter Head-start Program. As you can tell from this photo, she has a real love of wildlife. Lisa is always ready to lend a hand (and her pickup truck) when our conservation efforts require it, and ably manages SEMPBA’s Northern Red-bellied Cooter Head-start program.