OUR TEAM
We are the SSPF team
The “we” at SSPF is all of us – donors, volunteers, our board of directors, staff, partners, and of course, the dedicated park leadership, staff, and volunteers.
Board of Directors
Norma Santiago, President
Originally from Ponce, Puerto Rico, Norma came to California in the early ’70s and holds a bachelor of science degree from UC Berkeley in business administration with an emphasis is in organizational behavior and marketing. Norma served as El Dorado County Supervisor, from 2005 to 2010, representing District 5. During her tenure as County Supervisor, she focused on many issues including economic and workforce development, sustainable communities, forest management, transportation and environmental redevelopment to name a few. Norma uses this experience in her consulting business, Catalytic Connections, which focuses on bringing together key partners towards building solutions and implementing projects that provide and economic, environmental, and social benefit.
Michael Levin, MD, Vice-President
Michael Levin has owned a home on the West Shore since 1998 and after retirement moved to Lake Tahoe in 2016. He enjoys hiking, mountain biking and walking the dog, especially through Sugar Pine Point State Park. He joined the board in 2018 with the hopes of preserving and enhancing the beauty of public space in Tahoe, and keeping the Lake accessible to everyone.
Wes Kaguni, Treasurer
Originally from Michigan, Wes gained an affinity for Lake Tahoe’s outdoor spaces while studying at UC Berkeley, sneaking out to ski and hike the Sierra between MBA commitments. Having enjoyed a successful career in energy commodities trading, Wes now lives in Tahoe City and owns several Cost Cutters hair salons in northern Nevada. Wes joined the board in 2020 hoping to help keep our parks beautiful and accessible to all.
Rosalee “Rosie” Smith, Secretary
Rosalee (Rosie) Smith has been visiting Tahoe since 1945 when she camped with her family at D.L. Bliss State Park. This began her love for the California State Parks at Lake Tahoe. She has had a cabin on Tahoe’s West Shore since 1968 and makes it her summer home now. She volunteered to help in the parks in 2000 and has been involved ever since with Living History Day at Sugar Pine Point State Park. She is a docent at the Vikingsholm Castle and Hellman-Ehrman Mansion, and also volunteers at the Sierra State Park Visitor Centers. Her passion for the parks led her to a position on the SSPF Board in 2010. Rosie serves as the board secretary and chairperson of our Events Committee.
Barton Tretheway, Board Member
Barton Tretheway has had a passion for all things Lake Tahoe since he first visited in 1946. Though Chicago, Illinois is his primary residency, he and his wife Jennifer enjoy several months winter and summer at their home in Rubicon Bay. In addition to having been an adjunct professor at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business and the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, Barton is founder and managing partner of Rubicon Solutions Group and a nationally recognized expert in strategy, governance, and new product/service development. He serves on several nonprofit boards, and is immediate past chair of the Medic Alert Foundation International. “Our seven Lake Tahoe and Donner state parks are public treasures and I am committed to the work of the Foundation to ensure these parks will be here for current as well as future generations to enjoy.” Barton serves as the Chair of the Finance Committee and was the former Foundation’s Treasurer.
Kerry Andras, Board Member
Kerry has lived in North Lake Tahoe since 2002. He is a dedicated community member, and is passionate about Lake Tahoe, the snow, the mountains, and especially the amazing people that live here. He works for North Tahoe Business Association as the Community Relations Manager. He has also worked in a variety of other fields, including as a substitute teacher, an outdoor adventure guide, and a music teacher. He is an avid musician, and performs with several local bands, notably Sneaky Creatures. He lives happily in Kings Beach with his lovely wife and amazing daughter.
Susan Grove, Board Member
Susan Grove retired after a 28 year career as a California State Park Ranger and Superintendent. She is dedicated to the Sierra State Parks and the increased quality in life they bring to park visitors, school children, and local business people. She loves to spend time in nature and is an avid hiker and camper. Susan is a native Californian and has personally visited over 200 California State Parks.
Bob Fores, Board Member
Bob grew up in the woods of Northern California, the son of a forester. He loves mountains, hiking, camping, skiing, riding his bicycle, and enjoys photography, and traveling. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley and McGeorge School of Law. Bob recently completed a 38-year career as a trial lawyer in the San Joaquin Valley and is moving on to the next phase of his life. He and his wife have owned property in Stateline, Nevada since 1997 where they now permanently reside. Bob is passionate about preserving the cultural and natural history of the Lake Tahoe Basin and Donner Lake.
Suzanne Larsen, Board Member
Suzanne is a 30+ year resident of North Lake Tahoe. She has enjoyed working in the travel industry since moving to Lake Tahoe. She has participated in the vacation rental market as a vendor, both on a national and local level, and worked in lodging for five years when she first moved to Lake Tahoe. Suzanne, her husband, and her now-married daughter enjoy the history, beauty, and uniqueness of living in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Her family enjoys skiing, golfing, fishing and hiking with their spirited Golden Retriever/Great Pyrenees rescue, Tamsen. Suzanne is excited to have the opportunity to help educate and share the both the history and beauty of Lake Tahoe with visitors and locals.
Sarah Robertson, Board Member
Originally from Palo Alto, CA, Sarah spent her childhood summers living in Emerald Bay/Vikingsholm at Lake Tahoe as her Mother, Dr. Helen H. Smith was a Seasonal Interpretive Specialist for California State Parks for 47 summers at Emerald Bay.
Sarah attended Mills College in Oakland, CA and earned a BA in Legal Processes & Business Administration. From there, she began what turned out to be a 41-year career as an executive leader in Global Supply Chain and Materials Management in various technical industries. Companies include GTE Corporation (General Telephone & Electronics/now Verizon), Philips Corporation, General Electric (Healthcare), and most recently Varex Imaging (spin-off of Varian Corporation). Though based in Salt Lake City, her work required extensive domestic and travel around the world for many decades.
Sarah resides in Salt Lake City, Utah and is married (37 years) with two grown sons. She and her family take full advantage of outdoor activities (cross country skiing, hiking, river running, biking) and has continued to travel to Tahoe and her beloved Emerald Bay each summer since leaving California in 1979. The splendor of the Tahoe/Donner State Parks are enjoyed by Sarah and her family each year. Being a new Board member, she is looking forward to using her business acumen and experience at Tahoe/Emerald Bay to best contribute to the Sierra State Parks.
Greg Pryor, Board Member
Mentorship and service are not foreign to Greg. Greg has mentored over 300 Scouts to Eagle rank, volunteered for over 16 years with the West Point Fire Board, and presently sits on multiple committees on Forest and Fire Fuels Management (a great fit for his 38-year career as a Fire/EMS/Rescue Captain). But be sure to ask him about his great adventures globally backpacking and cycling of all types, skiing, kayaking, and mountaineering!
Susan Grove, SSPF Board Member
“I feel such satisfaction knowing that these gorgeous places and historic sites will be here even as populations explode and technology takes over. I need my nature fix to be whole!”
Sierra State Parks Foundation Staff
Michael Myers, Executive Director
Myers’ background in building strong relationships and collaborating with government agencies and nonprofit partners, combined with a deep passion for promoting inclusive stewardship will help to further advance the mission of the organization. He manages the day-to-day operations for the Foundation and its park operations (Visitor Centers and historic house tours), fundraising programs for park programs and maintenance, and coordinates projects in progress with State Parks.
Prior, Myers served as Executive Director for Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy in Virginia and Friends of Black Rock-High Rock in Nevada. Myers began as a Conservation, Development, and Outreach Coordinator (AmeriCorps Member) with the Friends of Black Rock-High Rock and rose to an executive position after gaining a Master of Nonprofit Management. In addition, he is an Interpretive Naturalist and avid birder. Myers’ combination of fundraising skills and understanding of the public lands space, is the perfect fit for the Sierra State Parks Foundation.
In his free time, he looks forward to exploring the Tahoe - Lake Donner area with his wife and daughter. He is excited to learn about the local flora, fauna, other natural resources, and rich cultural history of the area. When not out exploring, his family loves spending time with their two cats, Wayne and Garth.
Heidi Doyle, Senior Consultant
After 12 years, Heidi retired from the Executive Director in May 2024 but will continue to support the transition period as the Senior Consultant. Heidi brings over 30 years of experience with California State Parks to the Foundation. In addition, she has worked for the National Park Service, US Forest Service, and Ventura County Parks providing valuable perspectives to the position. Heidi received her BS from California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo) and has completed her master’s work in Public Policy at George Mason University and UC Berkeley. She has served on the boards of several successful non-profits and was tapped in a leadership role to assist with the California State Parks Transformation efforts from 2015-18. Heidi currently is on the board of the California League of Park Associations and is an elected official with the North Tahoe Fire Protection District. She has lived on four continents bringing a wealth of experience, talent, determination, and leadership to our organization. The mother of three grown children, she lives in North Lake Tahoe with her husband and dogs, Jasper and Goldie.
Brian Herlihy, Business Manager
Brian Herlihy grew up in the Almaden Valley region of San Jose, at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains, where he enjoyed exploring and hiking the old mercury mining town called Quicksilver. He graduated from San Jose State University with a Business Administration degree in Marketing. After living in several different parts of California, he ended up in Sacramento where he got a job at his first non-profit as the Marketing Coordinator. After seizing an opportunity to move to Lake Tahoe, he continued his non-profit work as an Event/Volunteer Coordinator, Office Manager, and Bookkeeper. Brian joined the SSPF team in 2015 as our Business Manager bringing innovation and a depth of experience that has enabled us to soar. He continues to love exploring and hiking the Tahoe area as well as skiing, snowshoeing, and swimming in The Lake. He has been a resident of Lake Tahoe since 2007 and lives with his wife Dana and two cats, Dante and Trixie, in Incline Village.
Rose Payne, Retail Manager
Sierra State Park Foundation’s heavy hitter, Rose manages all the retail operations of the many visitor center stores The Foundation manages: Donner Memorial, Sugar Pine Point, D.L. Bliss, and Emerald Bay. Not only does she crush the retail game, but she is also a powerhouse on the Pickleball Court!
530-307-8881 (cell)
rpayne@sierrastateparks.org
Kiley Mac, Community Engagement Manager
After graduating from CU Boulder with a bachelor’s degree in Ethnic Studies and Environmental awards, Kiley has found herself in many different roles from Suicide & Trauma Therapy to Creative Director in Commercial and Private video and content production endeavors, to Global Events Director of a Tech School, Teaching Yoga and Wellness, and more. Kiley has been in the Tahoe Basin on and off her entire life while leaving to explore the country and world pretty extensively which made her love and appreciation for her home of Lake Tahoe (TaHOME) that much more special. While living in the Southwest in early 2022 Kiley felt a calling to come home to the Sierras and be closer to her amazing parents, grandparents, and brother when it aligned that the Sierra State Parks Foundation was seeing an Events and Community Engagement Manager, it was all too good to be true! Kiley is passionate about this magic land of Lake Tahoe, the Sierra, and its people. It is her honor to serve at SSPF and continue to amplify our Sierra State Parks and the everlasting good the parks do for our community and well-being. Outside of work, you’ll find Kiley outside, along the water’s edge or deep in the woods exploring with her family and dog, Miss Santa Fe, dancing under the stars or researching something epic and nerdy.
Denise Tran,
Communications Coordinator
After graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Management & Protection, Denise took a leap of faith to move from Los Angeles (with zero snow experience) to Lake Tahoe right before the big winter of 2016-2017. Upon completing her year of service as an AmeriCorps member at the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center, she decided to continue her passion for giving back to her Tahoe community. Denise is passionate about people’s access to information and the outdoors - something she lacked growing up in urban LA - and what better way to do that than through the unique programming SSPF offers! Outside of work, you’ll find Denise hanging out with her black Goldendoodle Bailey, engulfed in a good book, or trying new things!
Communications@sierrastateparks.org or dtran@sierrastateparks.org