Members Bios - Island County MRC

Committee Members

Ian Jefferds, Chair, of Coupeville, is general manager of Penn Cove Shellfish LLC and represents commercial marine interests and aquaculture. His focus is on marine water quality, shellfish and data archiving & access. Jefferds came to Whidbey Island in 1975 when his family started a mussel farm on Penn Cove that has since grown to be the nation's largest. Jefferds holds a degree in marine resource assessment planning and biology from Huxley College of Environmental Studies at Western Washington University. He is a board member of Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers' Association and enjoys fly fishing, photography and mountain biking.
Joe Hillers, PhD, Vice-Chair, of Coupeville is professor emeritus of animal genetics in the Department of Animal Science at Washington State University. He was a member of the faculty for 35 years and has been involved with the dairy industry of Washington since 1965. Hillers represents agriculture and, in his MRC activities, focuses primarily in the areas of marine water quality, stormwater runoff, biofiltration and data collection.
Dick Toft, Past Chair, of Oak Harbor is a retired Navy captain and former commanding officer of NAS Fallon, Nev., who once flew A-6 Intruders from NAS Whidbey. He is an avid boater and salmon fisherman who represents Navy and recreational interests on the MRC. “I came to Whidbey in 1963 and fell in love with salmon fishing,” he said, “so I orchestrated my Navy career to get back here at the end. I wanted to spend my quiet years out in Deception Pass with a cup of coffee and a herring turning at the end of my line.” But the decline in Puget Sound salmon stocks changed that and, instead, Toft turned his energies to working to restore local marine waters, habitat and species.
Lenny Corin, NWSC Representative, of Oak Harbor retired to Whidbey Island in 2008 from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Alaska. “My wife and I have always loved this area,” he said. “Given my 30-plus years in natural resources management I wanted to give back to the community.” Corin received his bachelor’s degree from Cornell University in wildlife conservation and his master’s from Northern Michigan University, focusing on wetlands management. For three years preceding retirement he was the USFWS representative on the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council, which provides oversight for the $1 billion commercial fishing industry in Alaska’s waters out to 200 miles. He is an avid SCUBA diver, kayaker, biker, hiker, bird watcher, cross-country skier, eco-traveler and photographer, and serves also on the board of Whidbey Camano Land Trust.
Maribeth Crandell is environmental educator for the City of Oak Harbor where she focuses on storm water issues. She holds a degree in environmental education, a K-8 teaching certificate and a Masters in Human Development. She has worked as a naturalist and educator in city, state and national parks, and as a trail guide for 13 summers in the Olympics and the Columbia River Gorge. She was a naturalist on ships in the San Juan and Gulf islands, and in Southeasts Alaska. In 2006 she hiked the Appalachian Trail. On Whidbey Island she was an educator for Island County Recycling, Whidbey Watershed Stewards, Fort Casey State Park and Ebey's Landing National Historic Reserve. She was also a volunteer educator on the 100-foot schooner, Adventuress. In 1989 she coordinated the Island County Centennial Event, a week-long circumnavigation of Whidbey Island with "Peter Puget and Joseph Whidbey" in historic, replica longboats. "We involved over 200 volunteers taking a turn at the oars," she said. She strives to help people understand their connection with the natural world.
Timothy Lawrence, PhD, of Coupeville is director of Washington State University Extension - Island County and serves as the county lead for the MRC. He holds a PhD in the human dimensions of environmental science, an MS in agricultural economics and rural sociology from Ohio State University, and a BS in Apiculture and Pomology from UC Davis. He has a national reputation in the implementation of alternatives to storm water management and is knowledgeable in water quality, ecological restoration, honey bee breeding and small-scale agricultural issues. With nearly 20 years of experience in Extension community development and natural resource projects, his primary area of interest is in implementing environmental programs with multi-jurisdictional collaboration.
Marshall Bronson of Coupeville represents the Port of Coupeville, one of two port districts with seats on the MRC. Born and raised in California, he received his bachelor's degree from Western Washington State Teachers College and was trained as an officer in the US Navy. After a career in U.S. Naval intelligence that took him to Asia, Europe and South America, he retired to Whidbey Island where he and his wife opened a bed-and-breakfast. Bronson has served on the Coupeville Town Council, county health board, the Ebey's Trust Board, the Island County Tourism Committee and the United Way.
Leal Dickson, PhD, of Oak Harbor is a retired research scientist in Arctic ecology and marine phycology. At the University of Washington he was a member of the botany and later the biology departments. “My research has been in the areas of high Arctic plant ecosystems, kelp psysiology and Nori aquaculture,” he said. “I continue to have an interest in conservation biology and marine and terrestrial ecosystem sustainability.” Besides teaching marine botany and ecology, he has carried out research in marine aquaculture. Currently, Dickson does volunteer teaching and fund-raising for two schools in Africa. Other interests include sailing, woodworking, travel and hiking.
Chris Jerome of Langley represents the Port of South Whidbey, one of two port districts with seats on the MRC. He grew up in England, where he trained as a veterinarian before moving to the United States to study veterinary pathology in 1979. Since then he has spent most of his career in medical research in the USA, moving to Whidbey Island in 1997. "After a career in veterinary and medical research I am very much aware of the importance of our natural ecosystems," he said. "I sail and kayak regularly in the waters around Whidbey Island, and both the quality and accessibility of Puget Sound are important to me."
Linda Rhodes, PhD, of Greenbank is a research microbiologist at the National Oceanographic & Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle. She has conducted research in salmon infectious disease and immunology and in aquatic toxicology around Puget Sound since the mid-1970s. She received a doctorate degree in molecular and cellular biology from the University of Washington and conducted postdoctoral studies on soft-shell clam and medaka at the University of Maine in Orono. Since 1976 she has lived on islands -- Bainbridge, Whidbey and even Marsh Island in Maine -- and she is acutely aware of the importance and sensitivity of marine ecosystems. She simply enjoys being outdoors, whether walking, watching all kinds of critters, or boating. She is excited to contribute to public understanding and awareness of Puget Sound through the MRC.
Ken Urstad of Greenbank is a retired Department of Natural Resources forester and long-time member of the Skagit Fishery Enhancement Board. “But I’m retired on Whidbey Island now and it’s a 70-mile round trip to the Skagit, so I’m spending more of my time right here.” Urstad is both a WSU Beach Watcher and a Shore Steward, and is president of the Whidbey Island chapter of Puget Sound Anglers. As an MRC member his chief interests are eelgrass monitoring, creosote removal and research into how juvenile salmon use the pocket estuaries of Whidbey and Camano islands. Urstad uses his own boat to conduct eelgrass research with underewater videography and is also a member of the WSU Beach Watchers team carrying out seining studies in several Island County estuaries. “The reason I’m on this committee is to help the fish,” he says.
Stan Walsh is with the environmental services program of the Skagit River System Cooperative (SRSC), headquartered in La Conner, in Skagit County. The agency provides natural resource management services for the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe and the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community. Walsh holds a degree in marine biology from Western Washington University and volunteered to represent the SRSC to help build better relationships. He pointed out the SRSC has been working increasingly in Island County in recent years. “It is important, not only through regulation but through collaborative relationships and education, to preserve as much habitat as we can,” he said.
Frances Wood of Langley is a nature writer with particular interest in birds and bird watching. A WSU Beach Watcher and Shore Steward, she has served as president of Whidbey Audubon and represents environmental and conservation interests. Frances is the fourth generation in her family to own property and spend summer vacations on Whidbey. She moved here permanently in 2000 and soon after began coordinating the MRC’s Pigeon Guillemot Breeding Survey. Hiking, kayaking, gardening and birding are her favorite outdoor activities.
Todd Zackey is a coastal geographer with the Tulalip Tribes. He is also co-chair of the Island County Salmon Technical Advisory Committee (TAG). One of his goals is to improve communication and cooperation between the MRC and TAG. “I think there would be benefits in working together on a whole bunch of things,” he said. Zackey started attending MRC meetings voluntarily after observing a breakdown of communication and understanding over a proposed estuary restoration project at Greenbank several years ago. He has participated in pocket estuary research on Camano Island with WSU Beach Watchers, as well as in small-stream studies of juvenile Chinook.

Committee Staff

Rex Porter of Coupeville is MRC executive director. He brings a broad mix of federal and county management experience. He was watershed and salmon recovery project manager for the Island County Public Works and Planning departments and previously led several State Department and Air Force grant management programs, as well as federal and state grant-funded environmental projects. Porter is a sea-kayaker and hiker, a WSU Beach Watcher, and is a member of Whidbey Watershed Stewards and The Nature Conservancy. He is an independent contractor for the MRC.
Dan Pedersen of Langley is MRC communications manager. A former community newspaper editor and reporter, he managed publications in the marketing and public relations departments of Safeco before assuming his current role as an independent contractor with the MRC. Pedersen is author of Whidbey Island’s Special Places and the People Who Love Them and co-author of Getting to the Water’s Edge on Whidbey and Camano Islands. He is a member of Whidbey Audubon Society and Whidbey Watershed Stewards, and a former board member of Whidbey Camano Land Trust. He writes a wildlife blog and contributes feature stories about nature to several Island County newspapers.