Board Of Directors
Craig Westering
Vice President
Law Enforcement Sector
Craig Westering has been in law enforcement since 2005. Like many Vail Valley transplants, he came for “just a year” and has been here for 23 years and counting. Craig earned his bachelor’s in education and youth ministry in Chicago. A friend encouraged Craig to pursue a law enforcement career at that time, with the promise of merging his passion for helping people and his innate ability to see the best in everyone, even at their worst.
Valentina Garcia-Gerdes
Secretary
Education Sector
Valentina Garcia-Gerdes is filled with passion for children, nature, cultural diversity and community. Her family immigrated to the United States from Venezuela in 1980 and she spent her younger years in Bloomington, Indiana and Eden Prairie, Minnesota before moving to Colorado in 1996 to attend Western Colorado University in Gunnison.
Kevin Armitage
President
Business Sector
Kevin is the Director of Residential Construction Lending for NBH Bank, a Bank Holding company that operates retail banks in five states in including in Colorado as Community Banks of Colorado. Kevin has spent his entire banking career in Eagle County beginning in 1999. Kevin obtained his Bachelor of Science in Business Economics from Miami University in Ohio and graduated from The Graduate
Alex Bratschie
Health Sector
Alexandra Bratschie is a local Certified Nurse Midwife and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner with over a decade of experience who loves to call the mountains of Colorado her home. She received her Master of Science from Georgetown University, her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Johns Hopkins and her undergraduate degree in Integrative Physiology and Women’s Studies from the University of Colorado Boulder. Read more
Paige Asbury
Youth Sector
Paige joined the board in 2024. A student at Battle Mountain High School, she competes in Ski Race while also playing tennis for Vail Christian High School. In her free time she likes to read and stay active on the mountain and in the water. She has a twin and a dog named Zoe at home, and has lived in Vail for almost 4 years. When she's not busy with school and sports, Paige also works for Education Foundation of Eagle County.
Joel Barndt
Business Sector
Joel Barndt is a Senior Vice President with FirstBank in Eagle County. He moved to Vail in 2014 after graduating from Rocky Mountain College in Billings, MT with a B.S. in Business Management and minors in Economics and Organizational Leadership. In 2023, he completed the Graduate School of Banking program on the campus of the University of Wisconsin. He has previously volunteered as a board member for the Red Ribbon Project and the Vail Religious Foundation, and has served as a basketball coach and Treasurer for the Vail Valley Eagles Basketball Club.
Caspian Covarrubias-Walker
Youth Sector
Caspian join the board in 2024. He was born in Atlanta and moved to our beautiful community when he was 3 years old. He comes from a multicultural family and loves to spend time practicing Spanish with his cousins in Chile. Read more
Rocio Garcia-Aguirre
Communities That Care
Originally from Chihuahua Mexico, Rocio Garcia-Aguirre has been involved with Communities That Care as a community board member. Rocio serves as the Early Childhood Family Services Team Coordinator at Eagle County School District, and a graduate of the Family Leadership Training Institute. Rocio holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration. Rocio is also a passionate and involved parent.
Sandra Herrera
Communities That Care
Sandra Herrera originally got involved with Mountain Youth as a parent of two Valley’s Voice middle school students. Having grown up in Eagle County and experienced all of the assets and challenges of the community as a child and parent, Sandra is eager to get involved and help boost the impact of Mountain Youth’s programs.
Victor Lopez
Youth Sector
Victor Lopez has been involved with Mountain Youth since his freshman year, and originally connected through his involvement with Youth Equity Stewardship (YES) and the Eagle County School District Board of Directors. Victor believes that student voice can help make positive change over time, and appreciates chances to bring together students from different schools around common goals.
Dustin Oakley
Law Enforcement Sector
Dustin Oakley has been in Law Enforcement for 3 years in Colorado and 1 Year in North Idaho. He was a security officer in a middle school in Colorado Springs for 3 years. He enjoys all things outdoors; camping, hiking. He also played sports all throughout high school. While Deputy Oakley has been with Eagle County Sheriff’s Office, he has found his niche in traffic safety. Read More
Tom Pohl
Community Sector
Tom fell in love with the Vail Valley while visiting on family vacations as a kid and moved here after college. Tom is a graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder – Leeds School of Business as well as the University of Denver – Sturm College of Law. His passion for helping the local community led him to open his law practice with his father in 2007 with a focus on estate planning, tax, real estate, and business. Read more
Elizabeth “Beth” Reilly
Communities That Care
Elizabeth “Beth” Reilly served as Mountain Youth’s original Executive Director upon their founding in 2001 through 2005. Beth has stayed involved in various roles including as a board member from 2007-2012, as a Communities That Care community board member and Key Leader, a contractor, and as a parent of Mountain Youth alumni and board members. Beth resides in Edwards and serves as Eagle County School District’s Early Childhood Health, Quality, Compliance and Assessment Manager of the Early Childhood Department.
Lula Sandoval
Finance Sector
Lula moved to the Vail Valley from Mexico 23 years ago and she lives in Eagle with her husband and two kids. Lula found her desire to work with the youth in our community while being a coordinator for the youth group at St.Clare of Assisi Parish and is still an active volunteer. She is an Operations Officer for the Vail Valley Region at Alpine Bank. This has given her the opportunity to work as a hiring manager with the valley’s CareerWise Apprenticeship program for over 5 years Read more
Scott Schlosser
Communities That Care
Scott Schlosser has been involved as a community board member with Communities That Care since 2016 and served as an original key leader, helping to make a difference in the community through systemic health and safety initiatives. When not volunteering locally or abroad for environmental and animal-related causes, you can find Scott managing the Eagle Bluffs Homeowners Association and working real estate deals in Eagle County.
Shelby Speigel
Youth Sector
Shelby Speigel has been involved with Valley’s Voice since she was a middle schooler, helping to launch the original Valley’s Voice Middle School program. She is now a Junior at Eagle Valley High School where she is an avid softball player, musician playing flute, piccolo and saxophone, and is involved with school clubs such as Hope Squad, Link Crew and Green Team. Read More.
Aaron Strietzel
Communities That Care
Aaron Strietzel moved with his wife and two teenage boys to Eagle Valley in July 2023 to be the pastor of the United Methodist Church of Eagle Valley, located in Eagle, CO. His family is originally from Durango CO, and loves living life in the Colorado Rockies. Aaron is excited to serve the Eagle Valley and find ways to continue to impact the health of our youth and young adults in our community!
Megan Vogt
Mental Health & LGBTQ Sector
Megan opened Megan Vogt Counseling in 2019 with a special focus on mental health for adolescent, LGBTQ+, and maternal populations. Prior to starting her private practice, Megan was the school-based mental health counselor for Mind Springs Health. The Colorado native has a Masters in Counseling Psychology from Pacific University and her Bachelors in English Literature and Women's Studies from Colorado State University. Beyond the office, Read more
Abby Wiens
Education Sector
I moved to Colorado in 1998 and have enjoyed living in small mountain towns ever since. I was a Middle School Art teacher for 13 years in Gunnison and the Vail Valley. I pursued my Principal License when I realized that my passion and dedication for public education could reach a greater impact in an administrative role. This is my 7th year as Assistant Principal for Eagle Valley High School in Gypsum. Read more