New Appointments to Town Boards and Committees

With the start of the new fiscal year, Town Manager Paul Bockelman presented a slate of new appointments and reappointments at the July 2 Town Services and Outreach Committee. They will be on the agenda for approval by the Town Council at their next meeting on July 20.

Amherst Municipal Affordable Housing Trust
For one-year terms expiring June 30, 2027:

Eason Zhou of Barrett Hill Drive
Mayen Thorsen of South Pleasant Street

Biographical Profiles
Eason Zhou is a rising junior at Amherst College. He has been volunteering as a caseworker for Amherst Community Connections for the past year. He is eager to share the concerns of those who are unhoused or housing insecure in the Town of Amherst. His goal is to play a role in decreasing the number of people experiencing homelessness in the town.

Mayen Thorsen is a rising sophomore at Amherst College and is a senator on Amherst College’s Association of Students. She previously worked in student government as a class representative and peer advocate.  She brings political experience working on several political campaigns in the San Francisco Bay area. She currently serves on the Town’s Community Development Block Grant Advisory Committee.

Read about the Amherst Municipal Affordable Housing Trust here.

Board of Assessors
For a three-year term ending June 30, 2029:

Paul Zagaeski, Palley Village Place

Biographical Profile
Paul Zagaeski has been active in municipal issues throughout his life, starting in his teens. He has served in various roles including as a Town Clerk, a Town Meeting member, and various school roles. He is a self-described “recently arrived resident and homeowner”. He is a business technology analyst with extensive experience with analytical tools and online data sites and services and currently works as a consultant. He has strong communication skills and is detail-focused to prevent things from slipping through the cracks.

Read about the Board of Assessors here.

Community Preservation Act Committee
At-large Appointments

 For a two-year term, expiring June 30, 2028:
John May, South East Street

For a three-year term expiring June 30, 2029:
Michelle Labbe, High Point Drive

Biographical Profiles
John May participated in the town’s Civic academy last Fall and was motivated to become more involved in town governance. He believes the Community Preservation Act Committee best fits his needs and interests in utilizing long-term planning to balance the needs for open space, affordable housing, historic preservation, and recreational facilities. He currently volunteers for the Kestrel Land Trust and the Amherst Survival Center. He is comfortable balancing competing priorities and needs. His professional background is working in computer network security at Netflix. 

Michelle Labbe: Labbe previously chaired the town Conservation Commission and served on the Community Preservation Act Committee as the Commission’s representative. She brings deep expertise in climate action and sustainability initiatives, analyzing alternative energy micro-siting and development sites, and managing conservation land. Born and raised in Amherst, she returned to own a home and raise her family.

Read about the Community Preservation Act Committee here.

Cultural Council
For a two-year term as voting member, expiring June 30, 2028:

Maika Thanner, Barrett Hill Drive

For a three-year terms as voting members expiring June 30, 2029:
Brandon Castle, Spring Street
Don Ripley, Wildflower Drive

Biographical Profiles
Maika Thanner is a student at Amherst College and has become very involved in the community. She serves on the steering committee of the League of Women Voters, works at the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce, and volunteered at the Town’s Global Villages event. Fluent in English, Japanese and German, Thanner participated in a meeting with the Consul General from Japan during his recent visit. She has a record of creating and organizing community-building events in her previous communities and in college.

Brandon Castle is interested in broadening the involvement of the community in the town’s many cultural events. As a member of an Alaska Native tribe, he was born into a family who encouraged him to connect with the arts and cultural expressions from an early age. He grew up learning about Indigenous histories and cultures as well as the arts in general. Professionally, Castle is a librarian at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where he supports and teaches about Indigenous cultural knowledge as told by Indigenous Peoples themselves. He is an experienced trainer including for diversity and equity and anti-bias and LGBTQ+ allies. 

Don Ripley is a member of the Council on Aging and is seeking to expand his involvement in the town by participating as a member of the Cultural Council. He has broad experience serving on boards and working with groups to achieve consensus. He advocates on behalf of seniors to ensure we continue to build an age-friendly environment for all residents of the Town.

Read about the Cultural Council here.

Energy and Climate Action Committee
For three-year terms expiring June 30, 2029:

Bernard Brennan, North East Street
Bart Scheer, Eastman Lane

Biographical Profiles
Bernard Brennan is a recent participant in the town’s civic academy. He is also a farmer and owner of Amethyst Farm on North East Street. He has been practicing organic, sustainable, and regenerative farming practices for a very long time. He has served on the board of the Northeast Organic Farming Association, the town’s Agricultural Commission, and the Energy Use and Climate Change Commission in Hamden, Connecticut. He also chairs and serves on the board of Green America, a national nonprofit committed to environmentally aware, ethical consumerism. He views energy use and climate action as foundational priorities on the planet. 

Bart Scheer is interested in addressing the challenge of climate change at the local level. He was the club coordinator for the Massachusetts Youth Climate Coalition which led him to major in environmental science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. At the University, Scheer is the Clean Energy Campaign Coordinator for the campus’ MassPIRG chapter. He learned about the town’s efforts at the town’s Sustainability Festival on the Town Common.

Read about the Energy and Climate Action Committee here.

Human Rights Commission
For a three-year term expiring June 30, 2029:

Mattea Kramer, East Pleasant Street

Biographical Profile
Mattea Kramer has supported the work of Amherst’s African Heritage Reparation Assembly by researching the town’s history of racial disparities and contributing to the writing of the Assembly’s final report. She is a volunteer leader of “Together for an Inclusive Massachusetts”, a statewide coalition that is working to address antisemitism through an anti-racist framework. She is a writer, researcher, and policy writer.

Read about the Human Rights Commission here.

Water Supply Protection Committee
For a three-year term expiring June 30, 2029:

Richard MacLean, Alpine Drive

Biographical Profile
Richard MacLean has worked for nearly a decade as a watershed forester at the Quabbin Reservoir. In that role, he managed 11,000 acres of forest land to preserve and protect the living forest filter that supplies drinking water to 2.7 million Massachusetts residents. His academic background provided him with a solid foundation of knowledge to review the town’s water management plan critically.

Read about the Water Supply Protection Committee here.

Reappointments
In addition to the new appointments, the town manager’s office consulted with the chairs of the individual committees and confirmed the following individuals’ interests in being reappointed:

Munson Memorial Building Trustees
For a three-year term expiring June 30, 2029:

Susan Crutch, South East Street

Public Art Commission
For a three-year term expiring June 30, 2029:
Lori Friedman, Blue Hills Road

Design Review Board
For a three-year term expiring June 30, 2029
Erika Zekos, Hulst Road

Biographical Profiles
Susan Crutch’s appreciation for the Munson Memorial Library started when she was a young child and attended kindergarten there. She has always frequented the Munson and appreciates what the space adds to our Amherst community. She strongly believes that the Munson should be preserved and taken care of by the community. 

Lori Friedman shares a strong background in arts administration and curating. She helps the Town of Amherst support the arts through the installation of art in public spaces. Has worked in New York City galleries and was the Director of a gallery in Soho in the early 1990’s. Friedman is an Emeritus Board Member of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Fine Arts Center.

Erika Zekos: Zekos has lived in Amherst for over twenty years. A trained architect and a higher education Professor, Zekos enjoys lending her voice to community issues. She enjoys community service and looks forward to continuing her work on the Design Review Board.