Peggy started coming to the islands with her family as a young girl, camping in a run down shack on their land on Hunter Bay – previously a Holy Rollers encampment – running wild through the woods, sailing and paddling in the Salish Sea. Those early times on Lopez shaped her values and choices, including choices to work to protect and conserve our natural heritage, and her appreciation for our islands’ history and communities. Her professional work has included land conservation in the Puget Sound region, wetlands protection, and more recently as an advocate for farmers in the San Juan Islands, including efforts to increase success for new farmers starting to farm in the islands. When SJC voters first approved the Land Bank in 1990, she was thankful to be able to serve as a Land Bank Commissioner at that time. She continues to be a firm believer in the important work of the Land Bank, and looks forward to stepping forward again to support a lasting legacy of success that will sustain our ecosystems, habitat, cultural and ecological heritage.

The San Juans were almost the end of Tim’s academic career, when he spent a summer, then a year, or two, helping to renovate his aunt’s farm. But he managed to finish a degree in soils before returning to farm his own place, all the while growing his appreciation for the islands. Occupations included firefighting, care-taking, surveying and wetlands work among others, but the best and last job was at the San Juan County Conservation Land Bank, where he tackled on agricultural issues, conservation easements and preserve maintenance. The chance to continue working with the Conservation Land Bank is a welcome recompense for the communal good this organization has provided.

Marilyn has lived near Friday Harbor since 1979, when what was to be a summer sailing trip, grew into a deeply rooted passion for the waters, lands and community of the San Juan Islands.  Raised near the Northern California coastline, Marilyn headed even further north after studying at the University of California at Santa Cruz. Marilyn joins the Land Bank Commission after 31 years with the Port of Friday Harbor – in the roles of auditor, deputy director and for ten years, as executive director, before retiring in 2016.

Marilyn is excited to contribute her energy and experience to the Conservation Land Bank’s mandate of preserving the diverse landscapes of this place we humans share with other life. One of her favorite memories is the gathering of signatures on a petition to “save Deadman Bay” when the Land Bank was first created.

Hiking and camping, boating and gardening remain her primary interests. She believes that preservation, restoration and stewardship of the land is critical work to be done in this place and time.

Mike moved to the Pacific Northwest in 1999 to serve on the Board of a start-up company in Seattle. It didn’t take long for him to discover the magic of the San Juans. In 2002, Mike bought his first home on the southwest side of San Juan Island. A few years later, he purchased a farm and began his love affair with the soil and the sea. His commitment to make meaningful contributions to this special place started with the agriculture community. Mike has served on the Board of the Agricultural Guild and a commissioner on the Agricultural Resources Committee of the County Council. After serving on the County Planning Commission for 6 years, he decided to focus his efforts on preserving the uniqueness of the Islands: a healthy environment, neighborly  kindness, and unsurpassed beauty. He and his partner Kathleen, continue to farm, raising cattle, egg layers, and produce.

Anne Marie’s family purchased their home in Deer Harbor in 1988 and moved permanently to Orcas Island in 2006. Three generations of her family now call Orcas home. Hiking, camping, fishing and birding on public lands is a major part of her life. Her first visit to the San Juan Islands included camping at Spencer Spit State Park on Lopez Island.  She participated in the purchase of Turtleback Mountain Preserve and helped reauthorize the San Juan County (SJC) Conservation Land Bank REET in 2011. Her professional career included education and advocacy for wildlife conservation, coastal protections, marine sanctuaries and riparian habitat. She serves on OPAL Community Land Trust Board. She enjoys gardening, walking with Kiwi and Moab and Orcas Viking Soccer.

Amy Trainer brings nearly twenty years of conservation success as a strategic advocate, coalition builder and environmental policy expert. Amy currently serves as the Environmental Policy Director for the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community where she provides strategic policy advice to the Tribe’s elected Senate, and leads intergovernmental affairs for a variety of local, state, federal, tribal and international natural resources matters. A former practicing environmental and land use attorney in Kansas, Missouri and Washington, she moved to San Juan Island in 2005. As a staff attorney in Friday Harbor, she championed a new vessel regulation to protect the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales. As a land trust executive director in south-central Colorado, she permanently protected over eleven hundred acres of mountain valley and senior water rights. As executive director of a California coastal advocacy organization, Amy led the national campaign that secured permanent protection of the West Coast’s only marine wilderness area, Drakes Estero in Point Reyes National Seashore. She serves on the boards of the Washington Water Trust and the Center for Rural Livelihoods. Amy moved back to San Juan Island at the beginning of the pandemic, and she is grateful to hike and trail run, eat local organic foods, and enjoy the wonders of the Salish Sea with her husband Fred.

When Brian and his wife first visited the San Juan Islands in 2003, they realized they had found a new home. They returned and bought property on Orcas the following year and, in 2014, Brian retired and they moved here permanently. Brian’s career has been in planning, open space preservation and public access. Following graduate work in Landscape Architecture and Planning at the University of Arizona, he worked as a planner on the island of Nantucket, which started the first REET-funded land bank in the country. From there, Brian moved to California to work on the San Francisco Bay Trail, then spent 17 years as a parks planner, helping steward 100,000 acres of open space in the Bay Area. Brian learned about the Land Bank when he bought his property on Orcas, and got really excited during the Turtleback acquisition campaign. He says, “I’m really pleased to be able to be part of the effort to steward the best of our natural land while providing opportunities for islanders and visitors to enjoy it.”