C. Douglas Aurand is president of Siska Aurand Landscape Architects. Additionally, he has served as project manager for two local landscape architecture firms. Doug holds a master’s degree in landscape architecture from University of Virginia, and he taught landscape architecture at Oklahoma State University. Doug is the author of Fountains and Pools: Construction Guidelines and Specifications. A Norfolk resident since 1985, Doug has served on the following Boards: D’Art Center, Norfolk Botanical Garden, Fred Huette Foundation, City of Norfolk Design Review, and Norfolk Arts Commission. In his spare time, Doug is an avid gardener. He creates wheel-thrown pottery and occasionally blows glass. His art is on display at Stravitz Sculpture and Fine Art Gallery.
Garret Bird grew up mostly outside of Boston and finished high school in Raleigh before attending Carnegie Mellon University. After college, he worked as a project engineer for a few years in both North Dakota and California. He later spent a year and a half traveling throughout Australia and New Zealand. Garrett now teaches at Norfolk Academy, focusing on environmental, engineering, and physics coursework. He also earned a master’s degree in Natural Resources from Virginia Tech, where his concentration was climate resiliency. He lives in Norfolk’s West Ghent neighborhood with his wife, Annie, and their one-year-old daughter, Dawson.
As an economist and data scientist, Keith has been experimenting, estimating, inferring, and writing for 25 years. He currently validates statistical and AI models for a bank and insurance holding company. Keith obtained his Piled-High-Deeper in Economics from Texas A&M in the Year 2000, and has published multiple law reviews, peer-reviewed, and general research papers covering media, telecommunications, and defense economics. Keith enjoys walking around in parks, paddling on the Lafayette with his lovely wife, boating on the Chesapeake Bay with his lovely wife and friends, and tennis.
Chip Dodson, a retired attorney, graduated from college and law school at University of Virginia. He currently serves on the Boards of UVA Mead Endowment, Tidewater Children’s Foundation, TOWN Foundation, and Norfolk Host Lions Club. Chip also works with Wahoos4UVA. He previously served on the boards of JMU Foundation, Norfolk Public Schools and Lions District Charity Foundation as well as United Way distribution panels. He enjoyed volunteering in Maury High School math classes for 18 years, and he organized an international exchange camp for teens for 25 years. Chip lives in Norfolk and has two grown daughters. He takes great pleasure in photography and adventure travel.
Valerie is an art director and graphic designer with over 25 years of creative experience focused on journalism, public interest, and education. After cutting her design teeth at newspapers in Tennessee and Alabama, Valerie spent 18 rewarding years at the Southern Poverty Law Center. Currently, Valerie designs educational materials for the Alabama Prison Arts and Education Project. She recently completed over 20 illustrations of birds for the interior of Birding to Change the World: A Memoir by Trish O'Kane. Valerie has thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail and completed two cross-country bicycle tours. She, her husband, Ben, and two children have been learning the rhythm of the tidal region since 2021.
Brian is a founding principal in the American Campus Group, a college marketing firm that manages digital enrollment marketing for universities across the nation. A 1978 graduate of the University of Virginia, Brian also serves on the Boards of The Virginia Stage Company, Hospitality for the Homeless and Friends of the Norfolk Public Library. Brian and his wife Inger live in Norfolk. Brian and Inger have twin boys, and enjoy water sports, the performing arts, travel, and gardening.
Inger Friedman is an avid gardener and lover of the outdoors. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering in 1985 and a Masters in Aeronautics in 1991 from George Washington University. She enjoyed a 38-year career as a mechanical engineer working on government research projects and with commercial airline and engine companies to advance aerospace technology. Her volunteer involvements have focused primarily on helping people in need and environmental causes. Having recently retired from her engineering career, she now focuses on volunteering and hobbies, including gardening, traveling, spending time at the beach, hiking in the mountains, exercising, and playing pickleball.
Bob Johnson is a 1982 graduate of Ferrum College, with a degree in Environmental Science. Originally from Richmond, Virginia, he became a Norfolk resident many years ago in order to share his life with his wife Cornelia Johnson, as well as several grandchildren. He is recently retired following a thirty-eight-year career in Environmental Science Equipment as well as an additional “bonus” career, which spanned seven years, in property management (both as an employee and a business owner). His professional focus was strong customer support, comprehensive project management, and attention to detail. Bob is embracing his retirement with adventure and community. His hobbies include tennis, playing guitar, boating and travel. He is passionate about the outdoors, the environment and the beautiful waterfront community that we have in Norfolk. He is looking forward to volunteering with opportunities embracing these passions.
Ed Lazaron is a retired architect with The Design Collaborative. He is credited with designing Norfolk’s Mary D. Pretlow Anchor Branch Library and the Van Wyck Library renovations. Ed graduated from Princeton University (1972) and Washington University in St Louis (1974). He has served on the Boards for Tidewater Artists Association as well as Friends of the Norfolk Public Library. Currently, Ed is on the Norfolk Society of Arts Board and is a Trustee of the Norfolk Public Library. A Norfolk native, Ed and his wife Nancy have two children, two grandchildren, and three cats. His interests include playing music, creating art and exploring new places.
Dr. Adale M. Martin is a dedicated public servant and education leader, serving two terms as the Ward 1 representative on the Norfolk School Board. A lifelong public school graduate, she holds degrees from The Ohio State University, Louisiana State University, and a PhD in Public Policy from Old Dominion University. With a career spanning nonprofit leadership, professional training, and community engagement, she previously served as Executive Director of the Slover Library Foundation. Dr. Martin is a passionate advocate for equitable education, special needs resources, and community-driven schools, informed by her experience as a parent of two public school students.
David is a Managing Director at Capital One, where he leads the Life Sciences investment banking team. He has been a healthcare banker for his entire 30-plus years career. He has also worked at JPMorgan, GE Capital, BNP Paribas, and PwC. David studied economics and German at Middlebury College and earned an MBA from Vanderbilt University. David and his wife, Anne, reside in Norfolk but commute to New York City for work. David enjoys hiking, cooking, and music. Prior not for profit experience includes serving as Treasurer at Concert Artist Guild in New York.
Jeff Parker is a fourth generation Norfolk native and he and his wife, Beth, and their three daughters have lived in the Edgewater neighborhood since the late 90’s. Jeff holds a BA from Hampden-Sydney College. He is a currently a Senior Vice President in CBRE’s Norfolk office, with over 25 years of experience in commercial real estate. Jeff is passionate about the preservation and development of much-needed green space and parks in Norfolk. Jeff and Beth walk their dogs at Lambert’s Point Open Space several times a week. The open space is a source of fitness, friendship, and improved mental and physical health for their family, and they are fully committed to making it a destination for current and future residents and visitors.
Maynard Schaus is a Professor of Biology and Environmental Science at Virginia Wesleyan University, where he currently serves as Director of Academic Effectiveness and Accreditation. He previously served as Vice President for Academic Affairs, Associate Provost and Dean of University College, Chair – Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. He has taught courses in Oceanography, Principles of Biology, Environmental Studies, General Ecology, Evolution, and Graduate Coursework on Water Resources and Environmental Problems/Solutions. His diverse research interests include aquatic/marine restoration ecology and the impacts of urbanization on bird communities. He currently serves as Treasurer on the Board of Directors for the Elizabeth River Project, a local environmental nonprofit. He completed his Ph. D. at Miami University (Ohio) in Zoology.
Derek serves the city of Norfolk as an attorney with over 30 years of civil litigation experience. He also serves as an ordained Catholic deacon assigned to Blessed Sacrament parish in Norfolk. Derek and wife Kristen live in Norfolk’s Larchmont neighborhood. Derek’s interest in the land that would become Lambert’s Point City Park began when, as a child, his mother took him to observe the wildlife located on the hill and to forage wild blueberries on the property.
Lisa is a Professor of Biology at Old Dominion University, where she also holds the J. Robert Stiffler Endowed Chair. She is active with the Norfolk Botanical Garden as a science advisor, in the Virginia Botanical Associates, and as Treasurer of the Society of Herbarium Curators. With a Ph.D. from Ohio State University, she previously also served on the faculty of Mississippi State and the University of South Dakota. Her research program investigates plant biodiversity and adaptation. Plants are her passion, and she enjoys spending time outside hiking and gardening.
Ed is currently semi-retired and working in real estate development consulting, after 40 years in senior executive positions with Norfolk Redevelopment & Housing Authority, Virginia Natural Gas & Union Pacific Corp. A graduate of University of South Carolina, he serves on boards of Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Association of Housing & Community Development Officials and Mayor’s Housing Commission. Ed enjoys hot yoga, tennis, performing arts and travel. He is a Norfolk resident and has two sons.
Wilson Washington is a Norfolk native and lifelong resident. A member of Booker T. Washington High School’s class of 1978, Wilson continued his studies at Old Dominion University and graduated in 1977. An outstanding athlete, Wilson was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1977. Before retiring from basketball, Wilson played in the European League for teams in Rome and Amsterdam. Following his basketball career, Wilson spent 40 years in the auto industry. He and his wife, Paulette Washington, reside in Norfolk’s Brambleton neighborhood.
