Our Staff

Thomas C. Lamar, Executive Director

PCEI’s Executive Director since 1990. His thirty-one years of experience in the public interest sector has helped PCEI increase citizen involvement in environmental issues. Tom has also taught Conservation Leadership at the University of Idaho, Conservation Social Sciences Department for six years. In 2007 he was elected to the Moscow City Council. In 2011, he was re-elected to a second four year term. Tom holds an MS degree in Environmental Science from Washington State University (1985). He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology and Anthropology at the University of Delaware in 1982. While at Delaware and WSU, Tom studied the medicinal use of Plants by the Shipibo Indians of the Peruvian rainforest. Tom’s background includes Central American peace organizing in the 1980’s. He also worked with the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides for two years as an advocate for pesticide exposure victims. Tom enjoys swimming, running, bicycling, triathlons, and gardening. Email Tom

Judith L. Brown, Business Manager / AmeriCorps Program Director

Judy is an economist and has spent her career working within the Idaho nonprofit community both as a staff economist and as a self-employed consulting economist. Judy directed the Idaho Center on Budget and Tax Policy, which was a project of the nonprofit United Vision for Idaho, based in Boise, Idaho. Her background includes Master’s degrees in both economics and agricultural economics from Michigan State University. For the last fifteen years, she worked as an economist and policy analyst in the area of tax and budget policy in Idaho.

Judy Brown served previously on the board of the Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute and was treasurer of PCEI from 1995 to 1999. Judy has also served on the board and as treasurer for the Friends of the Moscow Public Library and the Latah County Library District. Email Judy

Joan (Alexander) Hofmann, AmeriCorps Placement Coordinator

Joan moved to Idaho in 1995 from the San Francisco Bay Area to raise her children in a small town atmosphere. She graduated with a BA in English from the Colorado College. Her professional background is in elementary education and in small business ownership. She is a singer/songwriter, an entrepreneur and the mother of three children. She loves to rock climb, swim, spend time with friends and her children, and enjoy sunshine whenever she can. Joan is dedicated to creating space and opportunity for people of all ages to do good things for themselves, their community and the world around them. Email Joan

Heather Huston Bell, Program Manager

Born in California, and raised in Illinois. Heather has fallen in love with the Palouse-Clearwater region and now considers this her home. She has learned about growing plants and sustainable living for the past ten years with friends. This is where she discovered her love for gardening and horticulture. She is a graduate of the University of Idaho in Child Development Family Relations with minors in Psychology and Outdoor Recreation. This direction led to a Masters degree in Environmental Education and a certificate in a survey Permaculture program. She completed two terms with AmeriCorps as a youth program coordinator where she gained experience planning and coordinating many successful youth development activities. She loves engaging community in both the Education and Restoration Programs at PCEI. Heather values the importance of creating a caring learning environment, working with mentors and volunteers and creating healthy communities. Her free time activities include gardening, farming, honeybee keeping, cooking and camping and playing in water. Email Heather

Sarah VanderKraats, Naturalist Educator, AmeriCorps Member

Sarah grew up in Vernal, Utah, where she became interested in nature. Much of her time was spent in the Uintah Mountains and other Rocky Mountain regions. Her broad array of experiences & education, working with people and dabbling with inclusive learning approaches, has helped her find her passion for engaging community in nature education. She is in process of completing her EMT certification, just to keep things interesting. This also allows her to more effectively respond to possible medical emergency when working with children out in nature. Her spare time is spent doing mountain man rendezvous, playing music, and making art. She is excited to inspire and shine light on the groups that visit the PCEI Nature Center.

Grant Martinson, Naturalist Educator, AmeriCorps Member

Grant comes to us from the small town of Silverton, OR on the west coast. Growing up he was spoiled rotten with both the cascade mountain range and Oregon coast within a 2 hours drive. He attended Oregon State University where he received a B.S. in Bioengineering and spent a great deal of time volunteering with the sustainable energy club on campus. After college he was looking for ways to serve the community and environment and as destined by fate stumbled upon PCEI. In his spare time you’ll find him running on a trail, slack lining in a park, or improving his very modest culinary skills.

David Arnold, Restoration Coordinator

Growing up in Northern Idaho, David fell in love with the mountains, prairies, trees, and rivers that make up the Northwest’s landscape. He moved to Moscow to study forestry at the University of Idaho. After earning his bachelors degree in Forest Resources, he taught as an Americorps member at the McCall Outdoor Science School. As a student in the MOSS program, he earned a M.S. in Natural Resources, also from the U of I. David is excited about working in PCEI’s watershed department to learn more about and take part in natural resource conservation, the reason for his career choice in the first place. When not working outside, David still likes to be… you guessed it, outside, either mountainbiking, backpacking, or just wandering. Whether it’s work or play, David is always looking forward to the next outdoor adventure. Email David

Charlie Herrick, PCEI Restoration Technician, AmeriCorps Member

Hailing from good ole Missouri, Charlie and his wife Laurel moved to Moscow, Idaho for his PCEI AmeriCorps Restoration Technician position. Charlie graduated from Greenville University, Illinois in Biology with theology minor, enjoys the outdoors through hiking, rock climbing, hunting, and learning about plants of all sorts. Laurel and Charlie contra dance, he forcedly poses for her candid-yet-overtly artsy photographs, and they most enjoy designing their future homestead. Charlie makes a mean pizza when time allows, is a pseudo-soccer player, travels with the Mrs. whenever possible.

Sandra Kelly, Office Manager

Sandra is a sixth-generation Idahoan who grew up in Mountain Home. After attending Idaho State University, Kelly enjoyed a successful 20-plus year career as a journalist. Kelly decided to go back to school, enrolling at Lewis-Clark State College in 2011. She graduated in 2014 with degrees in political science and history, with an emphasis in public history. Kelly enjoys fly-fishing, kayaking and hanging with her dog. She is active in local politics, serves on the City of Moscow Human Rights Commission and is on the Idaho Association of Museums board. Email Sandra

Jen Hiebert, IT Coordinator

Jen was born and raised in northern Manitoba, Canada, where she developed a love for the outdoors and a commitment to environmental issues. A convoluted career path has led her to her current position at PCEI. She was a research assistant working with everything from fish eggs to seal pups, has taught self-defense for women, and was a Front End Manager at the Neighborhood Co-op Grocery/ in southern Illinois.

Jen also has a B.Sc. in Ecology and a Master’s in Watershed Ecosystems. She has enjoyed living in many places (including France and New Zealand) but thinks Moscow is the perfect picnic spot. Jen loves cold weather, photography, music, and spending time with her husband and family. Email Jen

PCEI collaborates with this fabulous Portland based non-profit

Lara Jones, Confluence Program Director

Lara is originally from Wellesley, Massachusetts but has spent much of her adult life on the West Coast; in fact, September 2011 marks her 10 year anniversary as a Portlandian. Early on, Lara discovered her love for working with youth, so she pursued her Bachelors degree in Human Development with a concentration in Early Childhood Education from Wheelock College in Boston, Massachusetts.

Over the years, Ms. Jones has held a variety of educator roles. She was a camp counselor throughout high school, a Nature Instructor during college, and a preschool and Head Start teacher post baccalaureate. She also co-founded and managed an environmentally themed summer camp for middle school youth called PEEPs. In her most recent role with Northwest Service Academy , Lara enjoyed addressing critical environmental issues in the community while deepening the professional and leadership skills of her 52 AmeriCorps members. Lara is thrilled to be launching the Confluence Environmental Center AmeriCorps program focused on mobilizing community members to address critical environmental needs in low-income communities and communities of color. While Lara can be seen working long hours, she finds much enjoyment spending free time with good friends, hiking the Cascades and Columbia River Gorge with her dogs, camping and beachcombing, seeing live music, volunteering in her community, and delighting in the fine cuisine found in various Portland restaurants and food carts. Email Lara

Sherrie Jackson, Confluence Program Support Coordinator

Sherrie was born and raised in Southern California, but has called the Northwest her home for over 20 years. She attended Portland State University where she earned a BS in Psychology and also worked in the Outdoor Program, where she found her passion for non-motorized sports and the environment. After college was a crew leader for at-risk youth with Oregon Youth Conservation Corps. She, along with other staff, started the Cascade Education Corps ; an alternative high school that focused on service learning, environmental education and career development. In 1994, she helped begin a new program called the Northwest Service Academy (NWSA) an environmental AmeriCorps program. She stayed with NWSA for 16 years taking on several roles, but focused on member recruitment. Sherrie continued her education to obtain a professional certificate in Human Resources and hired over 1000 AmeriCorps members for NWSA. Now, Sherrie and other former NWSA staff have created a new program called the Confluence Environmental Center . This soon to be non-profit will host an AmeriCorps program and other environmental programs that will focus on building environmental leadership and catalyzing a healthy and equitable environment for the region.

When she’s not working, Sherrie enjoys time with her husband John and two children; Sierra and Ila. Sherrie stays as physically active as she can. She plays on 3 different soccer teams, runs Hood to Coast, rock climbs, skis, hikes, backpacks and will try any crazy mud run that comes within a 100 mile radius of her house. Email Sherrie

Rob Loucks, Confluence Communications Specialist

Rob hails from Connecticut via Baltimore where he received a BFA from Maryland Institute College of Art. While bicycling across the country Adventurecycling.org in 2006, Rob was inspired by the generosity of the people he encountered to give back so, in 2007 Rob reported for his first year of National Service with AmeriCorps*NCCC Western Campus After a year of teaching kids, building houses and fighting wildfires, Rob moved to Portland Oregon Portlandia to accept a second AmeriCorps position as the Environmental Education Team youtube Leader with Northwest Service Academy’s Lower Columbia Center Rob is currently the Communication Specialist for Confluence Environmental Center as well as the Instruction Specialist for the Continuing Education Department at Pacific Northwest College of Art. Rob enjoys visiting National Parks, road trips, writing music, and making art. Email Rob