NCCT
Board of Directors
Kay Meyer: President
Kay joined NCCT’s Board of Directors in October of 2018 and began serving as Board President in January 2021. She has lived in Wausau for 32 years and has a cabin in Sawyer County as well. Kay is a retired pharmacist with experience in both the hospital and retail settings. She has served on the boards of the local PTO, the Marathon County Soccer Association, the Wausau Nordic ski club, her church, and the Wausau Symphonic Band.
As a child she was lucky enough to live in a small town that allowed her and her friends to frequently play near the creek or in the woods at the edge of town, and sharp memories of those special spots remain with her. While in college in Madison it didn’t take long for her to find Picnic Point and the UW Arboretum to center and energize herself in a natural setting near campus.
As a parent of two small children moving to her new home of Wausau, she took them to a new city or county park every day after school to acquaint them (and her!) with the many natural areas Wausau had to offer. Her love and appreciation for all things nature is a significant part of who she is, and has been as long as she can remember. A year ago, she completed the Wisconsin Master Naturalist training and continues to study and preserve our state’s natural abundance. Caring for our earth, specifically that part she’s connected to, seems to be something she feels naturally compelled to do, and she welcomes the opportunity to take that passion a step further with NCCT.
Jill Falstad: Vice President
Jill joined NCCT’s Board of Directors in August of 2020 and stepped up as Vice President in November 2021. Jill has worked as a Circuit Court Judge in Marathon County for the past 11 years. Prior to that she served as the Marathon County District Attorney for 15 years and as an Assistant DA for eight years with positions in Wood, Portage and Marathon Counties. In her free time, Jill enjoys international travel, and spending time outdoors hiking, gardening and snowshoeing. She is a Master Gardener and volunteers to help with community gardening activities. She is passionate about green initiatives, land conservation and supporting organizations that work to stop climate change. She enjoys serving on the NCCT Board to support their work of conserving green spaces in our Central Wisconsin communities.
Marv Noltze: Treasurer
Marv joined NCCT’s Board of Director in October of 2019. Previously the Secretary of NCCT, he is now serving as Treasurer. He was previously involved in the Sheboygan Area Land Trust, and has been active in NCCT since 2006. He has made significant improvements to NCCT’s database and serves on the NCCT Properties and Public Relations Committees. He is also an active easement monitor. Marv has a Master’s degree in Public Administration and is an Institutional Planner at UWSP
Marv states “I was drawn to land preservation when in Sheboygan due to concern for never ending urban sprawl that seems to weaken rural character. I very much identify with the mission of NCCT and l think we need to continue sharing our mission to show the importance of greenspace protection. Due to the rural, dispersed nature of Central Wisconsin, I think organizations are hard pressed to maintain membership and volunteers as compared to more urban areas. I think it is important for NCCT to collaborate with other organizations as much as feasible for public events, outreach opportunities, etc.”
Kerry Brimmer: Secretary
Kerry rejoined the Board after 12 years prior service, fulfilling Susan Wurzer’s term through 2020. Kerry stepped up as Secretary for NCCT in November 2021. He has been a loyal supporter of our organization for many years. Kerry retired as a weights and measures inspector for DATCP a few years ago. He has been very active as a Board member, Properties Committee and Stewardship Committee member, and with monitoring and property stewardship. He enjoys working his Vizsla dogs, hunting, fishing, trap shooting, travel, and being outdoors.
Anna Haines: Board Member
Anna Haines joined NCCT’s Board of directors in October of 2018. She is a professor in the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point and a land use and community development specialist with the University of Wisconsin-Extension. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning.
Her research and teaching focuses on planning and community development from a natural resources or environmental perspective. Her research has focused on factors that influenced land division in amenity-rich areas of Wisconsin, understanding how zoning codes affect future build out scenarios, sustainable zoning, and local food clusters. Her extension work has focused on comprehensive planning and planning implementation tools and techniques, sustainable communities, and property rights issues. She co-chaired an effort to create a sustainable community’s course through the North Central Extension Region and Foundation of Practice.
A.J. McCaskey: Board Member
A.J. joined the NCCT Board of Directors in October of 2018. He is a real estate professional for Coldwell Banker Real Estate Group in Wautoma. He has 20 years’ experience in real estate including vacant land sales. He has a strong land conservation ethic with his love of the outdoors: A.J. enjoys spending his free time outdoors, hiking, x-country skiing, snowshoeing, and biking. A.J. is also a member and vice chairman of the Waushara Chapter of the Ice Age Trail Alliance (IATA) and has been involved with the IATA for over 20 years. NCCT is honored to have A.J. serving on the Board as NCCT’s very first Director from Waushara County. A.J. generously provides this organization with a new network within Waushara County and can assist with the development of conservation easements in this portion of NCCT’s service area.
Nichole Good: Board Member
Nichole joined NCCT’s Board of Directors in November of 2017. She also coordinates monitoring of all of NCCT’s conservation easement properties. Nichole states, “I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, but always loved going “up north” for family vacations. I studied ecosystem restoration as an undergraduate at UW-Stevens Point, then wandered to the land of the redwood trees for graduate school, where I earned a master’s degree studying forest soils at Humboldt State University. I now work as a soil scientist and environmental technician for Sand County Environmental, where I’m learning how to prevent and remediate environmental contamination. I am especially inspired by “green” remediation – Sand County Environmental is among the top in the country for use of phytoremediation technologies (using plants to clean contaminated soils and waters).“
“With roots in Wisconsin, an ecology-based education, and a growing awareness of local environmental issues, I naturally gravitated toward NCCT. In addition to serving as the NCCT Monitoring Coordinator and as a member of NCCT’s Properties Committee, I am also proud to contribute as a Board member. I am overjoyed to be part of the NCCT community, working towards conservation of unique Wisconsin landscapes.”
Sharon Schwab: Board Member
Sharon joined the NCCT Board of Directors in October of 2021. She has been involved with the organization since 1999 and served as Chair of the Properties Committee for more than a decade. She also served as interim Executive Director for nearly one year. Sharon earned a B.S. (wildlife management/biology) and M.S. (natural resources) from UWSP and has had a life-long interest in conservation. She has had a meandering 30+ year career with positions affecting: groundwater, farm safety, fisheries, botany, and wildlife conservation. Select projects sent her to work with international, federal, state and county governments, and in Wisconsin’s non-profit arena. She served as the Coordinator of the Central Wisconsin Grassland Conservation Area Partnership for eight years and continues some of this work as volunteer co-chair of the recently renamed Wisconsin Prairie Chicken Festival. She served as Chairperson for the Portage County Town of Grant board for 14 years (2005-2019) and was re-elected to that position in April 2021. Sharon serves on the Board of Directors for the Dane County Conservation League – owner of more than 4,000 acres of state-managed land within the Buena Vista Wildlife Area. She is a volunteer for Clean, Green Action (Wisconsin Rapids) that works on sustainability projects, and the Wisconsin Rapids Area League of Women Voters.
In her spare time Sharon likes to read, garden, take long walks with her beloved Labrador, and spend precious time with family. Travel, both domestic and international is another passion. Sharon is married to NCCT member Greg Dahl and has a daughter.
Don Romundson: Board Member