• Support the mission of PNW and understand their role as Board members
• Commit to monthly Board and committee meetings, and other ongoing volunteer needs
• Support PNW financially and connect PNW to other potential funding sources
• Help PNW adhere to our strategic plan by keeping focused and thinking critically
• Bring a sense of humor, creativity, and a commitment to girls

We are also committed to the development of a diverse, multicultural staff and volunteer base and seek Board members that bring a diversity of age, race or cultural background, economic background, and experience to our membership.

For more information on how to apply for future Board openings, please contact Katie Hultquist, Executive Director, at katie@passagesnw.org.

Passages Northwest - Board of Directors

Jessica Ludders, President
Sound Planning
Jessica, a former Passages staff member from 2001 to 2004, keeps returning to Passages because she has not found another organization that values community, communication and hard work in the same healthy way as the board, staff and volunteers of Passages do. A backpacker and bicycle enthusiast, Jessica spends much of her time juggling environmentally sustainable events and project management contracts. An MBA graduate from the Bainbridge Graduate Institute, Jessica appreciates Passages for the learning and the examples that the organization provides to her in her new work.

Mark Fiebig, Vice President
Smart Metabolism, Inc.
Having logged more than two years' worth of days on skis, Mark remains avid about the outdoors. In this time, he spent over a decade teaching others, locally and in Colorado, about how to maximize such unique experiences that are best shared with family and friends. And he trained instructors to do the same. Beyond snow skiing, coaching girl's youth soccer for more than a decade helped cement his stance that girls become women of stature by virtue of their involvement in activities that demand development of emotional intelligence, physical prowess and the courage to leverage these assets to higher achievement. While still active with these and a number of outdoor pursuits, Mark finds time to run a company called Smart Metabolism, providing technology and training to physical therapists that eliminates the guesswork traditionally associated with weight management.

Allyson Tucker, Treasurer
Investment Analyst
Allyson was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and feels grateful to have been able to find permanent stay here in her adult life where opportunities for outdoor activities abound. Allyson’s childhood was shaped by her summers spent camping with her family where spending time outdoors and talking over campfires were priorities. Other relevant hobbies include hiking, cycling to work in the summers and competing in triathlons. She spends her indoor time reading books, books and more books. Allyson graduated from the University of Washington with an Accounting degree and a Certificate of International Studies in Business. She is a holder of the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and works as an investment analyst for Cascade Investment, LLC in Kirkland. Allyson is excited to be a member of a group with the unique and inspirational goal of developing courage in the lives of girls through outdoor programming.

Nancy Ward, Secretary
K&L Gates LLP
Nancy is passionate about introducing girls to the outdoors, and providing a sense of strength, possibility, courage, and exploration to girls in their most critical stages of development. Nancy spent her afternoons as a young girl in Minnesota exploring the neighborhood on her bicycle, and summers were filled with wilderness camps and overseas travel. She graduated from the University of the South in Sewanee, TN, with a degree in political science, and spent 10 years in Washington, DC as an event manager for several international peace organizations, including the United Nations Foundation. While hiking the 2,700-mile Pacific Crest Trail, she fell in love with the Pacific Northwest, and moved to Seattle in 2003. Nancy discovered Passages through volunteering with the Benefit, and she joined the Board in August 2004. One of her favorite experiences with Passages was summiting Mount Rainier in June 2004 with a group of Passages supporters and two inspiring Passages alumnae!

Seujan Bertram
Starbucks
Seujan Bertram grew up in NE Pennsylvania and her athletic involvement was limited to working in the family apple orchard and playing French Horn in the school marching band. She spent years teaching in public schools in Upstate New York and on the last day of her tenth year, gave away anything that would not fit into her Honda Civic, put her house up for sale and drove to Seattle to seek a new career and life adventure.

She is now hooked on triathlons and most recently raced the Boston Marathon and Ironman Canada. She brings to the board a passion for the transformational powers of moving one's body, a MA in Social Science (Multi-Cultural Education emphasis) and service as a member of various groups promoting diversity education and change within organizations.

When not managing a Technology Training and eLearning Team or preparing for her next event, Seujan tries to keep up with a wonderful and active child whom she co-Big Sister's with her partner.

Jane Bierman Seibel, Co-founder
Jane co-founded and served as executive director of Passages Northwest. She grew up spending her summers exploring nature on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. She has a degree from Colorado College and following her love of the outdoors earned a masters degree in Forest Ecology from the University of Washington. She then directed an NSF grant for Rural Girls in Science for the Center for Research on Women at the University Washington. Working as a shipboard naturalist for Clipper and Lindblad/Special Expeditions she has traveled the world teaching about everything from tropical rainforests to penguins in Antarctica. Most recently she has been working for the Woodland Park Zoo on “Zoomazium” a new exhibit where toddlers and young children can run, jump and learn about nature. Most of her days are filled with jumping in mud puddles or picking up worms with her 2 young sons.

Jeff Chen, MBA, PE
Acucela Inc.
Upon his introduction to climbing, Jeff developed the ability to outrace speeding bullets, enter into meditative trances at the drop of a hat, and converse with inanimate objects. Some of his areas of interest are childrens' education and development, scalability of community development work, and non-profit management, making Passages an ideal fit. In his spare time, Jeff spends his time with close friends, volunteers with Northwest Harvest, is a Big Brother, gives platelets, runs, bikes, and plays cards. And of course, climbs until his fingers cry bloody murder. He holds masters degrees in mechanical engineering and business, and serves as Director of Operations for Acucela Inc., a biotech company looking for new treatments for eye diseases.

Catherine Gronlund
Independent Consultant
Catherine is passionate about empowering others. She has over twenty years of executive and management experience with an emphasis on building effective teams. Currently, she is an independent consultant.

Catherine grew up in the city and had very little exposure to the outdoors. She has fond memories of a woman who took a group of middle-school aged city girls on an overnight backpacking trip near Monte Cristo. It was Catherine's first experience hiking and she was enchanted with the beauty of the surrounding mountains and felt much empowered by the experience. She excited to have an opportunity to support girls as a member of the Passages Northwest Board and has also as a mentor for the Girls Rock! Program.

Kristina D. Maritczak
Flagstar Bank
Kristina’s fondest memories of growing up were spending time playing sports and exploring the outdoors. Her passion for these aspect of her life lead her to develop the confidence and courage that drive her endeavors to this day. After college and law school, Kristina worked as an assistance prosecutor helping women and girls who were survivors of domestic violence. When she entered the private sector, Kristina continued her dedication to helping girls by being a mentor. Through these experiences, Kristina recognized the importance of outdoor activities to assisting women and girls in acquiring confidence and developing courage to guide them in establishing and attaining their life’s goals. Kristina was born and raised in Michigan and recently relocated to the Seattle area. Kristina currently works as a lawyer for a national bank. Kristina is honored to be a member of the Board of Passages Northwest and excited to continue to work with girls.

Allison McCaffree
NPower
Alison joined the Passages board in 2007. Alison grew up backpacking in the Sierra Mountains in California. She enjoys rock climbing, backpacking, triathlons and mountain biking and understand the importance of each activity in not only building physical skill but also mental agility and leadership skills for life. An engineer after her undergraduate training, Alison worked at the Ford Motor company and then went to graduate school at MIT to earn an MBA and an MSME. For 7 years, she ran successful businesses in fitness training and scuba diving. She started her career in the nonprofit world as The Director of Knowledge Transfer for the Leaders for Manufacturing Program at MIT. Now Alison is the Executive Director at NPower Seattle, a nonprofit that specializes in helping other nonprofits use technology to better serves their communities.

Julie Reimer
Julie takes pride in looking back at her life of growing up as a “tomboy”, playing kick-ball with the boys at recess and winning a city basketball free throw contest the first year they allowed girls to participate. Her passion for athletic and outdoor endeavors continues to be a driving force which helps her maintain a healthy, active life and sustain her strength and self-confidence.

Born and raised in Bellingham, Washington, Julie’s exploration of the outdoors was nutured by her father who took the family camping and fishing to remote lakes in British Columbia. More recent adventures have taken her trekking to 18,000 feet in Nepal, traveling the backroad tracks of the Australian Outback, snorkling in Thailand and exploring our fabulous National Parks. Her forays into the outdoors laid a foundation of respect for the natural world and the diversity of the people and cultures that live in it. This respect fuels Julie’s excitement as a board member because of the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the young girls who participate in the outdoor programs at Passages NW.

The wonder of nature developed Julie’s inquistive side which serves her well today as a research scientist. When not at work, you might find Julie training for her next marathon, volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, camping, hiking, or backpacking in the Cascades, dog sledding, playing slo-pitch softball, golfing, taking nature photography, or adding to her long list of places to travel next.

Tee-Ta L. Walker
University Prep
Tee-Ta is a native of Seattle. She received a Bachelors from University of Washington in Geography with a focus in Urban, Social, Political Process and Patterns. She is currently working on a Master's degree in Public Administration at Seattle University. Tee-Ta enjoys spending time with her niece and nephew, being active in various recreational sports for fitness and peace of mind. Tee-Ta comes to Passages Northwest with a passion for creating opportunities for girls to be courageous in a non traditional way. Tee-Ta has overcome challenges and obstacles in her life, affording her the ability to recognize that girls have underlying talents and strengths. Tee-Ta is is very dedicated to helping Passages' participants unveil their innate talents and strengths.

Merrily Wyman
Seattle Public Schools
Merrily is a native Northwesterner and grew up skiing in the Cascades and devouring books on rainy days. She obtained her degree in Sociology from UC Santa Barbara and is currently a middle school educator at the Madrona K-8 school. Her work with adolescent girls in public school has given her a great appreciation for the importance of programs and social systems that support girls. Merrily's loves include hiking, skiing, cycling, traveling, reading and any activity in, on, or around water. She is excited to be a Passages Northwest Board Member because she believes in the important role Passages plays in helping girls and women develop their courage and creativity.

Katie Hultquist
Executive Director
Please see Our Staff