Volunteer Leadership
Carson Stokes
Chair
Carson is a 5th generation Texan whose ancestors originally homesteaded in Montgomery County in the 1830’s. He and his family have spent many enjoyable days camping, hiking and canoeing in the wilderness areas of Texas. He is a trained Biologist but after receiving his MBA spent his career as a financial executive. However, he has always maintained his passion for the environment, volunteering for various conservation organizations throughout his life. He is a Certified Texas Master Naturalist and a BLC Ambassador.
Committee Service: Community Conservation, Finance & Lands
Watershed: West Fork San Jacinto River Watershed
Kelly Dietrich
Vice Chair
Originally from Canada, Kelly earned an Urban and Regional Planning Degree from the University of Waterloo. She spent 17 years in the public parks and recreation industry and now working on the private side building parks, trails and other leisure amenities. When she is not working or volunteering, you’ll find her mountain biking, camping, hiking, playing soccer or traveling to new places to experience the outdoors with her husband and two daughters. Kelly is passionate about creating, preserving and protecting quality outdoor open space and recreational areas for current and future generations.
Committee Service: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access
Watershed: Spring Creek Watershed
Michael Nelson
Treasurer
A native of Nebraska and a graduate of Wichita State University in Kansas, Michael jumped at the chance to apply his accounting and risk management skills to help Bayou Land Conservancy achieve its mission. With a background in commodity and financial instrument trading, he was looking for a community organization that could benefit from his experience. At home just blocks from Cypress Creek, Michael loves to work in his garden. A Husker football fan, lover of fine wines, and former ballroom dance instructor, when he’s not in Houston you may find him on Orcas Island off the coast of Washington State taking in some epic ocean views.
Committee Service: Chair Finance & Lands
Watershed: Cypress Creek watershed
Mary Bauer
Secretary
Mary is a native Houstonian and accounting professional. After graduating from Villanova University with bachelor’s degrees in Accounting and Finance, she moved back to her hometown and is excited to expand her community involvement. Her passions include exploring the outdoors, traveling, trying new recipes, and spending time with her husband and pets. She works as a certified public accountant for PricewaterhouseCoopers and serves local energy and industrial products clients. Most weekends, she can be found walking or biking the nearby bayou trails or trying out the newest local restaurants. She is eager to share her financial background with BLC and spread the organization’s mission.
Committee Service: Finance
Watershed: Whiteoak Bayou Watershed
Dr. Matthew Berg
Dr. Matthew Berg is a widely-trained scientist with a passion for engaging communities in managing their natural resources. He earned a PhD at Texas A&M University through a U.S. Department of Agriculture leadership development program. His background includes a variety of water research, extensive public outreach and awards from several groups for policy work with federal and state governments. He loves exploring new places and foraging for whatever native plants are ripe for the picking!
Committee Service: Chair Lands
Watershed: Cypress Creek Watershed
Ken Fatur
Ken Fatur recently joined the BLC Board after he and his fiancé, Jordana moved to Houston from Chicago. His appreciation for the outdoors was formed at a young age in the Laurel Highlands of Southwestern Pennsylvania which is a popular area for camping, hiking, biking, boating, trout fishing, hunting and wildlife viewing. His Mom was a long time volunteer at the Laurel Hill State Park Visitor Center. Ken is a banker for JPMorgan Chase, received his undergraduate degree from Penn State and an MBA from Pitt.
Committee Service: Finance & Lands
Watershed: Buffalo Bayou Watershed
Matt Genotte
Matt is a native Houstonian with a passion for the great outdoors, all things restoration, native plants, and rewilding Texas. He is an avid hiker and hunter, and wants everyone to have the opportunity to enjoy wild places. Matt has worked as a professional ecologist and environmental scientist for more than 20 years, specializing in wetland science, ecological restoration, and project management. Matt currently oversees a team of more than a dozen restoration ecologists in Texas and Louisiana. He is excited to use his experience to help BLC preserve land, protect wildlife habitat, reduce flooding, and make natural areas more accessible to all people. When Matt is not working or volunteering, he can be found on the trails with his wife and three small children doing scavenger hunts to keep them excited about finding new things in nature.
Committee Service: Lands
Watershed: Oyster Creek Watershed
Michael Jimenez
Hailing from San Antonio, Michael is currently a global advisor for Chevron, utilizing his Chemistry BA from University of Texas-Austin and his MBA in Finance from Our Lady of the Lake University. Growing up his best memories are of traveling to national parks, camping, and hiking and he enthusiastically shares those experiences with his daughters now, taking them to different BLC preserves whenever possible. Before joining the board Michael became engaged through BLC’s Finance Committee.
Committee Service: Finance
Watershed: Cypress Creek Watershed
Lisa Lin
Lisa is a sustainability professional who has developed and managed environmental programs for the cities of Houston and San Antonio. Currently, she leads Harris County's sustainability programs and initiatives. Lisa is also a professional cellist and has performed national and internationally. In her spare time, she likes to go hiking and bicycling with her husband, Sam. Lisa is excited to help raise the awareness of Bayou Land Conservancy's amazing people, projects, and preserves.
Committee Service: Co-Chair Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access
Watershed: White Oak Bayou/Buffalo Bayou
Alex Noll
Alex Noll is a Texas transplant and an environmental lawyer at a large international law firm in Houston. Alex’s passion for environmental conservation dates back to her high school days, when she spent a semester attending Conserve School in Land O’Lakes, Wisconsin, a semester school focused on connecting teenagers to the natural environment. Alex became involved in Bayou Land Conservancy as a way to give back to her community and to become involved in the protection of natural spaces in Harris County. Alex is passionate about diversity and inclusion, and is eager to facilitate access to nature for all. Alex holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Michigan Law School and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Texas at Dallas. In her free time, Alex enjoys exploring parks and trails around Houston with her husband, Alan, discovering new wine bars, and forcing her cats (Stella and Luna) to love her.
Committee Service: Finance
Watershed: Whiteoak Bayou Watershed
Brian Steelman
Brian grew up in Virginia before relocating to Houston 16 years ago with his wife Jenny. They are parents of 3 wonderful children and their yellow lab Duke. Brian received his MBA from Millsap’s College in Jackson, Mississippi and has been working in Commercial Real Estate for 20 years. Brian’s hobbies include camping, fishing, and hiking, and he shares his passion for the outdoors as the leader of Cub Scout Pack 889.
Committee Service: Lands
Watershed: Spring Creek Watershed
Kacey Wilkins
Native to the Houston area, Kacey is a communication and marketing professional with over 20 years of experience working in the non-profit sector. She has proficiency in managing many projects, from strategic planning to community engagement, fundraising initiatives, and communication campaigns. In her professional life, Kacey helps organizations create effective messaging to increase their impact and is honored to join the Bayou Land Conservancy board.An avid hiker and camper, she grew up camping in many Texas state parks. Today, Kacey, her husband Ben, and sons Isaiah and Jonah spend as much time as they can exploring the beautiful natural areas in our region.
Committee Service: Communications & Fundraising
Watershed: Spring Creek Watershed
Jonathan Lok
CHAIR EMERITUS
Bayou Land Conservancy is able to manage and permanently protect thousands of acres thanks in large part to the thousands of hours provided by expert volunteers. These volunteers are biologists, Master Naturalists and others with an interest in land preservation. We are also directly supported in our efforts by local, state and federal agency representatives.
Baseline Crew
Damien Carey | Birder, Lake Houston Area Nature Club
Geoffrey Newton | Geologist, Texas Certified Master Naturalist
Matt Weaver | Texas A&M Forest Service
Mickey Merritt | Texas A&M Forest Service
Conservation Crew
Brian Beebe
Roy Cuellar
Aram Derewetzky
Peter Jensen | Texas Master Naturalist
Amisha Patel
Jim Pflugrath
Diana Philpot
Tom Philpot
Betsy Radtke
Ron Walton
Be Watershed Wise
To find out which watershed you live in, click here.