Board of Directors

I've been a member of Park District # 2 Commission since the spring of 2019 when I volunteered and was appointed to fill a vacancy left by the departure of a previous commissioner.

I volunteered to serve on the commission because I believe physical activity is important to the health and vitality of the community. The Bitterroot Aquatic Center provides a place for people all ages and economic levels to play in the water, learn to swim, attend classes, swim laps, and develop a habit of movement. The Aquatic Center also provides safety training and employment opportunities for a cadre of lifeguards and other pool employees.

During the past year, I've learned that the demand for the use of the pool exceeds its availability. The community voted against making improvements that would have resulted in a year-round facility that would provide more aquatic opportunities. That makes the challenge for the next few years to work with the community now is to maintain and improve the existing facility and to determine how to provide programs people want at the pool to make the facility available to the greatest number of community members.

I am a fitness lap swimmer; my daughter was on the swim team for five years, and I've coached swimming. I wish to continue to serve the community and help make the Bitterroot Aquatic Center a place where more people can recreate and enjoy the water.

I have lived in Hamilton since 2011 and have been on the Park District # 2 Commission since 2024. Through high school and college I was a lifeguard and swim instructor at the Havre Community Pool, Northern Montana College Pool, and the Griz Pool. I swam competitively with the Havre Lions age group team, and the Havre High School swim team when we won back-to-back Montana Class A State Championships in 1997 and 1998. In Hamilton, I continue to swim with the Big Sky Masters. Through our daughter Janie, our family actively participates in the Bitterroot Swim Team. I firmly believe that swimming pools are vital for children's education and serve as important community resources.

I am a Hamilton resident for over 20 years and am a regular summertime user of the Bitterroot Aquatic Center. Thanks to inexpensive swim lessons offered through my hometown when I was a girl, I am a lifetime swimmer. I swam competitively in both high school and college and now swim for fun and fitness with our local master's swim team. Swimming has taught me many life lessons over the years, and now I would like to give back to the swimming community by serving on the pool board (Ravalli County Park District #2).