UNION ART ALLEY

Committee

Sara Jespersen

Owner, Lumberjack, Mad Capper, StayinStillwater

This is me, Sara. I run The Lumberjack and Mad Capper with a crew of crazy talented fun-loving individuals. I love the Stillwater Community and put all my extra energy there! A few projects closest to my heart include reimagining Union Art alley, maintaining the stairs on the bluffs of Stillwater & Co-Chairing the World Snow Sculpting Championship. I serve as the Chair for The Discover Stillwater Tourism Bureau and am on the BOD of the Stillwater Area Chamber of Commerce.

Kelly Nygaard

President, Discover Stillwater

Kelly Nygaard is the President of Discover Stillwater, and promotes economic growth to Oak Park Heights and Stillwater through tourism marketing. An advocate for community, historic downtowns, and public art, Kelly is thrilled to be part of the Union Art Alley team.

UNION

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Eric Hoffman

Owner, Datastream Connexion

Entrepreneur 360 Award Recipient from Entrepreneur Magazine as a technology leader known for innovation and web product development expertise with deep experience in Compliance, Security, Amazon Web Services & Cloud technologies, along with DevOps and Agile methodologies.

Ed Nelson

Director of Development - Valley Outreach

Heather Rutledge

Executive Director, Art Reach

Heather Rutledge joined ArtReach St. Croix as Executive Director in 2011. For the previous ten years, she was Assistant Director of Abington Art Center & Sculpture Park in suburban Philadelphia. Heather has also worked with the MidAtlantic Arts Foundation and the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance. Her board service includes the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (former) and Franconia Sculpture Park. A graduate of the University of Iowa, Heather now lives in Stillwater, MN with her teacher husband and two teenagers. A former dancer, Heather now enjoys Tai Chi, bicycling and hiking.

Lindsay Belland

Event Manager & Nonprofit Professional

Lindsay is a mission-driven, nonprofit professional; currently working as a Sr. Event Coordinator for the University of Minnesota Foundation. With over 10 years’ experience in public service and non-profit positions; Lindsay takes an active role in the community she lives and plays in; proudly serving Stillwater as a Board Member to the Board of Directors for Family Means, sitting on multiple community Steering Committees and volunteering at community events throughout the year.

Outside of work she is a creative, artsy, outgoing individual and mother of three; who enjoys camping, hiking, taking the kayak out on the river and of course a nice cold Farm Girl from LiftBridge Brewery.

Seasonally; she sings Second Soprano with the River City Chorale.

Kari Patsy

Owner of Kari's Create and Paint Studio

I am the proud owner of Kari's Create and Paint Studio, a thriving business that has been serving our community for over 10 years.

My heart smiles when I see people at KCAP connecting with each other and their own inner artist to create amazing works of art, no matter their ability or previous art experience. Art is such a beautiful and important thing, I have been blessed to be able to surround myself with others who also believe in the power of art and the joy it brings.

While Kari's Create and Paint Studio is undoubtedly one of my greatest accomplishments, my most cherished achievement in life is being a mother to our two children with my husband of over 20 years. Together, we love navigating life's adventures.