BOard & Staff |
Staff
Bailey Slice Parker is a Midlands Master Naturalist, an active member of the Columbia Audubon Society, and serves on the boards of Friends of Congaree Swamp and Canoeing for Kids. Her interest in the natural world led her to leave a 17-year career as a church music director to become the Executive Director of the Gills Creek Watershed Association (Jan., 2023). Whether working or volunteering, she spends as much time as possible outdoors, birding, biking, botanizing, studying water quality, and engaging others to do the same. She is passionate about conservation and making the world a better place for wildlife and humans. 
Rebecca Milford has worked in administration since college and has a passion for non-profit work. She enjoys helping organizations grow by helping them with their advertising, social media, and addressing details that allow them run more efficiently and smoothly. Rebecca completed the Midlands Master Naturalist program and loves being outdoors, whether hiking, paddling, or biking, also playing “tour guide” to those who visit and live in South Carolina.
Frannie Melia is an Undergraduate student studying Geological Sciences and Environmental Sciences at the University of South Carolina. Her love for nature and aquatic environments drew her to the Water Quality Intern position at the Gills Creek Watershed Association. She adores the outdoors and is an active member of Sustainable Carolina, the Carolina Water Club, and the Mountaineering and White-Water club at USC. She hopes to work in natural resource management and help make the world a better place.
Board of Directors Gwen Geidel, Ph.D., JD - President Gwen Geidel is a Research Professor in the School of the Earth, Ocean and Environment at the University of South Carolina and is the former Associate Dean of the School of the Environment and a former Director of the Environment and Sustainability Program at USC. She has lived in the watershed for many years and has served as president and secretary of the Quinine Hill Lake Association in the Gills Creek headwaters and currently serves on the GCWA Technical Committee. She has also served for many years as the CMCoG Environmental Planning Advisory Committee related to water and waste water issues. She has studied water quality issues during her entire career from both the scientific and legal perspective. Second Term Expires: 2025 Mark Robertson - Treasurer Mark recently retired as Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy, and is widely regarded as both a conservationist and expert in non-profit management. Background that will be particularly relevant to the Gills Creek Watershed Association includes experience in fundraising and non-profit finances, as well as in the use of an array of land protection devices. Mark lives on Carey Lake. Second Term Expires: 2026 Tom Kohlsaat - Technical Committee Chair Tom Kohlsaat is retired from the SC Department of Natural Resources, where he established and managed the SC Heritage Trust land protection program and the Nongame and Endangered Species management program. He was instrumental in establishing the Congaree Land Trust and remains active in a number of local organizations. Second Term Expires: 2025 Andrew Melanson Andrew Melanson is an energy analyst with Siemens Industries, and is an Accredited Commercial Energy Manager (SC designation) and a Certified Energy Manager (national designation.) He has lived and worked in Columbia for the past 20 years, and three years ago moved to a home above the Gill’s Creek flood plain near the Timberlane properties. He served on the steering committee for the Timberlane project and also is a member of the technical committee. First Term Expires: 2025 Rob Robertson Rob Robertson has served on the Board in the past, and created the Wine for Water fundraiser. He has continued to provide inspiration, energy—and wine!—for the event ever since. He has lived in the Gills Creek Watershed most of his life. Currently, Rob and his family live very close to the Creek in King's Grant. He is the SC State Manager for Brittany Sales Company, a beverage brokerage based in Miami, FL. He especially enjoys time in the watershed while kayaking and fishing First Term Expires: 2025 Lauren Megill Milton Lauren Megill Milton began working as a staff attorney for the South Carolina Environmental Law Project in 2019. She is one of three SCELP employees based in the Columbia area. Lauren graduated from Anderson University and earned her J.D. (Juris Doctor) from Charleston School of Law. She represented plaintiffs in construction litigation at Lucey Law Firm before joining the SCELP team. She loves the outdoors, which inspired her to work for SCELP, and is happiest hiking, kayaking, or climbing - and watching Gamecock football! First Term Expires: 2026 Emily Jones Emily Jones is a 20-year resident of the Watershed with a long-standing interest in landscape restoration and community design. She served on the GCWA Board from 2008-2014, including a term as President from 2010-2014. She is a registered landscape architect with 30 years experience in various roles of public and private practice. Since 2012 she has been employed with the University of South Carolina overseeing a wide range of construction projects. First Term Expires: 2026 E. Wrenn Barrett, PE Wrenn Barrett, PE, is a Vice President at JMT Consulting Engineers and is the Area Manager for the Midlands and Upstate regions of South Carolina, offering engineering services in project management, transportation roadway and bridge design, subsurface utility engineering, utility coordination, and construction management. Wrenn has 35 plus years’ experience in civil engineering and has worked in both the public and private sectors. Wrenn has lived in the Gills Creek Watershed (on the pond in Kaminer Station) since 1994 and has a vested interest in the current and future health of the watershed. First Term Expires: 2026 Frank E. Robinson, III Frank E. Robinson, III is a Senior Vice President Investments,Senior Financial Advisor with Wells Fargo Advisors. Previously, he was with BB&T and has been a financial advisor since 1995. Frank enjoys the outdoors whether he’s fly fishing in a river or salt water, hunting with his dogs for upland game and spending time with his family. He is married to Katherine Robinson, and they have 2 grown children, Kate and Frank, IV. First Term Expires: 2026 Beata Dewitt Beata Dewitt is an Environmental Justice Associate at the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services. Beginning as an intern, Beata has participates in the EJ Strong Program, which empowers underserved and minority communities through environmentally just initiatives. She also serves as the Environmental Chair for the South Carolina Public Health Association and Member-at-Large on the Congaree Biosphere Region Advisory Council. Beata recently earned her Master of Public Health in Environmental Health Sciences from the University of South Carolina and holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Health from Benedict College. First Term Expires: 2027 Curtis Derrick Curtis Derrick spent 43 years on multiple levels of academia, teaching and in administration. He retired from Midlands Technical College in 2016. In the 1970s with help from Dr. Jackie Jacobs and the SC Wildlife Federation, he wrote and piloted environmental education curriculum for Kershaw County’s gifted and talented program. The curriculum was disseminated by the SC Dept of Education to other gifted and talented programs across the state. Later as curriculum director for two school districts in Maine, Derrick enlarged the curriculum with support from the University of Maine at Fort Kent and the Quebec-Labrador Foundation. First Term Expires: 2027 Courtney Cannon Courtney Cannon is a Staff Attorney at the Center for Heirs Property Preservation (CHPP), currently awaiting her South Carolina Bar License. She is licensed to practice law in North Carolina. Courtney earned her bachelor's degree from Lander University and her J.D. (Juris Doctor) from North Carolina Central School of Law. From a young age, she has been passionate about the environment, which inspired her to pursue a career focused on environmental and land justice. Before joining CHPP, she worked as an Environmental Justice and Equity Specialist, helping South Carolinians understand the importance of environmental justice and assisting communities affected by environmental harms. In her free time, Courtney enjoys working out with her husband, spending time with her beloved dog, Kai, attending live music events, or hiking. First Term Expires: 2027 |
Bailey Slice Parker, Executive Director
Rebecca Milford, Membership and Outreach Coordinator
Frannie Melia, Water Quality Intern