Board and Staff
Meet Our Board of Directors
Chris Farrar, retired, United States Geological Survey Retired from U.S. Geological Survey with over 35 years’ service, Chris worked as a hydrogeologist specializing in ground water, water quality, geothermal systems, and volcanic hazard monitoring.
Carla Cole, Resources Stewardship Program Lead, National Parks Service
Carla is a native Oregonian who has been living in Clatsop County since 2008, where she works as a restoration ecologist at Lewis and Clark National Historical Park. Carla is passionate about protecting and restoring Oregon’s environment and is particularly interested in mycelium and other hidden ecological connections. Carla has served on the NCWA board since 2013.
Melissa Reich, Stewardship Director, North Coast Land Conservancy
Melissa grew up on Shelter Island, New York, the site of The Nature Conservancy’s Mashomack Preserve, where she volunteered during high school and college. She earned a BS in Biology from Lewis & Clark College. She served three years of AmeriCorps service with the Oregon Biodiversity Information Center and The Nature Conservancy. Melissa moved to Astoria in February 2013.
Mark Garrigues, Nuveen Natural Capital, Vice Chair
Mark graduated from South Dakota State University with a B.S. in Geography & Geographic Information Systems, and Mississippi State University with an MS in Forestry. Mark works as a GIS and Inventory Supervisor for Lewis & Clark Timberlands. He’s enjoyed the outdoors his entire life; growing up hiking and camping in the Cascades. He and his wife, Jessica, go on frequent hikes and surf trips up and down the Pacific coast.
Tessa James Scheller, retired Nurse Anesthetist
Treasurer
Tessa is a retired nurse anesthetist (CRNA) and lifelong community activist. Her family arrived in Seaside in 1979 and has invested deeply in the fabric of the coastal rainforest and rural community since then. She and her family are active bicyclists, kayakers and sailors. Tessa is engaged in local elected offices and nonprofit organizations that build hope and resiliency for our shared future.
Jason Smith, Habitat Restoration Project Manager, Columbia River Estuary Study Taskforce
Jason grew up in Seaside, Oregon and obtained his bachelor’s degree from Oregon State University in Fisheries & Wildlife with a specialization in Habitat Restoration.
Brad Catton, Reforestation Forester, Oregon Department of Forestry
Mike Seppa, retired
Mike was raised on a family dairy in Lewis and Clark valley and earned a BS in Dairy Science from Oregon State University. Mike retired from the United States Air Force as a Colonel SC. He’s has served on the Youngs Bay Watershed Council & the Clatsop Soil and Water Conservation District.
Meet Our Staff
Graham Klag
Executive Director
Born in Oregon, Graham holds a Master of Environmental Studies from The Evergreen State College and a BS in Biology from the University of Puget Sound. His graduate research focused on restoration and enhancement of the early blue violet for caterpillar development of the Oregon silverspot butterfly. He brings a wealth of conservation experience to NCWA having worked in native plant nurseries, agricultural farms, and on a myriad of watershed restoration projects, from Olympic National Park to the Cascade Head Biosphere Region and Salmon River. Through his artwork Graham aims to better communicate how we can fit into our ecosystems and conserve diversity.
Kelli Daffron
Project Manager
Kelli grew up in North Carolina, receiving a BA in Psychology and Anthropology from UNC Chapel Hill in 2010. She has worked on farms from Mexico to Canada, learning how to identify and utilize native flora with locals along the way. Teaching has taken her around the world as well, reaching students in Thailand, Mexico, Malawi, and New Orleans. Since moving to Astoria in November 2016 she has volunteered and interned with Lewis & Clark National Historical Park’s Natural Resources department, working to help keep invasive plant species at bay, monitor resident elk herds, and to restore native forests. Kelli first started working with the NCWA as a contractor planting trees at Blackberry Bog Farm in Svenson. She enjoys exploring the outdoors, teaching yoga, and playing the banjo.
Erica Clark
Administration & Outreach Coordinator
Erica grew up on an island in Alaska and holds a BS in Communications from Southern Oregon University and an MEd in Community Counseling from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. She has worked for and volunteered with environmental stewardship groups for over 20 years, and commercial fished her way through high school and college. Erica moved to Astoria in 2018 and has been an active participant in the annual Fisherpoets Gathering ever since. She and her husband Daniel live with their two children, growing herd of small goats, and lots of chickens on a ridge above the Lewis and Clark River.
