Board of Directors
A small group of Leland residents concerned about preservation of the Old Art Building formed the first board of directors in 1992. Since that time more than 50 volunteers have served on the board, bringing their talents in business, the creative arts, and community service to the monthly meetings, committee sessions, and to the many ad hoc gatherings that occur during the year. Here are the current board members for 2008:
Linda Ackley-Eaker, an MSU graduate assistant for summer classes here during the mid-1980s, has lived on 100 acres near St. Wenceslaus Church since 1998. Her family's ventures; Third Millennium Fine Arts, The Cedar Rustic Inn, and husband Alan Eaker's Longview Winery tasting room are located on her commercial corner in Cedar. She has produced numerous life-sized portrait bronzes in her own foundry for public and private clients over the past 22 years and is the creator of the International Athena Sculpture.
Merry Ball - This Traverse City native is a retired vice president of the former Empire Bank and was the first woman chairman of the Traverse Area Chamber of Commerce. She has also been named as Zonta Woman of the Year. Since 2000 Merry and her husband George, a long-time Leland resident, have had their home in the village. Merry is involved in ShareCare and the Little Garden Club. She is treasurer of the LCCC board.
Amy Chatfield - A year-round Leland resident since 1971, Amy, her late husband Bill, and her family have long been involved in the arts and in retailing. The matriarch of the Old Art Building, she was one of the founding members of the Leelanau Community Cultural Center. She was its first president and served for many years as treasurer.
Doug Fierberg received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a law degree from George Washington University. For many years he lived in the Washington D.C area and specialized in commercial law and catastrophic injury cases. In 2006 Doug and his family moved to Leland, where daughters Audrey and Vivien attend Leland School and wife Janine serves on the Board of Education.
E.J. Fitzpatrick - A lifetime visitor, she joined our board soon after a permanent move to Leland in 2005. E. J. is a painter with a varying repertoire. Her interests extend to the environment, visual and performing arts, cooking, politics, and travel. She and her husband John are actively involved in a variety of community activities.
Dan Lisuk, President, earned a BFA degree from Michigan State University, studying under James Adley and Tony Deblasi, and a masters in humanities from Central Michigan University. He taught art 32 years in the Traverse City public schools, serving as chairman of the art department for 22 years. A Detroit native, he lives in Leland with his wife Laurie and daughters Halley and Juliana. His paintings and drawings are in collections throughout the United States and abroad. Dan is the current president of the LCCC.
Laura Matthies, Treasurer - A lifelong resident of Traverse City, Laura moved to Leland after her marriage to husband Doug in 1996. A graduate of Western Michigan University, she holds a bachelor's degree in Communications and Journalism. She and her husband own a custom vineyard management business, Big Paw Vineyard Services, and are involved in the operation of his family's winery, Chateau Fontaine. Their daughter attends school in Leland, and shares her parents' enthusiasm for skiing, boating and travel.
Tom McConnell, Vice President, moved to Leelanau County with his wife Susan in 1974. A 1971 graduate of the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, Tom started McConnell and Associates marketing communications firm in 1981. He is a past vice president of the Northern Michigan Ad Club and has been on the Old Art Building board since 2003, and is currently serving as vice president.
Jill McFarlane, Recording Secretary, has lived in the Leland area since 1970, raising four children and teaching French in the Traverse City public schools. Since retiring in 2002 she has pursued her love of travel with recent trips to France and Italy. Jill joined the LCCC board in 2003 and serves as recording secretary. She is a volunteer at the Leland Library, and has been involved with the Stage Turner group. An amateur videographer, she has made several DVDs of the many activities that take place in the Old Art Building program.
Susan Oliver was born in Ohio and has summered in Leland all her life. She lived in the Far East for many years, including Seoul, Hong Kong, and Tokyo, where she was involved in producing and directing school theater presentations. She is a founder and board member of Stage Turner Inc., a local group which performs staged readings of short stories here at the OAB.
Sadayoshi Omoto - Sada taught art history at Michigan State University for 30 years. He and his wife Kathryn moved to Leland as year-round residents in 1997. He was one of the organizers of the Tuesday painters' group at the Old Art Building. A board member since 2002, Sada says one of his goals in the Leland area "is to instill a sense of understanding to the art and culture of all peoples."
Martha Ryan - A self-taught cook and food lover, Martha has lived in Leelanau County since 1974. She was Food Service Director at Leland Public Schools until 2002, when she began working at Stone House Bread in Leland. Martha's Leelanau Table is Martha's new venture opening in the summer of 2008 in Suttons Bay. She is also an active world traveler leading adult tours for GoAhead Vacations to various European destinations. Martha received her Bachelors Degree from MSU in 2000 in Human Resources and has served on the OAB board since 1998.
Trudy Underhill was born in the Ukraine and lived in Austria during her grade school and high school years, coming to the United States in 1951. Married in 1956, she studied, worked, and raised a family in the Detroit area, working first as a medical technologist, then for 20 years as a psychiatric social worker and therapist. Trudy and her husband, Bob, and three friends started the Beyond the Bay film series in Suttons Bay in 1998.
Sally Biggs - Ex officio Board Member
Staff
Judy Livingston, Program Director - This Leelanau County native became the first year around Program Director at the Old Art Building in 1997. She attended MSU for business management and after several years of world travel enrolled in NMC’s art program to earn an Associate of Arts degree. Judy lives near Northport in her owner built home and enjoys the arts that are an integral part of our community.
Julie Davis, Office Assistant, was an elementary teacher for five years before moving to Leelanau County with her husband in 1993. While raising their three children, she keeps busy volunteering at school, the library, and playing the piano and organ for various church and school functions, as well as accompanying the Leelanau Community Choir. She enjoys all four seasons of Leelanau County.
