BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Our Mission: To protect and restore the natural landscapes of the Ojai Valley forever

  • MANAGEMENT CONSULTING

    Martha has held senior management positions in manufacturing and retail organizations for the last 30 years, most recently as CEO of Griplock Systems. She previously served as CFO of Patagonia, Chief Accounting Officer of Lucky Brand Dungarees, Director of Finance and Administration of Rampage Clothing Co/Rampage Retailing, and Senior Auditor with Price Waterhouse Coopers. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BS in Accounting from Cal State University, Northridge. She has held Board positions with the Outdoor Industry Association and the Women’s Leadership Council and was a former advisor to the Marketing Committee for the City of Ojai. She has lived in Ojai for the last decade, where she is an avid hiker.

  • RETIRED BUSINESS EXECUTIVE, EQUESTRIAN

    Having been interested in the protection of environmental resources all her life, and an active OVLC member and volunteer, it was natural for Stefanie to re-join the board after 2 years away. If you have been at OVLC events, you have likely enjoyed some of Stefanie’s creativity and dedication. Born and raised in Germany, she came to Ojai to be with her sweetheart Willi, an airline pilot, now her husband. Stefanie brings two valuable assets to the OVLC, a degree and career in business and a passion for the outdoors. She especially loves riding her horse and hiking on the Ventura River Preserve which she is lucky enough to call her backyard. She has been instrumental in watching over the VRP on our behalf.

  • AVOCADO AND CITRUS FARMER

    An Ojai resident and avocado and citrus farmer for 46 years, Roger has enjoyed raising his family of two grown children and four grandchildren in the Ojai Valley. He lives in the east end of Ojai on a large avocado ranch with his wife Pat, a retired Topa Topa school teacher, who shares his love of the Ojai Valley. Roger has a long history with the OVLC after having served several times on the board since it was founded in 1987, including as a past-president. He looks forward to helping to preserve Ojai’s natural places for generations to come.

  • RETIRED BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE MANAGER

    Sandy has recently retired after working for 37 years at Patagonia as a manager in both Finance and Information Technology. Having a strong commitment to environmental, community and social responsibility, she is a long time Ojai resident with a deep appreciation for the mountains and the outdoors. Sandy’s years with Patagonia and her service on the Board of Directors of the OVLC have been expressions of her desire to help preserve our beautiful natural environment and to facilitate recreational opportunities in the outdoors. Before Patagonia, she has previously managed the business office for Monica Ros School and later played a key role in establishing, building and managing the Ojai Valley Racquet Club (now known as the Ojai Valley Athletic Club). She has served several terms on the OVLC Board beginning in 2012 and is a past President. She has also served on a number of other local boards of directors including the Rotary Club of Ojai, the Ojai Music Festival and C.R.E.W.

  • After completing a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Education, Betsy worked for the US Forest Service for a number of years. Eventually she shifted focus, became an occupational therapist, and then completed a doctoral degree in community health education. As a professor and administrator at the University of New Mexico, Betsy developed, directed, and taught in a wide range of higher education programs, and she also worked with communities around the state on federally funded initiatives to address public and environmental health needs in rural and poor communities.

    Realizing the complex, interconnected nature of health, culture, environment, and economy, Betsy’s work has focused on helping individuals, groups and communities to come together, explore important issues, and collaborate to improve ecological health and well-being of people and the places where they reside.

    More recently, Betsy retired from academia and came to Ojai to be closer to her parents. She is grateful for having time to volunteer in a variety of ways. She is a Master Gardener, and works with Food Forward and Help of Ojai to address food waste and food insecurity. She is on the Ojai Homelessness Taskforce, working with the City Manager and Mayor to address the needs of local, unhoused individuals. She serves on the boards of the Ojai Valley Green Coalition, and Ojai Trees, and she participates in restoration and rewilding projects with the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy.

  • EDITOR & OWNER OF THE OJAI QUARTERLY AND OJAI MONTHLY

    Bradigan’s first job was gathering medicinal herbs — ginseng and goldenseal — in the hardwood forests of western New York. His first writing job was as a reporter for the Kern Valley Sun, in the southern Sierras, where he worked 10 years, the last 7 of those years as editor and publisher.

    He’s also been reporter, editor and publisher of the Eastern Arizona Courier, Copper Era, Douglas Daily Dispatch, Sierra Vista Herald and the Ojai Valley News. As a journalist, Bradigan has won 7 national awards and 30-plus statewide awards for features, columns, investigative journalism, general excellence, and sports writing.

    As publisher of the Ojai Quarterly, Bret has encouraged his team of writers and photographers to explore every aspect of Ojai culture and its connections to the world, from the Blacklist era, Ojai in the 1960s, the Ojai railroad, Wheeler Hot Springs, the founding of AARP, Edward Libbey's architectural masterpieces and many more. Bradigan is a lifelong outdoor enthusiast — hiking and fishing foremost among those pursuits.

    Before becoming a journalist, Bradigan was a 6-year Air Force veteran, stationed at RAF Mildenhall, England. He is the past president of the Rotary Club of Ojai, past-president of the Ojai Valley Chamber of Commerce, secretary and trustee of the Ojai Museum, and a co-founder of Ojai Wordfest. He is the father of Andrew (Andy) and Elizabeth (Betsy) Bradigan.

  • EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT AT 1ST CENTURY BANK

    Introduced to the Ojai Valley nearly 20 years ago, Dave, together with his young family became a permanent Ojai resident in 2020. An executive of 1st Century Bank, Dave oversees commercial and private banking in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Orange County, South Bay and San Diego. Prior to joining 1st Century, Dave worked for JP Morgan’s private bank and worked in sales and marketing for a luxury hotel in Colorado. Dave holds an Economics degree from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He serves on the University of Virginia Benefactor Society board and the advisory board of clean energy company, Collective Energy Co. 

    The pandemic inspired move to Ojai has allowed Dave to assist with the asset management of the storied Ojai Valley Inn hotel where he is also working with the team there on implementing long term sustainability goals. Dave is an avid outdoorsmen, hiker, biker, surfer and camper and has long loved exploring Ojai and its surrounding natural landscape. He is committed to supporting conservation efforts in the Valley and beyond. 

  • PRESIDENT, FIONA HUTTON & ASSOCIATES

    Fiona runs a widely-respected communications strategy and public affairs firm that focuses on some of California’s most high profile and pressing issues. Well-versed in public policy, legislation and politics, Fiona is consistently recognized as one of the Top 100 Influencers at the State Capitol. A California native, Fiona splits time between her residences in Ojai and Los Angeles. Both properties abut open space owned by conservancies – driving her interest in and support of open space preservation, trails and park access, wildlife corridors and much more. Fiona’s firm is responsible for managing every natural resource bond measure that has been approved by California voters during the past twenty years, providing much needed funding for OVLC and other conservation organizations. When not managing issue advocacy, legislative, regulatory and public awareness campaigns, Fiona is an outdoor enthusiast, hiker and “farmer in training”. And, her real passion is monitoring motion sensor wildlife cameras spread throughout her Ojai property.

  • HUMAN RESOURCES CONSULTANT & BUSINESS COACH

    Lu Setnicka, a 30+ year resident of Ojai, owns her own human resources (HR) and organizational development consulting firm, Setnicka Consulting. Clients utilizing her services span a variety of industries in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors. In addition, Lu serves as adjunct faculty in the MBA programs at both CSUCI and Gonzaga University, and is an Executive/Leadership/Career Coach with Burlington, VT-based FromWithin Coaching. Lu is currently on the Board of Directors of Maine-based Johnny’s Selected Seeds and served 6 years on the Board of Directors for the outdoor industry’s Camber Outdoors.

    Formerly the Global Director of HR for Patagonia, Inc., she led all of the company’s global HR-related responsibilities, including recruitment/staffing, employee relations, benefits, employee development, compensation, training, payroll and internal corporate communications.

    Before Patagonia, Lu spent fifteen years working for the National Park Service in national parks throughout North America, including Yosemite, Everglades, Grand Teton and Hawaii Volcanoes. She has a Master’s Degree in Organizational Management from Antioch University, a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of California at Berkeley, and is a certified Career, Executive and Life Coach with the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara.

    Lu enjoys anything outdoors. A runner for 35 years before her knees started complaining, she now focuses her time hiking many of OVLC’s trails, enjoying fly fishing trips in the Pacific Northwest, and spending time with her family.

  • RETIRED NURSERY MANAGER

    Both Larry and his wife Lisa Larramendy are from fourth generation Ojai families. Larry’s affinity for the natural surroundings of Ojai Valley began with exploring Sulfur Mountain where his family lived. Larry has been active in conservation in Ventura County for over 30 years as a leader on a number of County Supervisor committee’s on conservation policy development. Larry is recognized internationally for his expertise in avocado and citrus where he spent his career. Larry, Lisa, and son Peter are all active volunteers supporting the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy.

  • AVIAN CONSERVATIONIST & NATIVE PLANT ADVOCATE

    Lizzy discovered her love for the Ojai Valley during high school, when she spent countless hours trail riding in the backcountry. Over the past decade, she has dedicated herself to wildlife rehabilitation and avian conservation. She has since broadened her focus to include native plant landscaping and advocacy. Lizzy has a particular interest in raptor identification and ecology, making her a passionate and knowledgeable advocate for protecting and restoring our natural spaces.

  • RETIRED EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN

    Jerry is from Michigan but fell in love with California when he came here to complete his Emergency Medicine residency training at USC. After his training, he worked for over 30 years in the Emergency Department at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura. Enjoying almost any activity that involves being outdoors led him to join and become the medical director of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Medical Team, which staffs the Sheriff’s helicopter.

    After retirement, he continues to be an avid cyclist, hiker, skier, and bird watcher.

    His love of hiking, mountain biking and backpacking introduced him to our various habitats and taught him the importance of preserving these lands in perpetuity. His volunteer trail work taught him the complexity involved in maintaining these trails and the importance of balancing recreation with preservation.

    Jerry is a passionate advocate for continually improving the excellent stewardship of OVLC lands and in supporting the organization’s goals of land preservation within the context of our changing climate.

  • ATTORNEY/EVENT PLANNER

    Though originally from San Diego, Sarah lived in Alaska for twelve years before moving to Ojai. An attorney by training, Sarah has clerked for both the Superior and Appellate Courts of Alaska and has practiced criminal defense for seven years. She, her husband, and two boys moved to Ojai so they could be in a small mountainous town yet also be closer to family. Sarah has been involved in her children’s school, many local non-profits, and helped start and organize the Telluride Mountain film festival in Ojai as a fundraiser for OVLC. In her free time, she loves to hike, run, camp, and be outdoors as much as possible.