Travis Williams, Executive Director and Riverkeeper

Travis Williams has worked in river conservation since the 1990s and since 2000 has led Willamette Riverkeeper (WR). In addition to directing WR’s operations, he serves as Riverkeeper, making regular patrols of the river from Eugene to Portland. In addition to getting people to experience the river in low impact craft such as canoes, supporting habitat restoration and implementing the Clean Water Act are his main priorities.

Earlier Travis worked for American Rivers and Conservation International in Washington DC. He is an avid canoeist who has traveled many western rivers and photographed their natural beauty. He holds a B.A. in International Studies from Portland State University and an M.S. in Environmental Science from The Johns Hopkins University. A fifth-generation Oregonian who grew up in Milwaukie, Oregon, Travis was on the Willamette River with friends at a young age. In March of 2009, his book The Willamette River Field Guide, will be published by Timber Press.

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Gerry St. Pierre, Restoration Manager

Gerry directs Willamette Riverkeeper’s new restoration program. He will be working with watershed councils, county and state agencies, and private landowners to restore habitat throughout the Willamette basin. Gerry will also be recruiting WRK volunteers to work on restoration projects, a potential native plant nursery, and various monitoring activities.

Originally from Michigan, Gerry earned a degree in Biological Sciences from Wayne State University in Detroit. Since moving to Oregon, Gerry has worked on habitat restoration in northwest Oregon, with a special focus on the Columbia and Tualatin Rivers. He has partnered with various local organizations to remove invasive weeds, restore river function, revegetate with native plants and involve landowners and residents in restoring native habitat. Gerry agrees with Rat that “there is nothing—absolute nothing—half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats,” and is delighted to work out of the Portland Boathouse.

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Kate Ross, Outreach and Education Coordinator

As Willamette Riverkeeper’s (WR) first Outreach and Education Coordinator, Kate pilots our River Discovery program, conducts outreach activities by organizing and/or participating in community events, and promotes education efforts. Originally hailing from Central New York State, she was first exposed to paddling from the seat of a canoe in the renowned Adirondack State Park region. Kate later earned a BA in Environmental Studies from Siena College in Loudonville, NY.

Whether working for the National Park Service, or guiding sea kayak excursions in southeast Alaska, Kate has continually pursued environmental and outdoor education. She served as an instructor and community liaison for Alder Creek Kayak & Canoe, where she honed her river running skills. Kate is thankful for her experience as a pod leader on Paddle Oregon 2005 which first introduced her to WR, and gifted her with a hopeful outlook of the Willamette River watershed. She continues to share her enthusiasm for paddling, and she strongly believes that engaging more people—of all ages and abilities—in paddling trips, creates a healthier river system and community.

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Amy Baur, Development Coordinator

Starting as a Water Quality Monitoring volunteer and now as Development Coordinator, Amy has been involved with Willamette Riverkeeper since 2006. Amy has gained experience in environmental research, grant writing, and grants management from her involvement with varied conservation organizations across the country. Since earning a degree in Zoology from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, her environmental research positions around the country include avian, endangered species, reptile, amphibian and invertebrate surveys.

Her development experience includes coordinating fundraising events, implementing Willamette Riverkeeper’s online donation service, and streamlining Willamette Riverkeeper’s development activities.

As Development Coordinator, her goal is to raise the visibility of Willamette Riverkeeper’s benefit to the community and secure support for our work by developing and implementing fundraising activities such as managing grant submittals, researching prospective funding, and leading the individual and corporate membership program. She is excited to be back at Willamette Riverkeeper after a brief hiatus and thanks each of Willamette Riverkeeper’s members and volunteers for their dedication and support.

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Julia DeGagne, Water Quality Program Coordinator

As coordinator of Willamette Riverkeeper’s water quality monitoring program, Julia works with our incredibly dedicated volunteers to track water quality parameters (including pH, temperature, turbidity, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, and E. coli) at 38 sites stretching from Eugene to Portland.

Since moving to Oregon in 2007, she has been continually stunned by the beauty and diversity of our northwest rivers. Her work over the past few years has cemented her strong feelings about the importance of obtaining consistent, high-quality monitoring data to inform conservation efforts. She believes that the benefits—to both people and nature—of getting folks out on the river to observe its intricacies and gauge its health can’t be overestimated.

Originally from Philadelphia, where she first discovered the joys of paddling on the Susquehanna and Delaware rivers, Julia holds a master’s degree in natural resource management from the University of Pennsylvania. Since graduating, she has assisted with conservation planning at The Nature Conservancy, spent a summer in Mt. Jefferson Wilderness as a guard for the US Forest Service, and helped to develop watershed education programs for the Southwest Watershed Resource Center in Portland.

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