Staff Members

Gretchen Reuning

Executive Director

  • Gretchen is the original forester of LCD’s Healthy Forest Initiative. Hired as the Forestry Program Director in 2017, Gretchen grew the roots for what our forestry program is today. Since starting, she has implemented and overseen over 4,000 acres of forest restoration treatments in Larimer County.

    Growing up in a musical family in Ithaca, NY, Gretchen quickly learned that music is great, but not what she wanted to spend her life doing. She has always been a nature lover and wanted to be outside as much as possible, which led her to pursue a B.S. in Environmental Biology from Principia College. The program focused on job-relevant skills and hands-on experiences which taught her a lot about forest management from silvicultural prescriptions to chainsaw safety. She also holds an M.S. in Plant Ecophysiology from Colorado State University and has worked in natural resource management and forestry in Colorado, Illinois, California, and New Zealand. All of these experiences have helped broaden her knowledge of forestry, ecology, and natural resource management.

    Aside from being a wealth of knowledge on front-range ecology and a great collaborator, Gretchen can ride a mountain bike faster than you and bake the best loaf of sourdough you’ve ever had.

Dylan Alsbach

Forestry Program Manager

  • Dylan hails from Wisconsin where he grew up in the woods doing everything a young Wisconsinite ought to. He completed his B.S. in Forest Management and Restoration Ecology at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point in 2018, but he spent time before that doing forestry work across the country. Dylan joined the LCD team in 2020 after forestry stints in Wisconsin, California, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania.

    Since his start, Dylan has been an invaluable member of the team; always looking to take on new projects and challenges. He loves long days in the field, marking and inventorying project sites, and building relationships with landowners and logging contractors.

    Dylan likes to go fast and so does George, his dog. Mountain biking, running, and cross country skiing are all things you can find him doing throughout the year. If you’re paying attention, you might be able to catch a glimpse of his luscious mane on the trail as he hollers “on your left!” with George hot on his tail.

Matt Mueller

Forestry Project Manager

  • Matt Mueller joined LCD in October of 2022. At the time, we already had a Matt M., so we started affectionately calling him Mueller. He’s now the only Matt in our office, however old habits die hard. If you hear one of us talking about Mueller, you now know who we’re talking about!

    Matt has always had a passion for forest health. After graduating from Illinois State University with a degree in Geography and a minor in Environmental Sciences, Matt worked in various parts of land management with numerous agencies. Before Matt got brought on to LCD, he worked as a Senior Brewer at New Belgium.

    When Matt isn't in the office, you can find him exploring Colorado in his camper with his wife and dogs.

Anna Cloud

Riverscape Restoration Program Manager

  • Anna is super pumped to build and grow our riverscape restoration program here at LCD! She comes from an engineering background and transitioned into this role with LCD in 2023 to follow her passions. She's looking forward to working in the river alongside nature's engineers: beavers!

    Anna was born in Greeley and has lived in Northern Colorado her whole life. She moved to Fort Collins in 2014 to attend Colorado State University, and graduated in 2018 with her B.S. in Environmental Engineering. After graduating, she worked for 5 years as an environmental engineering consultant, providing engineering expertise and project management services for soil and groundwater clean up projects.

    Out of the office Anna loves hiking, biking, gardening and baking.

Nick Hagan

Watershed Restoration Specialist

  • Nick started with LCD in March of 2024 as the Watershed Restoration Specialist to help Anna with our Riverscapes Program. Nick was born in South Korea and moved to the US in first grade. Nick was raised on the Western Slope in Montrose, but has spent most of his adult life in Montana.

    Nick has worked as a seasonal commercial fisherman in Alaska as well as a LTPBR practitioner in Montana for the National Wildlife Federation under the Sage Grouse Initiative before attending Front Range Community College from 2020-2022. After his time as a student at FRCC he continued working on campus as a work study and supplemental instruction leader.

    Nick’s love of the natural world and conservation started generations before him. Nick’s grandfather came home from WWII and worked for the Bureau of Reclamation on the Colorado-Big Thompson Project and other water infrastructure projects across the west. When Nick isn’t in the office, he prides himself on being an avid outdoorsman. He hunts, fishes, hikes, camps, and boats whenever he is able. Nick is also musically inclined and is in a few bands as well as a solo project he works on. We’ve heard nothing but great things about Nick, and we’re excited to have him join our team!

Justin Yow

Conservation Forester

  • Justin received a Bachelor's Degree in Forestry and Wildlife Management from Mississippi State University in 2019. In addition, he obtained a Master's Degree in Biological Sciences focused on restoration ecology from the University of Northern Colorado. His thesis research evaluated Front Range forest fuel load over time relative to the local microclimate and topographic variability.

    Justin has seven years of experience conducting forestry research. Since 2017, Justin has worked in ecosystems across Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, Michigan, Utah, Montana, and Colorado. Projects have covered topics such as: quantifying granivore effects on longleaf pine regeneration, evaluation of cattle impacts on biocrusts within Capitol Reef National Park, and monitoring for invasive Russian olive along the Powder River in Montana. Most recently he served as crew lead for the Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station where he measured lodgepole pine response following the East Troublesome fire.

    In his free time Justin enjoys playing volleyball, disc golfing, exploring the outdoors and cooking different types of food.

Laura Pardee

Forestry Technician

  • Laura started with LCD in the winter of 2022 as an intern through Front Range Community College. After her internship was completed, she joined us part time until her classes were over and she was finished with her Associates in Forestry. Laura moved into her full time position with us in January of 2024!

    Originally from Seattle, Laura made her way to Colorado in 2020 to pursue her education in Forestry. She is one of the nicest people you will ever meet, and it’s evident that she loves the work she does and is very connected to the landscape of our district.

    When Laura isn’t at work she enjoys hiking, backpacking, and going on road trips with her dog Aspen and her partner Crawford.

Debi Deremer

District Manager

  • Debi is every bit the team mom we all need. She even brings us snacks! Born and raised in Colorado, she is well-connected in the agricultural community in Larimer and Weld Counties and seems to know EVERYONE.

    Debi brings a strong background in management, marketing and bookkeeping to LCD, which makes her a clutch member of the team. Although her job doesn’t get her into the forest much (sadly), she keeps the gears turning at the district and is always open to lending a helping hand.

    When she’s not at the office, Debi is taking care of two teenage daughters. Debi enjoys reading about history, trying new wine, doing puzzles, and refinishing antique furniture.

Amy O’Connor

Outreach & Operations Coordinator

  • Growing up outside of Denver, the front range has always held a special place Amy’s heart. Amy made a move to Florida for a marketing intern position, but after a summer spent across the United States, she was drawn back to Colorado to finish her degree and start her professional career. She earned her bachelors in Business Marketing and started as an HR assistant at Coors Field. Eventually, she made it all the way to Director of Community Partnerships where she organized all the nonprofit organizations that operated within the Coors Field, Empower Field, Pepsi Center, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, First Bank Center, and the Fiddlers Green.

    After moving to Fort Collins, Amy started working for the USDA Farm Service Agency, which happens to be in the very same office at LCD. We saw how awesome she is, and just HAD to steal her!

    Amy brings a consistent smile and can-do mentality to any task that is put in front of her. With a background in marketing, project management, volunteer organization, administration, and landowner outreach, Amy continues to prove herself to be a crucial member of the team.

Board Members

Zach Thode

Board President

James White

Board Vice President

Travis Rollins

Board Supervisor

Arnfinn Austefjord

Board Supervisor

Todd Olander

Board Supervisor

Ray Aberle

Board Treasurer

Katie Donahue

Board Supervisor