Board and Advisors

The official mascot of the Lake Oswego Preservation Society is a red and white 1958 Nash Metropolitan nicknamed “Smiley.”

 

Board meetings are held on the second Thursday of the month from 1:00 to 3:00. Meetings are held at the Society’s History Center & Museum at 40 Wilbur Street. The Board does not meet in July, August, or December. An extensive Board Member and Organizational Handbook clearly outlines the Board Member expectations along with pertinent information about the organization. The Society carries Directors and Officers liability insurance to protect volunteer board members.

In Memory of Jack Walsdorf 

We are mourning the loss of one of our long-time board members. Jack Walsdorf was also a History Hero, a lifetime member of the Society, a strong supporter, and a friend. Jack, a long-time William Morris collector and scholar, was interested, as was Morris, in the issues of preservation and was inspired by the Morris quote “… these old buildings do not belong to us only; that they have belonged to our forefathers, and they will belong to our descendants unless we play them false. They are not in any sense our property, to do as we like with. We are only trustees for those that come after us. So I say nothing but absolute necessity can excuse the destruction of these buildings; and I say, further, that such a necessity has never yet existed in our time.”

Donations to the Society may be made in Jack’s memory. See a list of our generous donors.

Officers

Marylou Colver, President

Marylou founded the Society in 2011. The triple bottom line benefits of preservation—environmental, economic, and social—are at the heart of the Society’s mission. She also researches, writes, and presents information on Lake Oswego’s history. She received the City of Lake Oswego’s Historic Preservation Merit Award as well as the City’s Unsung Hero Award plus the Excellence in Community Service Award from the Daughters of the American Revolution for her work in preserving and showcasing Lake Oswego’s unique history. She founded the Lake Oswego Historic Home Tour in 2007, but she has not been associated with it since 2009. Marylou is also the author of the book Lake Oswego Vignettes: Illiterate Cows to College-Educated Cabbage which was published by The History Press in March 2012.

Erin O’Rourke-Meadors, Treasurer

Erin is a local historian with a passion for accuracy. Erin has helped research many local history projects including Lake Oswego Vignettes, the 20-panel exhibit of the history of Lake Oswego neighborhoods entitled, Building Blocks, and the Lost Landmarks exhibit. She received the Unsung Heroes award for her broad range of community service and the City of Lake Oswego’s Historic Preservation Merit Award for her tireless advocacy on behalf of our historic resources.

Rhonda Allen, Secretary

Although a native Californian, Rhonda has spent more than half her life in Oregon, the last 10 years in Lake Oswego. Retired from an administrative career spanning aerospace, the private sector, academic book sales & processing, event planning and public accounting, her retirement years encompass volunteering in Lake Oswego with Parks & Recreation, the Lake Oswego Public Library and The BOOKtique, the used bookstore in Lake Grove. Also a director on the Friends of Lake Oswego Public Library Board, Rhonda looks forward to becoming an even more valued Society board member gaining knowledge and applying professional skills to aid in the Society’s mission.

 

Board of Directors

Marylou Colver, Erin O’Rourke-Meadors, and Rhonda Allen, Directors

Jon Gustafson, Director

Born in western New York, Jon’s family moved to Oregon when he was in the second grade. Jon grew up in NW Portland and graduated from Lincoln High School. While traveling the country Jon discovered his passion for architecture and design and earned an architecture degree from Portland State University.  Jon began working in Lake Oswego after graduation and moved here in 2005 with his husband Michael. Together they bought and remodeled their first house in Lake Oswego. Four houses later, they now live in the Old Town neighborhood with their daughter. Jon owns a local Design-Build company and is a licensed real estate broker. He previously served on the Lake Oswego City Council and as Chair of the Lake Oswego Planning Commission. He is currently Vice-president of the Willamette Falls Heritage Area Coalition.

Scott Howard, Director

Scott Howard and his wife Lucy Kivel are the founding members of Kivel & Howard LLP, a Portland-based law firm. Kivel & Howard provide legal services to closely held businesses. Scott’s primary role involves guiding the overall direction of the firm and consulting with the firm’s clients. He works primarily in the areas of business planning and transactions, succession planning, estate planning, and charitable planning.

Scott’s community involvement includes supporting Oregon non-profit organizations as an advisor and through committee and board membership. Scott currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Oregon Historical Society. He has also served on the Board of Directors of the Oregon Symphony Association, the Oregon Ballet Theater and the Multnomah Athletic Club. Scott also served a four-year assignment with the Portland Center for the Performing Arts, chairing its advisory committee and developing its strategic plan.

Joan Moore, Director

Joan has lived in Lake Oswego since 1978 and is a graduate of Lewis and Clark College. During her professional career, Joan worked for Congressman and then Senator Ron Wyden running both his political and congressional offices. As a volunteer, Joan devotes her time to the issues and people she believes in. She served on the Board of the National Friends of Public Broadcasting and has been involved in numerous campaigns in Lake Oswego. She is thrilled to combine her interest in historic preservation with community activism as a member of the Board of the Lake Oswego Preservation Society.

Susan Stier, Director

Susan lived in Lake Oswego for 27 years and is currently a Portland resident. She has a degree in Computer Science from Linfield College and worked with Intel, Wang Laboratories and other high technology companies before ultimately pursuing her real love, real estate.  Susan spent her youth in Chicago where her passion for architecture was sparked by touring buildings and homes designed by great architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Mies Van der Rohe.  Susan and her husband enjoy restoring homes, a Marjorie Wintermute in Lake Oswego and currently a John Storrs in Portland.  She has also held advisory or committee positions with Portland Community College, Three Rivers Wine and Land event, Oregon College of Art and Craft auctions, Oswego Heritage Council home tours, past president and board member of the Lake Oswego School District Foundation, past board member for Willamette Women Democrats and past board chair for Saturday Academy.

Rachel Verdick, Director

Rachel Verdick, an Oregon native, moved to Lake Oswego in 2001 with her husband Jonathan Puskas. She earned her B.A. in Sociology from Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, IN and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame. After designing a second story addition to her own home, Rachel decided to exit her corporate management career to pursue her dream of architecture. She enrolled in the Architectural Design and Drafting program at Portland Community College where she completed her AAS in Architectural Design in 2010. Immediately thereafter, she opened Verdick Residential Designs. Currently, Rachel earned her Master’s Degree in Historic Preservation from Boston Architectural College. She also serves on the City of Lake Oswego Historic Resources Advisory Board and Lake Oswego Arts Council Gallery Without Walls Selection Committee.

Emogene Waggoner, Director

Emogene has lived in Lake Oswego for 32 years. During this time she served on Lake Oswego City Council and the task forces for Affordable Housing and Infill Development. She also served on the planning committee for the first two Lake Oswego Historic Home Tours. Her professional career has been that of a realtor in Lake Oswego for the past 26 years. Prior to moving to Lake Oswego Emogene and her husband were founders of Save Old Steilacoom. SOS was successful in preserving much of Steilacoom, the first incorporated town in Washington, and placing it on the National Register of Historic Places.

Advisory Board

Corinna Campbell-Sack, Advisor

Corinna Campbell-Sack is a graphic artist who specializes in book, exhibit, and interpretative panel design. Her experience includes numerous books designed for the University of Chicago Press, the Oregon Historical Society and the University of Washington Press. She also designed two books for the Lake Oswego Public Library: The Diary of Will Pomeroy and the reissue of the oral history collection In Their Own Words. She also designed graphics for both the Portland Art Museum and the Seattle Art Museum for almost a decade. Among the exhibits Corinna has designed are Lost Landmarks: The Fate of Historic Homes in Lake Oswego, Oswego’s Iron Industry, and Building Blocks: A History of Lake Oswego Neighborhoods. Corinna designed the interpretative panels for both the Oswego Iron Furnace and the Oswego Iron Heritage Trail. She was awarded the City of Lake Oswego’s Historic Preservation Merit Award for her work.

Pam Hayden, Advisor

Pam has lived in Lake Oswego for almost 40 years. Now retired, she worked for Clackamas County for 32 years, predominantly in the field of historic preservation. As a Senior Planner, she managed historic resource survey projects and staffed the Historic Review Board. For the last five years, Pam has been spearheading a project to rehabilitate and research the origins of a very old highly crafted hewn log building in Molalla. She currently serves on the board of Portland’s Architectural Heritage Center/Bosco Mulligan Foundation, focusing on educational programs. Pam believes that community education is the key to preserving our treasured historic resources. With shared knowledge they will be embraced as an essential part of our community landscape. Thus, they may endure for the benefit of future generations.

Nancy Headlee, Advisor

Nancy has been a Lake Oswego resident for 46 years. She has been employed by the Lake Oswego Chamber of Commerce, the Lakewood Center for the Arts, and the Oswego Heritage Council. Nancy is currently President of the Oswego Pioneer Cemetery. She hopes to continue to volunteer in ways that follow in the footsteps of her parents, Bill and Buzz Headlee, who gave much of their time and energy to make Lake Oswego a better place to live. Nancy believes in the importance of our past and hopes to help others realize that it was our forefathers that helped us get to where we are today. Preserving some of the past reminds us of the courage and sacrifices that those who came before us made to enrich this community.

Susanna Campbell Kuo, Advisor

Susanna Kuo grew up in Lake Oswego and graduated from Lewis and Clark College. She holds a Ph.D. from Indiana University in English literature and Folklore. Her interest in traditional crafts and industrial heritage has led to a variety of experiences from an apprenticeship in a Japanese crafts guild to work as a curatorial assistant in the Portland Art Museum. Her book Carved Paper is the first comprehensive work in English on the history of Japanese stencil dyeing. Her interest in Oregon history began in 1999 when she joined the board of the Oswego Heritage Council. She has written more than thirty interpretive signs for historic sites in Lake Oswego, including the Oswego Iron Heritage Trail. For her efforts to preserve the Oswego iron furnace, she received the City’s Historic Preservation Merit Award.

Bridget M. Smith, Advisor

Bridget Smith moved to Lake Oswego from Colorado in 2011. A communications specialist, she served as director of marketing for The Bank of Oswego for six years. In this capacity, Bridget worked to provide philanthropic assistance to several local organizations in support of their mission. One notable project was the grassroots effort to preserve a mid-century modern home in Lake Oswego, designed by the famed architect Pietro Belluschi. Today the Belluschi Pavilion is repurposed as a center for art and education at Marylhurst University.

The built architecture of Lake Oswego especially speaks to Bridget. A native of Illinois, she acquired a deep appreciation of homes designed by architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright. When introduced to the Society Founder and President, Marylou Colver, she immediately sensed a connection. Impressed by the Society, its commitment to accurately sharing the history of Lake Oswego, and its strong leadership, Bridget took an interest in helping to promote its mission. A respectful partnership was formed with the Bank which helped to provide sponsorship and in-kind assistance for the Society’s many endeavors. Additionally, Bridget volunteered as a judge for the high school History Essay contests, assisted with the grand opening of the Iron Workers Cottage and with the recent Oregon Iron Jubilee celebration.

Ms. Smith was co-owner of a company specializing in renovation, remodeling and new home construction along the Front Range of Colorado for over 30 years. In addition, she holds a Master’s of Arts in Communication Studies and worked in higher education, non-profits and the private sector in Wisconsin, Colorado and Oregon. Bridget is a volunteer for the Friends of the Lake Oswego Library’s BOOKtique. An avid reader, she is learning the history of Oregon while exploring and enjoying the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.