Our Team
Linda Emerson - Bishop
Board vice president Linda is a recovering land use attorney who lives in the Buttermilk country just west of Bishop. She enjoys mountaineering, hiking and long-distance trail running in the Sierra and the desert ranges of the American West.
Will Friday - Santa Monica
Will is the director of the Environmental Outdoor Education Program (EOE) at Santa Monica's Crossroads School for Arts and Science and has worked as an educator at the school since the early 1990's. He has been an ardent devotee of the Eastern Sierra since the early 1980's and has spent many a day prowling the east side by foot, ski, and four wheel drive vehicle.
James Wilson, Bishop
Board secretary James has spent and then forgotten more days working for protection and preservation of the Eastern Sierra than most of us will ever know. A California native, James grew up in the Central Valley working in the agricultural industry, loading trucks, picking fruit, and working in peach canneries, and has lived in Bishop, California with his wife, Kay, and daughter, Rosanne, since 1977. Owner of Wilson’s Eastside Sports, which caters to hikers, climbers, backpackers, cross country skiers, and natural history enthusiasts, as well as an active member of numerous local conservation and civic organizations, such as the Eastern Sierra Audubon Society, Bishop Rotary and the Death Valley Natural History Association. In his spare time, James chases birds and the peace of wild places.
Frank Stewart, Round Valley
Board president Frank Stewart, a general contractor in Mammoth Lakes, is a founding board member of FOI. Directly involved in conservation issues in the Eastern Sierra for over 20 years, he may be one of the few conservationists on the Eastside capable of garnering letters of support for Wilderness from an asphalt paving company.
Paul Spitler, Palo Alto
Board treasurer Paul Spitler brings with him a wealth of political aplomb, as well as invaluable non-profit experience. Currently Chair of the California State Off-Highway Vehicle Commission, Paul is also no stranger to the endless alpine and desert ridges of the Eastern Sierra. He and his wife is now celebrating the arrival of their child, Ansel.
Paul McFarland, Executive Director
The chapparel ridges and canyons of southern California's Conejo Valley and the stories told by thiner oaks, prickly pear cactus, scrub jays, marine fossils embedded in sandstone and hidden springs can be blamed for Paul's deep interest in Natural History. After graduating with a degree in Geology from U.C. Davis, Paul traveled the country working as an outdoor educator, pizza maker, newsstand clerk, and Forest Service Botanical Technician. Since the summer of 2000, Paul has lived with his wife Yvette in the Mono Basin hamlet of Lee Vining. Paul was the first staff person for Friends of the Inyo and cannot think of a better job than working to preserve our nation's public land heritage through advocacy, sharing the lands stories and direct stewardship.
Laura Chamberlin
An East Coast girl with an addiction to volunteering and traveling, Laura Chamberlin is joining us for the year of 2007 as an Americorps member. Thrilled to be here in one of the most beautiful places in the world, Laura is a returned Peace Corps volunteer who served in Niger, West Africa from 2004-2006. After some traveling, she moved from her small town in Maryland to the SF Bay Area, quickly realizing that it was not a good fit, she found an Americorps opportunity in the Sierra Nevada and went for it. She is excited to learn more about the breathtaking Eastside, while enjoying a little birding, hiking, and triathloning.
Todd Vogel, Wilderness Stewardship Coordinator
Todd Vogel has been a resident of the Owens Valley since the late 1980's and is part owner of mountain guide service Sierra Mountain Center and outdoor education company Outdoor Link, llc. Much of his work as a guide involves outdoor education with groups from all walks of life and involving activities such as rock climbing and natural history. Prior to his stint at FOI as the Wilderness Stewardship Coordinator Todd was a FOI board member
Darren Malloy, Office Manager and Membership Coordinator
Although raised in Southern California, Darren spent 6 years working in technology firms in New York and North Carolina. In 2003 Darren moved to Bishop to be surrounded by the kind of wild places he enjoys exploring. On those days when we are unable to convince him to come to the office, he can be found bouldering on the Volcanic Tablelands, skiing around the Inyo Craters or scrambling up a Sierra ridge.