BOARD MEMBERS

Board Officers

Chris Bryan
President (2011)
Governance Committee Chair
Chris Bryan is an attorney at Garfield & Hecht, P.C., a full-service law firm based in Aspen, where he specializes in civil and commercial litigation. His law practice includes extensive work in numerous trial and appellate courts of Colorado, as well as U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Chris graduated magna cum laude from Baylor University with a B.A. in 1999, and earned his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. He has lived in the Aspen area since 2003. Chris is the former chair of the Colorado Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division and has served on the Board of Governors and Executive Council for the Colorado Bar Association.

Jessica Garrow, AICP
Vice President
Jessica is the Long Range Planner for the City of Aspen, working on long-term growth and development policies and on the Aspen Area Community Plan. Jessica was raised in Colorado, and graduated from the University of Colorado-Boulder with a degree in Political Science and Philosophy. Jessica obtained a Masters in City & Regional Planning from The Ohio State University in 2006 and returned to Colorado to take a position as a Planner for the City of Aspen. Jessica lives in Carbondale and enjoys backpacking, hiking, and camping.

Jessica's mission as an AYPA Board Member: To provide an opportunity for young professionals throughout the Roaring Fork Valley to enhance their professional development, meet new people, and be exposed to new ideas.

Carlie Rubino
Treasurer
Carlie Rubino is currently an Advertising Account Executive for Aspen Magazine. Carlie graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder with a degree in Communication and minor in Business. After graduating from CU, Carlie moved to New York City where she worked at Hugo Boss and Temple St Clair in Corporate Sales. Being from Colorado, she had an urged to get back to the mountains and into the good life of Aspen. Carlie seeks to grow the philanthropic aspect of AYPA where people in the Aspen community can look to volunteer their time to great charities within the Roaring Fork Valley.

 

Erin Robinson
Secretary
Erin Robinson is the Director of Marketing at The Aspen Club & Spa where she handles all of the marketing for Aspen's premier fitness center and spa. She has been working there since 2006 when she moved to Aspen from Troy, Michigan. Erin graduated from Michigan State University with a bachelor's degree in Journalism and a health specialization. She ski raced throughout high school and college and her love for skiing is what brought her to Aspen. She also loves running, hiking, biking and everything active the mountains have to offer.

Board Chairs

Catherine Kuchar
Membership Chair
Catherine currently works as Sales & Event Assistant at Aspen Peak Magazine, Aspen’s premier luxury lifestyle publication. She moved to Aspen from Asheville, North Carolina and graduated from Stetson University in Deland, Florida with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Business Management. She is active in the local Toastmasters club, volunteers for trail clean ups and loves to take advantage of everything Aspen has to offer.

Catherine’s mission as an AYPA member: To inspire young professionals in Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley to further their career aspirations and plug into the professional community.

Vanessa Adam
Sponsorship Chair
Vanessa Adam is the Event Manager for Mountain Groove Productions, Inc., the Aspen-based event production company that provides cultural, culinary, sporting, and music events throughout the Valley. Vanessa and her team organize various extraordinary events in Snowmass Village, concerts at Wheeler Opera House, Bluegrass Sundays atop Aspen Mountain, and more. Vanessa moved to the Aspen area in the fall of 2003 from Boston, Massachusetts. She graduated from Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Communications. Vanessa enjoys all the outdoor activities Aspen has to offer. She loves skiing, biking, hiking, yoga and traveling the world with her husband.

Vanessa’s AYPA Mission Statement: To facilitate and encourage an environment where young professionals in the valley can learn from each other through networking, social events, and engaging themselves in the community.

Meredith McKee
Public Relations Chair
Meredith McKee is the PR & Social Media Manager at Aspen Skiing Company.  She moved to Aspen from Boulder, Colorado where she graduatedfrom the University of Colorado with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism.  Meredith is a former Aspen Community Foundation Spring Board member and is still an active volunteer with the organization.  When Meredith isn't marketing Aspen/Snowmass you can find her skiing, hiking, mountain biking and traveling.
 

Chelsea VanVleet
Events Chair
Chelsea is a principal and co-owner of Bluebird Productions (www.bluebirdaspen.com), an event planning, event marketing, pr and social media management company based in Aspen. Chelsea has lived in Aspen for five years but has been coming to Aspen for a long time and absolutely loves everything it has to offer. She loves to ski, hike, mountain and road bike, rock climb, and travel around the world. Chelsea's love for traveling has allowed her to work on many different volunteer projects in Kenya, India, Vietnam, Venezuela and many others. She used to live in Brazil and is fluent in Portuguese. Chelsea received a marketing degree from Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT and also spent a semester studying on a floating university called Semester At Sea.

Chelsea's mission as an AYPA member: To create a community that continues to be based on the original Aspen Values of Mind, Body and spirit through educational and business development. Aspen has been considered a think tank for professionals and being an AYPA member is a means to meet and share ideas with many professionals.

Bryan Erickson
Website Chair
Bryan is a Consultant with LAN Crew Colorado, Inc. (www.thelancrew.com) which provides computer and technology related services, support, and consulting to businesses and residents of the Roaring Fork Valley. He moved to the Valley from the Black Hills of South Dakota in the summer of 2004. Bryan has a Bachelor of Science degree from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. He is an avid mountain biker and loves to snowboard.

Bryan's mission as an AYPA Board Member: To help provide an atmosphere where young professionals can be involved in the local community.

Mike Jahn
Web Co-Chair, Social Media
Mike is the Founder and Principal Consultant for Clear Path Technical Solutions (www.ClearPathTech.com), a local Aspen IT Consulting and computer support company. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Colorado, Boulder (CU). Mike moved to Aspen in 2007, but has visited regularly for over 30 years, especially during his 10 years living in Boulder and Denver. Mike founded the Aspen Buffs alumni group for the CU Alumni Association in Aspen, is a volunteer coach for Aspen Junior Hockey, and Treasurer at Aspen Community Church. He also serves as a local volunteer for the Food & Wine Classic, Wheeler Opera House, Jazz Aspen Snowmass, and other local organizations & events.

Mike's mission as an AYPA board member: to build on the tradition of bringing quality networking and social events to Aspen's young professionals, to promote leadership opportunities, and to find new ways for AYPA to serve the community.

Additional Board Members (in alphabetical order)

Lindsy Fortier
When not enjoying the hiking, biking, and skiing opportunities that Aspen has to offer, Lindsy Fortier is working as the Marketing Coordinator with the Aspen Skiing Company.  Before joining the team at SkiCo, Lindsy worked for seven years as the Community Outreach Coordinator at the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES).  In addition, she runs a small marketing and design company, Up & Up Design, which she started in 2009. Lindsy came to Aspen in 2004 after completing a B.A. in Environmental Science and a B.S. in Psychology at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, New York.

Virginia Frischkorn
Past Secretary
Virginia is a principal and co-owner of Bluebird Productions (www.bluebirdaspen.com), an event planning, marketing, pr and social media management company based in Aspen. Prior to this she worked as a Catering Sales Manager at The Little Nell. She moved to Aspen in the Fall of 2006 after graduating from the University of Virginia with a double major in Psychology and Art History. Virginia loves skiing, hiking, yoga, sailing, photography and travel.

Virginia's mission as an AYPA board member: To find new ways to inspire the young community in Aspen...and also to continue to encourage Aspen businesses to work together to create a very close working community.

Isadora D. Gailey
Development Associate Isadora D. Gailey works to advance research and planning for special fundraising initiatives at the Aspen Institute.  An Aspen resident since 2002, Izzi joined the Institute from the design and landscape architecture firm Design Workshop.  Her professional experience includes advising a product design and development firm on the logistics of its acquisition by Westinghouse International; event planning and marketing for Aspen Peak Magazine; and serving as Vice President of National Sales Integration for Prinexus Inc., a subsidiary of New York-based private equity investment firm Harvest Partners.  A graduate of Purdue University, Izzi began her career as a project manager and multi-media consultant for the creative design team at Diamond Consulting Inc. in Chicago.

Steve Sand
Steve is a Certified Public Accountant, consultant, and owner of Steven L Sand LLC, CPA. www.stevesand.com. He also teaches summer tennis at the Aspen Meadows Resort. Steve graduated from The University of Iowa with a degree in Accounting. He grew up in Chicago, and moved to Aspen because of his passion for skiing. Steve still enjoys skiing, as well as tennis, travelling, and watching football with his wife Lindsey. As an AYPA Board Member, Steve hopes to use his financial and business experience to help keep AYPA running smoothly, and to also help create and support new and exciting events.

Rebecca Smalley
Rebecca is the Communications Coordinator and School-based Program Liaison for the Buddy Program, a local mentoring organization. After growing up in Scottsdale, AZ and graduating from Colgate University with a Bachelor of Arts degree, she moved to Aspen in May 2007. Rebecca was a Big Buddy for two years at the Buddy Program, and enjoys cooking, traveling, volunteering, and anything outdoors.