New Rotarian Dawn Brownne is a Colorado native and CSU graduate in Wildlife Biology. As a devoted softball player, she played for CSU and recreationally for over 35 years. As a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) professional with the Colorado Department of Wildlife, she was on the ground floor of mapping real estate holdings, area, and game management unit boundaries. She was a baseball and fastpitch softball umpire for 40 years, and enjoys hiking, camping, hunting and fishing. Dawn also enjoys investing as a hobby, having started an investment club several years ago.
Meet Our Members
New member Anita Basham is a retired nurse anesthetist and passionate world traveler. As the wife of a CSU horticulture professor, she lived in Kuwait during Desert Storm, traveled to Yemen, Bolivia and Ethiopia, and was a resident of Armenia for 4 years. She served 8 years on the Fort Collins Affordable Housing Board, and was appointed by the City Council to the Commission for Community Development and Block Grants. She continues to be adventurous, whitewater rafting the Colorado River last year, with plans to travel this October to Kenya and Tanzania.
Born and raised in California, Jordan received his Ph.D. in Positive Developmental Psychology from Claremont Graduate School then taught at the University of Zurich. In an effort to explore a wider variety of projects, he left academia and was hired full-time at Gradient Metrics. As Research Manager, he helps businesses, non-profits and political organizations answer strategic questions, including through the use of survey instruments. He enjoys hunting, gardening and hiking, and started a men's circle focused on self-development, still going strong after 5 years. His wife, Amanda, is a teacher.
Jesse Weiner is a recent graduate with an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is a homemaker, writer and freelance editor, and was formerly an educator and academic advisor at Colorado Early Colleges, a local charter high school. Jesse and her husband Daniel have one daughter in second grade. She looks forward to being an active member in Rotary, and inspiring her daughter Elli to also be of service in the community.
Shannon Ellis is a Broker/Partner with The Group with over 25 years of experience. She received an MS in Construction Management from CSU.
With her daughters she participated in Fort Collins' National Charity League for 10 years, as well as volunteering with the Young Men's Service League with her son while he was in high school. With her children grown, she looks forward to being a Rotary member and being of service in our community
David Morse has lived in Fort Collins for 11 years, having retired from the University of Illinois where he was a Senior Geologist and Section Head at the University Geology Department. He spent 12 years in research and gas and oil exploration with Chevron and served for 7 years in the Air Force. He teaches fly tying and is an avid fly fisherman. David serves as the Veterans Committee Chairman with the local Trout Unlimited and is a proud member of the Larimer Chorale.
Sherry Gardner is a licensed clinical psychologist, receiving her PhD from the University of Denver. She holds a diploma in nursing from the Evanston, Illinois School of Nursing and a B.A. in English from Michigan State. She is a musician, a docent and board member of the Global Village Museum, and enjoys weaving and being a member of the Northern Colorado Weavers Guild. Referred by her partner, Garth McCann, she looks forward to being an active Rotarian
Jonathan (Jonny) Norwine grew up in Illinois and moved to Colorado to study at Colorado College. Upon graduating with a Bachelor's Degree, he began working for a small startup as a software developer which was acquired by Seequent, a geoscience software company. He settled in Fort Collins where he had friends and family and has been active in the high school ministry at his church. He loves exploring local breweries and taco trucks and has a two-year-old rescue dog named Newton.
Wes Alles is a retired professor, researcher and scholar, having taught at the University of New Mexico, Penn State and is a Professor Emeritus with 30 years at Stanford. He has traveled extensively, working with non-profits, medical schools and hospitals. He retired in Fort Collins in 2020.
Judy Sayre Grim is a passionate retired educator, having completed a master's degree and doctoral work at the University of Pennsylvania. She retired from CSU, having taught in the School of Education. Her family has a strong history of being active Rotarians. She is active in Fort Collins Reads and is the chair of the Advisory Council for the Osher Lifelong Learning (OLLI) program at CSU."
Mike Sollenberger is returning to the Rotary Club of Fort Collins. He has a 45-year career in real estate development and construction, with a special interest in low income housing. He and his wife Corkie combined have 7 children and 12 grandchildren. Travel, boating, hiking, and volunteering are his passions.
Sam Solt was born and raised in Fort Collins, graduating from FCHS when the population was ~15,000. He served in the U.S. Navy, air crewing HSS2N amphibious Sikorsky helicopters. He holds a BSS in Finance and Accounting and a Masters degree in Computer Information Systems from CSU, and completed coursework at USC for an MBA. After 31 years at Hewlett Packard directing IT and supply chain, he started two companies, Avert and Clear Path Labs. With adjunct professor experience at both CSU and Regis, Sam is currently active as a "sage advisor" for the Rocky Mountain Innosphere Ventures.
Bruce Smith was raised in Queens and attended Cornell Medical School. He retired 3 years ago from his ENT medical practice, and successfully raised 4 children in Fort Collins with his wife Kathie. He is formerly a member of the Foothills Rotary Club.
Maija Priebe grew up in the foothills outside of Boulder where she attended Fairview High School. Formerly a member of the Wheatridge Rotary Club and more recently the Foothills Rotary, she is looking forward to continuing her volunteer activities with the Rotary Club of Fort Collins. She is the mother of two children born in Belize, where she lived for over twenty years. Maija has worked as a Controller and is currently employed as a consultant working on financial systems implementations.
Eric Nachtrieb attended UCLA, completing two Masters Degree programs in education and global leadership. Eric has worked in organizational development, strategic planning and best practices, and was the co-founder and Executive Director of a non-profit called Relationship 180. He has worked most recently as the Vice President of Operations for Children of the Nations, which serves 5000 children abroad building schools and clinics that provide medical, educational and life development opportunities. Married to his wife Lynne for 46 years, they have three adult children and four grandchildren. They recently moved to Colorado from California to be closer to family.
Jeannie Benson is a Colorado native, mother of two and proud grandmother of two grandsons. Jeannie worked as an accountant for 29 years, has been both a member and leader in 4H, and has done missionary work in Haiti. She and her husband Del have traveled extensively. When they're at home in Fort Collins, she enjoys reading, camping and quilting.
My name is Jordan Spight and I look forward to becoming a Rotary member and the opportunity it gives to be more involved in the community. I was born and raised in Fort Collins and am a third generation Fort Collins native. Upon graduating from Fort Collins High School, I attended Colorado State University where I earned a bachelor's degree. After college I spent 15 years as a firefighter with Windsor Severance Fire Rescue, during which time I met my wife Molly (also a Ft. Collins native), moved to Windsor and had our first child. After 15 years with the fire department, it was time for a change, and I began a second career in real estate. Today I am a Realtor with RE/MAX Alliance in Fort Collins. In my spare time I can be found on the golf course, spending time with my family enjoying all the Colorado has to offer, and cheering on the Rams football team every Saturday.
Greg Lewis is the Executive Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations for Colorado State University (CSU). Working hand-in-hand with the Office of the Vice President for Research, Career Centers, and CSU’s colleges and centers, Greg and his team represent the University to corporate and foundation constituents, build mutually beneficial relationships, and promote CSU’s funding priorities to its external partners. He came to CSU in January 2016 after five years in corporate and foundation relations at the University of Arkansas.
Lori is from Cheyenne Wyoming, has been a Colorado resident for about 5 years and is a former member of the Loveland Rotary Club. Most of her career has been running nonprofit agencies, with a focus on providing affordable housing. She says, "I think safe, affordable housing is key to anyone's success in life and we are all worthy of that security." She joined Crossroads Safehouse in March 2023 as their Executive Director. Lori and her partner Brad have a French Bulldog named Bronx. She has a love of baseball and can be seen every March watching spring training in Arizona.
I was born and raised in Fort Collins, CO and attended a small charter school from kindergarten to 12th grade. Upon graduation, I enrolled at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where I obtained by Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a double major in Marketing and Human Resources. I was actively involved as a sorority sister of Alpha Xi Delta where I saw my first glimpse of community outreach through various philanthropic events such as fundraisers for Autism Speaks. Shortly after graduation, I moved back to Colorado to be close to family. I became a mom to a beautiful little boy who is now going to be 3 in August and began my career as a teller at FirstBank. Today, I am a banking officer at the Harmony and Lemay location in Fort Collins. I serve on the Board of Directors at Teaching Tree Early Childhood Learning Center.