Last May the Institute welcomed John P. Vinkemulder to the Board of Directors. John is a financial consultant, First Vice President-Investments at Merrill Lynch in Grand Rapids. A committed conservationist, he is Treasurer of the 30,000-member Michigan Chapter of the Nature Conservancy, where, he says, “I learned a lot in a hurry, and I learned there was a lot I could accomplish.”
 John was raised in Grand Rapids and educated at Western Michigan University, where he received his bachelor’s and Master of Science degrees. He introduced himself to the Institute in 1998, while visiting his home on Crystal Lake.
“I’ve seen what urban sprawl can do in Grand Rapids,” he noted. “I love Benzie County. It’s one of the great spots in Michigan, and I want to help keep it that way. I especially like the organizational ability that the Institute brings to the table by helping grassroots organizations understand the dynamics of urban sprawl.” 
In recent months the Institute has gained the experience and creativity of these new staff members:
Gail Dennis, Design and Production Manager, is responsible for the design quality and efficiency of all the Institute’s publications.
Gail was born and raised in Garfield Township, just south of Traverse City. After receiving her degree in graphic design from Northwestern Michigan College in 1986 she launched a successful freelance career. She also spent five years as project manager at The Art Farm, an illustration and Web site design studio in Williamsburg, Michigan.
“I grew up wandering the fields and woods around my family home,” says Gail. “Those same fields now are crowded with subdivisions. I watched it happen with a sense of helplessness. My goal at the Institute is to help create effective visual communications to further the message of local control, planned growth, and respect for land and the people who inhabit it.”
Gail lives on the Old Mission Peninsula with her husband, Jerry Dennis. They are the parents of two sons: Aaron, a senior at the University of Michigan, and Nick, a junior high student. Gail enjoys gardening, canoeing, and walking the beaches of Lake Michigan.
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Patrick Owen is our new Staff Photographer and Communications Coordinator. Readers of the Great Lakes Bulletin have long enjoyed Patrick’s superb photojournalism and landscape photography. He also brings diverse skills as a photo editor, project tracking manager, small business and marketing entrepreneur, and technical specialist.
Patrick was raised in Pontiac, Michigan, and did his undergraduate studies at Michigan Technological University and Central Michigan University. From 1972-76 he served in the U.S. Navy as a photographer and photographic technician. His varied career since then includes work as a freelance photojournalist, historic restoration artisan, cabinet maker, contractor, boat designer and builder, and farmer.
“I feel it is very important to give back to the world in greater proportion than what is given to you,” Patrick says. “I have been blessed since coming to Benzie County and feel the need to help make this and the world around us a better place.”
Patrick and his wife, Anita Owen, enjoy singing, evening walks with their dog Missy, gardening, and landscape photography. Patrick also enjoys sailing, boatbuilding, and travel.
Doug Rose, our new Web Coordinator, is the wired wizard who manages the content, design, production, user-friendliness, and dynamism of the Web site. While keeping current with the online publishing of the Institute’s work, he’s always developing new and interesting ways to make the site more interactive.
Doug was raised in Grosse Pointe Park near Detroit, attended the Interlochen Arts Summer Program, and also worked as a professional tennis instructor. In 1995 he returned to school to train as a graphic designer at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City, where he became enthralled by the potential for merging graphic design into all forms of communication on the Internet. After graduating with honors, he launched a successful freelance Web design company and also worked as a graphic designer for print publication.
Doug enjoys reading, running, and staying current with trends in art, design, and new media. On working for the Institute, he says, “It’s rare you get to combine something you enjoy with something worth doing. I feel lucky to be here.”
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Mary Ellen Pattyn, our Administrative and Member Services Coordinator, is the person people talk to first when they contact the Institute. She also manages the Institute’s growing membership database, and helps keep administrative operations running smoothly.
Born near Detroit, Mary Ellen moved to Frankfort with her family in 1973 when her father retired from General Motors. She graduated from Frankfort High School in 1976, and in 1988 received an Associate Degree in Visual Communication from Northwestern Michigan College while raising her three children. She then worked for nearly 12 years as art director and office manager at a screen printing company in Benzonia.
Mary Ellen and boyfriend Robert Smith, who is a general contractor, are building a house together. “I think that’s why I am so much of an organizer,” she said. “I like taking pieces and fitting them together so they flow and look great.” Sometimes there are times for walks on the beautiful Frankfort beach, or a bike ride through town. Together they have five children, which also keeps them busy.
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