Members of our Board of Directors share a passion for the Bay. Each brings a unique skill set to help the organization. Our Board Members include educators, resource harvesters and growers, engineers, doctors, bankers, attorneys, and entrepreneurs. Those titles may not describe their underlying passions for the Bay. Other identities in their life histories—such as long-distance sailor, surfer, lobsterman, kelp farmer—begin to illuminate their strong commitments to protecting Casco Bay.

Olympic athlete Joan Benoit Samuelson served on the Board of Friends of Casco Bay almost since its founding. “This place is a jewel,” she says. “Having grown up in Cape Elizabeth, I realized early on that Casco Bay is connected to the world’s oceans when I threw a note in a bottle off Casino Beach, and it was picked up by a schoolteacher in England. It’s important to protect this resource.”

Joanie was asked why she chose to devote her considerable energy and prestige to the Board of Friends of Casco Bay. Herself a model of the Maine work ethic, she replied, “Because they DO stuff!”

Board Officers

President: Andrew “Sandy” Marsters (Portland)

Sandy is well known in the boating community as the co-founder and long-time editor of Points East, the boating magazine of New England whose mission is to bring attention to issues affecting the coast, including environment, commerce, and lifestyle. He has also been a reporter and editor for other Maine publications, including the Times Record, Journal Tribune and York County Coast Star. Sandy was also part of an ownership group that bought Maine Times from the late Dodge Morgan.

Vice President: Kirsten Piacentini (Cumberland Foreside)

Kirsten is a supply chain executive at L.L.Bean with years of experience in managing large teams, leading strategic cross-functional projects, and delivering results. L.L.Bean’s mission to inspire and enable others to enjoy the restorative power of the outdoors is one that Kirsten lives in her daily life. She spends much of the summer out on Casco Bay with friends and family exploring the islands, beaches, and Portland’s waterfront. Kirsten’s son was a student and commercial lobsterman for eight years, so she also has a deep appreciation for Casco Bay’s commercial uses and the thousands of Mainers’ livelihoods it supports.

Clerk: Patricia Ianni (Falmouth)

Pat Ianni is an environmental scientist and attorney with over 30 years’ experience assessing the risks posed by hazardous wastes and toxic materials. She has been employed as an Environmental Risk Officer for TD Bank since 2002. A Master Gardener, Pat regularly teaches community workshops on BayScaping, lawn care without using pesticides and fertilizers.

Treasurer: Malcolm F. Poole (Scarborough)

Malcolm is President of Poole Group of Companies, a family based holding Company of Commercial Real Estate, Marine Construction and Stormwater environmental controls. In addition Malcolm offers business Coaching and Consulting services for family, non-profit and closely held corporations. Malcolm is a life long sailor, user of Casco Bay and supporter of community based approaches to change. He served as President of the Board of Friends of Casco Bay from 2008 to 2015.

Directors

Samantha Bengs (Scarborough)

Sam is a graduate student at USM and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. She has volunteered with the Friends of Casco Bay as a Water Reporter since 2019. Her thesis research centers on the cutting-edge area of environmental DNA, examining the phenology and habitat-use of several fish species and their zooplankton prey. Sam has also worked aboard several fishing boats in Casco Bay and brings a diversity of water-usage experiences with her to the board. Though she began her studies and career in music, she credits the Bay with nurturing her interest in marine science and affirming that this is what she wants to do with her life.

Stephen Bushey (South Portland)

Stephen Bushey is a licensed civil engineer with 30 years’ experience in stormwater management and local, state, and federal permitting. A Senior Associate with Gorrill-Palmer Consulting Engineers, Steve has been involved in many projects designed to improve and protect water quality throughout the Casco Bay watershed. Steve has worked on planning and design assignments for private landowners, municipalities, hospitals, wind farms, schools, offices, and large residential communities.

Nathan Davis (Portland)

As Director of Programs at Gateway Community Services, Nathan Davis works with immigrant and refugee communities in Portland and Lewiston. He brings experience in growth strategy consulting, relationship development, project management and community projects. Nathan has also spent a portion of his professional life abroad in China, developing his cross-cultural relationship skills and building proficiency in Mandarin. Nathan grew up in Portland and has fond memories of kayaking on the water with Outward Bound.

Deb Debiegun  (Yarmouth)

Deb has a background in teaching, and in environmental and ocean sciences. After struggling with whether to become a scientist, engineer, or teacher, she realized she could combine those interests. Deb enjoys sharing her passion for the interconnectedness of nature and continuing to learn what humans can do to better our relationship with the ocean and natural world. She teaches science at the Maine College of Art & Design, and is involved with area marine education and conservation groups. Deb was a volunteer for many years with Friends’ Citizen Stewards Water Quality Monitoring Program. Her “other” interests include skiing, composting, dogs, poetry, hiking, biking, fiddle, and sailing.

Ellen Grant (Portland)

Ellen is a collaborative leader with thirty years’ experience in successful, high growth nonprofits. Most recently she was Chief Operating Officer at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. She also spent ten years as Executive Director of the Institute for Civic Leadership, and is a consultant with international conservation experience. She believes that nonprofits like Friends of Casco Bay can be extraordinary incubators for innovation and movers for creating necessary and important change in the world. In her retirement, she is devoting time to organizations focused on the climate crisis and rebuilding democracy. She also spends as much time as possible outdoors and with her many grandchildren.

Mark Green (Peaks Island)

Dr. Mark Green of Peaks Island is a teacher, research scientist, and oyster farmer. As a professor of natural sciences at St. Joseph’s College, he identified a previously unknown cause of clam mortality in Casco Bay: ocean acidification. He discovered that the shells of juvenile clams become pitted or even dissolve as a result of increasing carbon dioxide, which makes seawater more acidic. His work has led to greater understanding of the seriousness of this other consequence of climate change. Says Dr. Green, “There is no easy, feel-good solution to ocean acidification. The only mitigation is lowering our carbon footprint.”

David Kaufman (South Freeport)

At 11, David discovered the coast of Maine on a sailing expedition with his stepdad. He’s been sailing, learning, and working on his knots ever since. When not on the water, he spent 35 years in broadcasting. His broadcast tenure started with CBS Network News, included Maine radio station ownership and ended as the CEO of the WMTW Broadcast group; comprised of WMTW-TV and five radio properties. His ‘second act’ was as the owner of Brahms Mount, a Maine-based manufacturer of natural fiber blankets. David hopes to contribute to Friends’ efforts to broaden its reach into the community and to “maintain Casco Bay’s health and sustainability.”

Peter C. LeBourdais (Harpswell)

A practicing general dentist, Peter is owner and president of Brunswick Dental Health Associates, which employs a staff of 16. Peter has been an avid sailor since the age of 9, and he can be found sailing the coast of Maine or summering on Jaquish Island in Casco Bay. In Peter’s words, “Our underlying commitment should be to preserve the connection that we all have as inhabitants of this earth with a healthy ocean. We must work to ensure that Casco Bay will be life-sustaining into the future.”

Sebastian Milardo (Little Diamond Island)

Seb co-founded the human resources organization of Drake Inglesi Milardo in 1981, where he blends his expertise in psychology and organizational leadership to help businesses and nonprofits solve complex people issues at every level. Seb is a summer resident of Little Diamond Island, but he explores the varied environments of Maine all year-round. He served as Vice President of the Board of Friends of Casco Bay from 2020 to 2022.

Anthony Moffa (Portland)

Anthony is a tenured professor of environmental law at University of Maine School of Law. Prior to academia, he was an Attorney-Advisor in the General Counsel’s Office of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. As someone who regularly sails, fishes, surfs, and swims in Casco Bay, Anthony is personally invested in Friends of Casco Bay’s mission to protect the health of our coastal waters.

Janna Rearick (Yarmouth)

Janna is an in-house lawyer at Unum, where she serves as Assistant Vice President and Lead Regulatory Counsel. Pro bono and volunteer work has been a constant throughout her career. Janna’s Maine roots run deep, as she was born Down East in Washington County and raised in Western Maine where her parents had an organic sheep and vegetable farm. She, her husband, and two girls love hiking trails in the watershed and paddleboarding in Casco Bay.

Fiona Wilson (Freeport)

Fiona’s experience spans for-profit, non-profit, academic, and government sectors. She is the Director of the Sustainability Institute at the University of New Hampshire and the Co-Founder and Executive Director of UNH’s Changemaker Collaborative. As a faculty member at UNH’s Paul College of Business & Economics, she focused on teaching innovative business approaches to tackle sustainability challenges. She has served on the board of Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment and recently joined the Board of Directors of Revision Energy. Her passion for protecting the Bay’s environmental health stems from years of paddling, sailing, and swimming in Casco Bay from her home in Freeport, and cruising the English Channel and the tidal estuaries of her childhood along England’s eastern coast.