Staff & Board of Directors

Jamie Goodin, Executive Director

Jamie Goodin leads programs and partnerships related to Rockbridge Conservation’s mission across Rockbridge County and the Cities of Lexington and Buena Vista. A marketing and nonprofit management professional, Jamie brings extensive experience in strategic planning, fundraising, communications, and coalition-building. He has worked closely with volunteers, landowners, local governments, and regional partners to advance practical, locally rooted economic and community development solutions. Jamie is deeply engaged in the Rockbridge community and is committed to ensuring that conservation efforts are meaningful, effective, and grounded in the long-term health of the region’s natural resources.

Kirin Lattomus

Kirin discovered Rockbridge County in 2018 after making the decision to move back east from her time in Oregon and Washington. Her background in farming and working with educational non-profits led her to pursue a Master’s in Natural Resources at Virginia Tech. Kirin’s conservation interests started with waste prevention, and her outside interests include hiking, camping, gardening, yoga, and various fields of artistic expression.

Kirin joined the RC staff in 2023 as our Communications Administrator and transitioned to her current role as operations director. She writes our bi-weekly Eco-Calendar, works with our advancement team, handles our external communications and much more.

Shannon Spencer, President

Shannon grew up in Rockbridge County, was one of the founding members of Imagine Rockbridge and was proud to receive a Conservation Award from RACC in 1999. She is a graduate of Guilford College (business management-BS), the University of Virginia (environmental planning-MP), and Yale University (environmental studies-MPhil). Shannon is an artist and freelance editor and writer. She previously worked as the Climate & Sustainability Planner at a small college in PA. Prior to joining the RC board, Shannon worked as the RC Communications Director. She currently serves on the Lexington Planning Commission and is a board member at Boxerwood Education Association. Shannon lives in Lexington with her husband, Rich Wallace. They have two sons: Tucker, a mechanical engineer and Jonah, a woodworker & committed Habitat and RARA volunteer.

Shannon currently serves as Rockbridge Conservation’s board president and is the chair of the advancement committee and the events committee. She also serves on the tech committee.

Melody Tennant, Vice President

Melody moved to Rockbridge County 15 years ago. She came from Stockton, Calif., where she worked for 40 years in education and administration at a 47,000-student school district.  In those years she created dance classes and a Conflict Management Program; was Student Activities Director; was awarded a Healthy Start Grant and built and ran a Health Center on a 3,000-student high school; and was head counselor of that high school. She is married to Butch Snow and has one son and one granddaughter as well as stepchildren and grandchildren. She is interested and active in promoting health and good nutrition as well as being a steward of our environment.

Melody serves as the chair of the Waste Prevention Committee. She is also serving on the Annual Meeting Committee.

Megan Hess, Treasurer

Megan is an associate professor of accounting at Washington and Lee University. She teaches a variety of courses in the areas of accounting, ethics, and corporate sustainability. Prior to starting her doctoral studies at UVA, Megan spent twelve years in industry, most recently with Deloitte where she investigated financial statement fraud. She also has an MBA from Texas A&M University and a BA from Washington & Lee University. Megan’s research focuses on the intersection of ethics and accounting, exploring topics such as fraud risk management, ethical leadership, whistleblowing, and sustainability accounting. She currently serves as a member of the Board of Governors for Stuart Hall School and is the Board Treasurer and Bookkeeper for Hoofbeats Therapeutic Riding. Her previous service includes work with Rockbridge Area Habitat for Humanity and Grace Episcopal Church.

Megan joined the Rockbridge Conservation board in 2023. She serves as the board treasurer, chairs the finance committee, and serves on the advancement committee.

Sally Nunneley, Secretary

Sally grew up in Alexandria, VA, and Minneapolis, MN, graduated from Mount Holyoke College and the University of Minnesota Medical School, then trained in Aerospace Medicine. She did research in environmental physiology for the US Air Force for 25 years, later becoming Editor-in-Chief of a monthly medical journal. She moved to Rockbridge in 2003 with her horse and two dogs. She has been an enthusiastic member of Rockbridge Conservation since 2005 and has worked on its quarterly newsletter since 2010.

Sally is currently a member of the RC Board and secretary for the organization. She is the editor of Rockbridge Conservation’s quarterly Ridge and River News.

David Agnor

David is one of the leads on the annual community cleanup and serves on the watershed committee.

Sam Allen

Sam lives and works in Lexington.  He works at VMI where he teaches economics and does research on a variety of microeconomics topics, including economic history and individual behavior.  Sam and his wife, Amy, have two teenage children. Sam has a range of interests, but especially values fresh air, mindful use of resources, and supporting community.

Sam is a member of the Trails Committee and serves as the Green Infrastructure liaison for the RC board.

Bob Biersack

Bob Biersack served in several capacities on the staff of the Federal Election Commission from 1981 through 2011.  From 2011 to 2013 he was Senior Fellow at OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan, independent and nonprofit, OpenSecrets is the nation’s premier research group tracking money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy. He is an avid birder and helps his wife, Jan Smith, control invasive plants and encourage native diversity on their farm in the Denmark area.

Bob is the president of the Rockbridge Conservation board. He has been active in the land use planning and trails committees. He chairs the energy & climate committee, and is a member of the Events and the Advancement committees.

Sam Hurt

Brian Jenkins

Brian grew up in Lexington and graduated from LHS. He returned in 2007 as many do. Brian feels strongly about his home county, “Rockbridge County is a wonderful place to live and working with RC is a great way to help preserve the natural beauty and uniqueness that make this county special.” Brian works as a RN at Carilion Rockbridge Community Hospital. He lives on a farm in Kerr’s Creek with his wife Leigh and son Cooper.

Brian joined the Rockbridge Conservation board in ____. He serves on ____.

Jim Manley

Jim has a BA in Urban Geography & Public Policy from North Carolina State University and the University of Maryland. He served in the US Army as a crypt-analyst and then worked with a regional planning council in Maryland working on a US Census mapping project as well as a satellite land use study. He spent the bulk of his career as the owner of a software business, specializing in device connections, database processing, remote troubleshooting and more.

Jim has served on the Rockbridge Conservation board since ____. He serves as the board liaison to the executive committee. He is also a member of the technology committee.

Ehi Rajsky

Gretchen Sukow

Gretchen, born and raised in New Orleans, LA received a BA in Communications from Loyola University of New Orleans and an MSW from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.   Prior to starting her family, she was a clinical social worker for eight years.  Since returning to work after her youngest child entered kindergarten, she has worked as a preschool teacher in several local schools and is currently employed at Woods Creek Montessori. Gretchen has been a supporter of Rockbridge Conservation since moving to the area in the early 2000s.

Gretchen and her husband, David, have been married for 26 years.  They have two children; Carl, a high school teacher in Florida, and Ingrid, a student at UVA.

Gretchen serves on the Watershed Committee and the Annual Meeting Committee.

Craig Vinecombe

Craig works for the Rockbridge Area Health Center as a marketing and development associate. He graduated from Keene State College with a BA in Communications. He thru-hiked the AT in 2015. In addition to serving on the Rockbridge Conservation board, he is also on the Boxerwood Board. He lives in Fairfield with his wife.

Chris Wise

Chris grew up in Lexington, went on to get a degree in Landscape Horticulture and then worked as an agricultural extension agent on the North Carolina Outer Banks before moving back to Rockbridge.  He worked at Washington and Lee as a landscape and recycling manager and also supported various sustainability initiatives there. He served as a county planning commission member and is presently active in various local trail groups, including Friends of Brushy Hills, Friends of the Chessie Trail, and Rockbridge Outdoors.  He is the chair of Rockbridge Conservation’s Trails Committee and is very involved with the Land Use Committee.

Fun fact: Chris served as one the very first Rockbridge Conservation board members 50 years ago!