Duane G. Braaten served in the U.S. Army from 1972-1974. He is married to Janette and together have 4 grown children who are all alumni of MSU College of Agriculture. With Janette, they founded and operated Farm-To-Market Pork for 48 years, raising pork and beef and marketing them through their retail meat business with stores in Kalispell and Missoula. Duane has served on a number of Boards over the years including the West Valley School Board, the Montana Pork Producers Council, the Montana Board of Livestock, the National Livestock and Meat Board, the Kalispell Farmers Market Board and currently the Flathead Electric CO-OP Board of Trustees.
Archives: Members
Arthur Potts
Onno Wieringa – Vice-Chair
Mike Koopal – Chair
Mike Koopal is the founder and executive director of the Whitefish Lake Institute. Mike currently serves governor appointments to the Water Pollution Control Advisory Committee and the Western Montana Conservation Commission. His past service includes governor appointments to the Flathead Basin Commission, where he chaired the On-site Wastewater Treatment Committee and Technical Committee, and the Upper Columbia Conservation Commission, where he chaired the Aquatic Invasive Species Early Detection and Monitoring Committee. Mike also served on the Montana Watershed Coordination Council Board and the Whitefish Climate Action Plan Committee. Mike was a co-coordinator of the second and third editions of the Montana Lake Book. He is a past recipient of the Montana Chapter of the American Fisheries Society’s Individual Achievement Award for his outstanding contribution to the protection and enhancement of fisheries resources in Montana.
Clarissa Orton
Clarissa grew up in Central Oregon and moved to Washington in 2018 to study Anthropology and Environmental Studies at Whitman College. Prior to becoming a Big Sky Watershed Corps member, Clarissa worked as a farmer, raft guide, server, wildlife technician, and educator – all these positions increased her appreciation of the environment and her desire to help protect it. As a part of Western Montana Conservation Commission, Clarissa is excited to help empower the public to protect the aquatic environment through education and community outreach. Clarissa spends her free time with her friends and family, and enjoys reading, skiing, crafting, running, and swimming in rivers and lakes.
Mark Bostrom
Krista Lammers
A prairie girl who now calls the mountains home, Krista worked in the family business as soon as she could see over the counter. She bid farewell to the flatlands and headed to Montana State University, earning a business degree while working at the MSU Libraries. It was there she developed a passion for fundraising and development which propelled her into the banking sector where she helped customers achieve their financial goals. Following, Krista joined the community development team at the City of Kalispell where she worked on community-transforming projects that have shaped the city for years to come. She is thrilled to be joining the WMCC team to drive the mission of preserving and protecting our natural resources in Northwest Montana so that our communities can continue to live, play and prosper!
Kristen Jordan
Kristen grew up in Southern Oregon and lived in Australia for 14 years before moving to Missoula in 2017. She has a BSc in Environmental Biology from the Evergreen State College and a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Montana. She has always been drawn to water in one way or another, whether it be life guarding, floating down the Rogue River’s wild and scenic section, conducting research on aquatic insects (damselflies), or working in water policy. The highlight of her career, to date, has been working for the Murray Darling Basin Authority in Australia, the country’s federal water regulator. She is looking forward to contributing to the work of WMCC and seeing the outcomes of solid collaborations focusing on water quality. Outside of work, she loves spending time with her dogs, family, and friends doing almost anything outside.
Heidi Fleury
Heidi is a 2006-2007 Montana Conservation Corps alum and has been a conservation professional in Western Montana since 2014 when she began work as a Soil Conservationist trainee for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). She continued this career while attending Flathead Valley Community Colleges’ Conservation and Resource Management program. After graduating, she served as the Coordinator for the Lake County Conservation District in Ronan for 7 years where she worked with partners on adult and youth soil, water and wildlife conservation programs and community education events. As a Program Specialist for WMCC, Heidi is looking forward to using her prior experience and skills to help create engaging, meaningful water quality programs in Western Montana. Native plants are a professional and personal passion for her, and, in the past, she’s worked as a Botany technician for the Bitterroot and Swan National Forests and Glacier National Park. In her free time, you can often find Heidi out in her native plant garden, other people’s gardens, or in the middle of the wilderness identifying grasses and flowers for fun.
Stephanie Murphy
Stephanie’s fascination for the natural world brought her to Missoula in 2013 to pursue a degree in biology at the University of Montana. During this time, she assisted with research on nesting bird behavior and butterfly morphology. She became enthralled with museum collections as a curatorial assistant at the Philip L. Wright Zoological Museum. Stephanie then completed her M.S. in Biology from California State University, Chico, while exploring the creeks and woodlands of the Sierra Nevada foothills. In addition to researching insect and plant interactions, she was a biology lecturer at the university and served as curator and STEM educator for Gateway Science Museum. Returning to Missoula, Stephanie connected with our western Montana community as a Teaching Naturalist at the Montana Natural History Center. In her free time, you can find Stephanie reading, hunting for wildflowers, and attempting to perfect the chocolate chip cookie.