Gail Flesher Gail is retired after working as a corporate and environmental lawyer in New York City at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, where she also worked as a pro-bono lawyer and board member for several not-for-profits. She graduated from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and received her law degree from the University of California Hastings College of the Law. She moved to Edwards in 2011 with her family and is enjoying being an active volunteer with several local and national political, community and educational organizations.

Betsy Van Beek Life Skills Educator Betsy Van Beek joined Mountain Youth in 2018 to teach the Life Skills program to elementary, middle and high school students. She teaches concepts such as decision-making, conflict resolution and self-esteem though a variety of activity-based sessions. She cares deeply for the youth of Eagle County. ​ Betsy has lived in the valley since 2007 and taught English and ESL in the Eagle County School District for 10 years. Prior to Colorado, she taught in Honduras for four years where she acquired a passion for teaching cross-culturally. She is originally from Indiana, earned her BA in English Literature at Middlebury College, Vermont, and her MA in Linguistics and Teaching English as a Second Language at Ball State University, Indiana.

Valentina Garcia-Gerdes Valentina Garcia-Gerdes is filled with passion for children, nature, cultural diversity and community. Her family immigrated to the United States from Venezuela in 1980 and she spent her younger years in Bloomington, Indiana and Eden Prairie, Minnesota before moving to Colorado in 1996 to attend Western Colorado University in Gunnison. She graduated with a BA in Communications in 1999 and moved to Denver where she spent the next 12 years working in journalism while also engaging in various community organizations and events. After getting married and having her son, she decided to change career paths, obtained her teaching license and started teaching in elementary schools in bilingual environments. Valentina recently completed an MA in Special Education Dual Endorsement in Culturally Linguistically Diverse Learners (CLD) and Community Engagement from the University of Colorado. This emphasized her passion for community engagement and connecting families with resources and vital programming for sustainable communities. She is thrilled to be working along with so many wonderful professionals and students from Eagle County as an educator at Eagle Valley Elementary School. She has lived in Eagle for the last seven years with her husband Sean and 15-year old son William.

Samantha Bryant Life Skills Educator Samantha joined Mountain Youth in 2020 as a Life Skills Educator. Samantha and her family picked up and moved across the country from Florida to Colorado in 2019. They wished they had done it years ago as they LOVE the mountains! Samantha is eager to help the youth in our community. Samantha believes that begins with tools and life skills. Our youth is our future and by educating them on how to be healthy physically, emotionally, and mentally it sets them up for a positive journey down the road called, Life. Samantha is also a certified Mental Health First Aid Instructor and has participated in the ASIST training.

Molly Booker Religious Sector Molly Booker is the Pastor of the United Methodist Church in Eagle, CO and has been serving since July of 2020. Previously she worked with SpeakUp ReachOut as the Program Director teaching and educating the community in suicide prevention. She grew up in Evergreen, CO and has been in the Eagle Valley for the last 15 years. Molly has a bachelor's degree in biology and environmental studies from Bowdoin College, and master's degrees in business administration (Regis University), spiritual psychology (University of Santa Monica), and divinity (Iliff School of Theology). She is just starting doctorate work in divinity at Claremont Theological School.

Andrej Birjulin Civic/Volunteer Sector Andrej is sole proprietor of Confluence Research and Training, LLC and was previously director of research and evaluation at Eagle County Schools. He provides consulting services in the areas of K-12 education, economics and tourism, youth development, health and prevention, informal learning, marketing, and environmental design. He is currently working on projects with the Vail Valley Partnership, Eagle County Schools, SOS Outreach, the Town of Vail, the Colorado Department of Education and other entities. Andrej also contributes heavily to the local community by participating in a local youth development collaborative known as InteGreat!. Andrej obtained his doctorate in Applied Social and Environmental Psychology from Colorado State University and has years of experience conducting and leading applied research projects with a heavy emphasis on field research and evaluation.

Beckett Hyde Youth Representative Valley's Voice Beckett is a junior at Battle Mountain High School. He is passionate about artificial intelligence and youth activism and is working on a TEDxYouth talk about how "Anyone Can Build With Artificial Intelligence." In addition, he is partnering with Project We Care Colorado to create an online mental-health educational resource for crisis situations. When he has that rare spare moment, he enjoys reading, running, and writing code. He joined Mountain Youth to bring a pragmatic voice to youth activism from a youth's perspective and hopes to improve the community as best he can.

Mikayla Curtis Director of Strategic Impact Mikayla joined the Mountain Youth team in March 2014, bringing a passion for positive youth development and community development. She is committed to enhancing supports for youth and families, and ensuring a space for the youth voice. Previously, Mikayla oversaw leadership development programs in outdoor adventure settings, managed high school afterschool programs and managed a community resource office. Mikayla grew up in Eagle County and stays connected by being involved with CMC Upward Bound, serving on the board of Mountain Recreation, and volunteering with several initiatives. Mikayla received her MA in Negotiation, Conflict Resolution, and Peacebuilding and a Certificate from CMC in Sustainable Leadership. Mikayla is a Positive Youth Development trainer and is trained as a Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist.

Riley Dudley Youth Representative Valley's Voice Riley is a student at Eagle Valley High School, where he’s an active member of the community and school. He participates in cross country, speech and debate, DADD (Devils Against Destructive Decisions) club, and sits on both the school and the school district’s accountability boards. He's part of Children’s Global Alliance, where he's gone on a service trip to Nicaragua and he's getting ready to go on one to Morocco. He also sits on the Colorado Youth Advisory Council and represents youth from all over Senate District 5 to the state legislature. On his off time, loves to read, write, run, and spend time with family and friends. He joined Mountain Youth to make a difference in the community and to speak out for the needs of youth across the valley.

Bars & Restaurants Participating in the Safe Ride Program EAGLE Moes Original BBQ Bonfire Brewery Brush Creek Saloon Grand Ave Grill ​ ​ EDWARDS Gore Range Brewery Drunken Goat Craftsman Etown Main St Grill The Rose The Gas House Fiestas ​ ​ VAIL Garfinkels 10th Division 7 Hermits Grand Ave Grill ​ Bart and Yetis ​ ​ EAGLE - VAIL Vail Brewing Company Route 6 ​ ​ GYPSUM Tu Casa ​ ​

Chris Rieder Health Sector Chris is the Program Director of Mind Springs Health in Eagle County. He grew up near Chicago and went on to attend Colorado State University, obtaining a Bachelor of Science in 2004. Chris spent a couple years as a snowboard instructor and whitewater raft guide in the Eagle Valley, before continuing his education at the University of Denver. There he received his Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology and became a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC). He has been in the nonprofit community health field for the past decade, working in a variety of roles including case management, as an on call crisis clinician, as a therapist, and in supervisory and administrative positions. Chris is proud to be part of the Mountain Youth Board to help support youth outcomes and programming, in the community that he loves. He has lived in the Eagle Valley since 2004 and enjoys adventures in the mountains with his wife, Helen, and their two children.

Tracy Miller Media Sector Tracy has been a long-time media host, reporter and contributor, presently working with the Vail Daily. She is also the owner and chef of Colorful Cooking, and is passionate about healthy eating and living a healthy lifestyle. Tracy is raising two children in Eagle.