Calypso Farm and Ecology Center's Board of Directors and Staff

Marianne Stolz
(Farm/CSA)

David Valentine
(Ecology Center)

Michael Wald
(Education)

Susan Willsrud
(Fundraising)

Anne M. Castle
Office Manager
Anne Castle is the Office Manager at Calypso Farm and Ecology Center. Her responsibilities as Office Manager include bookkeeping, office organization, database management and general scheduling.

Anne is an accomplished engineer with BS degrees in civil and geological engineering from Michigan Technological University. She has worked for the Department of Transportation in Alaska and several other engineering firms in Alaska and Ohio. In addition to her engineering skills, she has extensive office, computer and organizational skills. She is very detail oriented and excels at keeping everything on track at Calypso.

Edge Fuentes
Farm Health Manager
Edge Fuentes is the Farm Health Manager. As Farm Health Manager Edge will mainly be developing farm health strategies in the garden that will enhance the stability as well as fertility of the fields. Through cover crop application, maintenance and rotation Edge hopes to achieve a system that can be easily duplicated and managed. Edge will also focus some of his efforts towards the improvement of food access in downtown Fairbanks.

Edge grew up in a rural section of New Jersey and graduated from Kutztown University with a degree in environmental geography and since then has spent time living, working, backpacking, climbing and traveling throughout the country. Last summer he thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail with Nobee, his dog. Nobee and Edge now live at the Farm and are enjoying their explorations in Alaska. Edge hopes to someday start his own organic farm.

Christie Shell
Assistant Director
Christie Shell is the Assistant Director at Calypso Farm and Ecology Center. Her responsibilities as Assistant Director include coordinating the Employing Alaskan Teens in Gardening (EATinG) program, assisting with the operation of Calypso’s CSA, leading community outreach activities, workshop instruction, volunteer coordination and educational program planning and evaluation.

Christie has a BS degree in Environmental Education from The Ohio State University. She has extensive environmental education and organic farming experience. Christie has worked as an environmental educator in a variety of capacities from curriculum development to science camp counseling to backcountry trip leading. Christie is an accomplished organic farmer with 5 years of experience operating small and mid-sized CSA’s with Calypso. She has wide-ranging experience in public speaking and community outreach and is a powerful spokesperson for youth operated CSA’s.

Susan Willsrud
Farm Director
Susan Willsrud is the Farm Director at Calypso Farm and Ecology Center. Her responsibilities as the Farm Director include educational program planning, annual budgeting, program evaluation, farm planning, workshop instruction and CSA operation.

Susan has a BA degree in Zoology from University of California, Davis and a MS degree in Plant Ecology from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. She has 12 years of organic farming experience working on several farms in California and Alaska. She is the co-founder of Calypso and has been the lead farmer there since its founding in 2000. Susan is an enthusiastic advocate for local food and has worked extensively with other organizations and community leaders to forward sustainable agriculture in Alaska.

Tom Zimmer
Ecology Center Director
Tom Zimmer is the Ecology Center Director at Calypso Farm and Ecology Center. His responsibilities as the Ecology Center Director include environmental education planning, soil fertility management, ecological farming instruction and consultation, farm infrastructure planning and development and community outreach.

Tom has a BS degree in Geological Engineering from Michigan Technological University and a MS degree in Soil Science from Utah State University. Tom has wide ranging experience working with diverse agricultural systems. As a Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa he designed and developed a Sub Saharan fruit orchard and nursery and worked to develop home gardens. In California, he worked as an intern on a 200-acre organic farm, where he worked in all aspects of production including: marketing, general field labor, sheep management and use of farm machinery. In South Central Alaska, Tom managed a group of eight interns on a 2-acre organic farm. In 2000, he co-founded Calypso Farm and Ecology Center and continues to dedicate his efforts to creating a healthy, diverse farm system.

Sandy Gillespie
Spring and Fall Field Trip Coordinator
Sandy Gillespie is the Field Trip Coordinator. As field trip coordinator she is responsible for facilitating the various field trips we offer at the farm.

Sandy served as director of the visual arts division of the Summer Fine Arts Camp for four years. When not at Calypso exploring the farm with children, Sandy can be found in her art studio.