We are pleased to publish our 2022-2023 Annual Report. We have made significant progress helping to build campgrounds, trails and supporting Channel Island National Park priories over the last two years. We look forward to hiring our first Executive Director in 2024 and working to make the Park’s new master plan a reality. Click here to download the pdf.
Read more: 2022 – 2023 Annual ReportThe Board of Directors
The park foundations board of directors consists of a diverse group who have one very important thing in common; they love the Channel Islands and are committed to supporting Channel Islands National Park.
JOHN WICKENHAEUSER, PRESIDENT
John Wickenhaeuser is a life-long educator who grew up in Santa Barbara admiring the Channel Islands. He wrote his senior thesis at UC Santa Barabara about the exotic species removal program on Santa Cruz Island. John was the Vice President of a rescue and safety equipment sales and training company in the Bay Area before moving to Ojai, where he served as the Director of Technology and Sustainability at Ojai Valley School. He is a workgroup leader for the national park and leads as many trips to the islands as he can for restoration, education and recreation. He fell in love with the islands while writing his thesis, and rediscovered them when he moved back to the area and has been looking for any way to contribute to the restoration and protection of their extraordinary resources since.
VAHAGN NAHABEDIAN, DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
Vahagn Nahabedian is a California native and a fourth generation oilman. He is also a Scuba Instructor and considers the Channel Islands the best diving in the world. He is a volunteer scuba diver for Channel Islands Live and has shared his passion for the National Parks with his son Tigran who is also a volunteer with Channel Islands National Park, the first Student Buddy Bison Ambassador for the National Park Trust and a Centennial Events Coordinator for the CIPF.
MARCELLA KLEIN WILLIAMS, SECRETARY
Dr. Marcella Klein Williams has a career in education that has ranged from the classroom to the national level. She has a doctorate in educational leadership and experience building STEM education networks. Additionally, Marcella has been involved with the Channel Islands for over 20 years and is the wife of an island ranger.
PETER HAGGERTY, TREASURER
Peter Haggerty has extensive experience preparing annual operating and capital budgets in the healthcare sector. In addition to his work on behalf of the Channel Islands, Mr. Haggerty continues his commitment to non-profit as assistant treasurer to The Rotary Club of Ojai Education Foundation and serves as a board member of The Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation.
SUSANNE WILSON, DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL GIFTS
Susanne Wilson is the former co-owner of Property Management Business in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She has extensive background in Resort Marketing and Property Management. Susanne is committed to supporting local non-profits including the Ojai Music Festival, the Ojai Defense Fund, and sponsoring the Nordhoff High school AVID program: Advancement Via Individual Determination, a college readiness system.
KEN MCALPINE, DIRECTOR OF MEDIA
Ken McAlpine is an acclaimed local author of more than eight books. His novel, “Juncture,” is a cerebral “Jaws”; a suspense-filled thriller, a story of primal love and our changing oceans and, perhaps, a final fork in the road. “Islands Apart: A Year on the Edge of Civilization,” journaled his journey through California’s Channel Islands National Park in an effort to “breathe slowly and think clearly, to examine how we live and what we live for.”
TIGRAN NAHABEDIAN, YOUTH DIRECTOR
I earned my first Junior Ranger Badge at Channel Islands National Park when I was five years old and have loved the park ever since. I have completed over 70 Junior Ranger programs so far and was the first Junior Ranger Underwater Explorer at Channel Islands National Park. I was really honored to help the National Park Service with the Find Your Park and Every Kid in a Park campaigns and I represented Let’s Move Outside at the White House, where I got to help First Lady Michelle Obama plant the White House garden. I was asked to help kick off the Rose Parade in 2016 and rode on the Find Your Adventure banner float. I completed the NPS Centennial Volunteer Challenge. I am a volunteer for Channel Islands National Park as a Special Events Information Specialist, Division of Interpretation and have volunteered with invasive species removal on Anacapa Island as part of the Hands on the Land program and at beach clean-ups. I was asked by the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation to play Trooper Tigran in “Ready, Set, Hike!” the National Parks episode of Mack and Moxy. Mack and Moxy is a children’s education show that focuses on causes and airs on PBS. My episode promotes the National Park Service Junior Ranger Programs. I also represented the National Park Foundation during the Subaru Share the Love Campaign. One day, I want to be the Director of the National Park Service You can follow my adventures in Buddy Bison’s Buzz at www.parktrust.org and on Instagram and Twitter @JrRangerTigran @nationalparktrust and @nationalparkgeek .
MICHAEL DELANEY, CHIS Garden and Nursery Team Lead
Michael is a Channel Islands Nation Park volunteer and is a work leader for plant restoration, a member of the Visitor Center Garden and Nursery Team, and involved with CHIS Live Dive, and Fresnel Lens maintenance. He is a Ventura County Master Gardener and MG site lead for the CHIS garden and nursery team. Michael is also a CHIS Naturalist Corp member and leads hikes on the islands. He was on the Board of Directors of Fairwind Yacht Club, a California 501c7 Non-Profit Corporation, for ten years in a variety of roles including Commodore, Treasurer, and Fleet Captain. Michael was a Chief Scientist at Boeing Satellite Systems and a Program Manager and Department Manager at HRL Laboratories (formerly Hughes Research Labs). He has a Doctorate in Physics.
LINDA MOHAMMAD, DIRECTOR
Linda Mohammad was born and raised in Malaysia, later migrated to the US at the age of 19 and soon fell in love with America’s Best Idea. She’s an avid hiker and a national park traveler. To date, she has visited 40 of the 60 national parks in America. Linda also volunteers her time at the John Muir National Historic Site in Martinez, California as well as serves on board of director for the Channel Islands Park Foundation. When she’s not out road tripping and park hopping on weekends, Linda spends her weekdays working as a petroleum engineer in Bakersfield, California. She has always been intrigued by the energy industry since her teenage years. One of her life goals is to experience all 60 America’s National parks before she retires. Here on the Channel Islands, she helps organize volunteer projects on the islands. A way of giving back to the places she loves.
STEVE CHADBOURNE, DIRECTOR
Steve Chadbourne was born in Anderson, Indiana and is the son of a high school teacher and principal. As a child, his family would travel throughout the United States, camping in National and State Parks and by the age of 17, he had visited 47 states. In 1995, he was transferred to Eugene, Oregon where he met his future wife, Sueanne, while she was studying environmental law at the University of Oregon. Steve and Sueanne have spent most of their married life in Ventura, California.
Steve has over 25 years of experience managing manufacturing operations for Fortune Global 500 companies, such as Sony, Philips Electronics, and Amazon.com. Steve holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University and a MS in Finance from Seattle University. Previously, he has served on the board of The Turning Point Foundation, Ventura Rotary Club, and on the investment committee of the Ventura County Community Foundation. He is also a past board member of The Mesa Union School District. He and his family continue to enjoy camping, sailing, and being outdoors.