Jeff Rennicke – Executive Director – Bayfield WI

Skiing across glaciers in Alaska, river rafting in China, being touched by a grizzly in Kamchatka, Russia, Jeff has led a life of adventure. Still, for more than 30 years, he has called Bayfield and Wisconsin’s Northwoods home. Writer, photographer, speaker, and teacher, he says that there is “nowhere on the planet” he would rather be than among the Apostle Islands. “Their beauty, their stories, their very presence gives me hope,” he says, “and working with Friends is a way to preserve and share that hope and then pass it on to others.”

Jill Rennicke – Co-Executive Director – Bayfield WI

With her feet in the sand or a kayak paddle in her hand, Jill finds a sense of peace and well-being among the Apostle Islands. Through her training and years of experience as a Green Meeting planner, she strives to bring sustainability into every aspect of her home and work life. “Living and working in this caring community, and with Friends of the Apostles offers many ways to give back to others, and the earth, and helps keep the islands and our community connected.”

Bob Jauch – Board Chair – Poplar WI

Former State Senator Bob Jauch is deeply connected to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore after representing the region in the State Legislature for 32 years. Mentored by his former employer Congressman Dave Obey, Bob dedicated his career to supporting policies protecting our natural resources and promoting the pristine beauty of Lake Superior and the National Lakeshore. Following retirement Bob became an avid photographer of Lake Superior to support the values and mission of the Friends. He and his wife live in Poplar.​

Jon Okerstrom – Vice Chair – Madison WI

Jon’s family tree is deeply rooted in Lake Superior’s south shore communities. His great grandfather founded Port Wing and Bayfield was his first home so it’s no wonder he’s a passionate Friend of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Jon is an avid landscape and wildlife photographer, kayaker, sailor and conservationist. He is a partner with Mark Weller in the Friends photography initiative. In his work life, Jon was a Digital Product and Operations Manager for one of the largest television groups in the country. And when he wants to get “off the grid” and back to nature, he says there’s no better place than the Apostle Islands.

Rick Charboneau – Treasurer – Washburn WI

Rick has been on the board since the end of 2013. He enjoys volunteer work including, in his younger years, serving in Peace Corps – Costa Rica and more recently volunteering for the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. There, he gave lighthouse tours and advised campers for 3 weeks on Sand Island. As treasurer, Rick updates the board on the financial status of the organization and is part of the team that selects projects to fund and work on for the year.

Dan Wilczek – Corporate Secretary – Bayfield WI

After practicing law for 35 years in Minneapolis, Dan and his wife, Liz, moved north to retire to their favorite place on earth — the shores of Lake Superior near the Apostle Islands. Dan first learned about the Friends by participating in volunteer projects on Raspberry and Michigan Islands, which were welcome opportunities to give back to the area that gives so much to those who visit. Having lived with MS for years, Dan is particularly excited to assist in the Friends’ work to enable all persons, regardless of ability, to experience and enjoy the islands in a manner that preserves the islands’ natural beauty.

Karen Graff — Recording Secretary – Kronenwetter WI

Karen lives near Wausau. Before retirement, she worked as a Senate aide for U.S. Senator Russ Feingold in central and northern Wisconsin, and previously was a legal secretary/paralegal. Karen’s work in the north kindled her love of Lake Superior and the Apostle Islands, and this love affair led to volunteering for the Park in different ways. She especially enjoys giving summer visitors tours of the Park’s amazing lighthouses, and sharing the history of the lighthouses, the area, and the lives of the keepers and their families. Karen particularly enjoys August out on the islands!

Janet Bewley – Mason WI

Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Janet experienced wilderness for the first time while in graduate school in northern Maine and has lived in northern Wisconsin since 1977. Through a variety of careers including higher education administration, philanthropy, housing, and a dozen years in the Wisconsin Legislature, Janet has the ability to understand multiple points of view.  “The Apostle Islands are a magnificent natural and public resource and require careful stewardship.  We must find balance to protect the Lakeshore while making it accessible to all.”

Barbara Coffin – Madeline Island WI

Barbara has a lifetime connection to the Apostle Islands through her family’s 1933 summer home on Madeline Island. She conducted graduate research on the ecology of Presque Isle bog and the sand dunes of Stockton Island. Throughout her career as a conservation biologist for the Minnesota DNR, The Nature Conservancy, and the Bell Museum of Natural History, she has been devoted to promoting ecological understanding of the natural world. She was executive producer of the Emmy Award-winning television documentary, Minnesota: A History of the Land and Troubled Waters: A Mississippi River Story. Barbara, whose mobility has been compromised by living with MS for many years, has experienced first-hand the gifts of the Friends’ Access for All initiative.

Dan Engstrom – Madeline Island WI

Dan Engstrom is retired director of the St. Croix Watershed Research Station, the environmental research center of the Science Museum of Minnesota. He is an internationally recognized expert on water quality issues including atmospheric contaminants, agricultural pollution, and the effects of climate change on lakes. He has done environmental research in the Apostle Islands and many other National Parks in the Great Lakes region. Dan is a long-term board member and past president of the Madeline Island Wilderness Preserve and currently serves on the board of directors of the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA). He and his wife, Barbara, live in St. Paul, Minnesota and spend summers at the Coffin family home on Madeline Island.

Neil Howk – Bayfield WI

Neil Howk began working as a park ranger/interpreter for the National Park Service in 1978 and did stints at a variety of parks including Colorado National Monument, Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument (CO), Dinosaur National Monument (UT), and Wupatki National Monument (AZ). Between 1983 and 1991 he worked at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, and also worked as a backcountry ranger at Gates of the Arctic National Park in 1987. He served as the assistant chief of interpretation at Apostle Islands from 1993-2016. He and his wife Susan operated a B&B in Bayfield from 1986 to 2018.

Greg Lais – Minneapolis, MN

As the founder and long-time Executive Director of Wilderness Inquiry, one of the world’s leading accessible outdoor adventure organizations, Greg Lais has long been a strong voice for the belief that our national parks belong to all of us. For over four decades, his work with people from all walks of life and skill levels has introduced nature to thousands and broken down barriers to the outdoors for all of us, including his recent efforts as the Honorary Chairperson of our successful Access for All Initiative. With a BA from St. John’s University and an MBA from the University of Minnesota, Greg combines a deep knowledge of the field with decades of experience and success in his continuing work to make nonprofits more sustainable, involved, and effective.

Mary O’Brien – Bayfield WI

Mary grew up spending summers on Madeline Island, a family tradition that began with her great-great-grandfather in 1857. She became a year-round resident of Bayfield in 2015 and has led the fundraising and communications efforts at Lake Superior Big Top Chautauqua, Landmark Conservancy, the Apostle Islands and Chequamegon Bay Community Funds, and Northland College. She currently serves as Director of Development at Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California.

Mark Peterson – Bayfield WI

Mark has camped, hiked, kayaked, sailed and skied his way throughout the Apostle Islands and other national parks. He’s pursued his outdoor recreation passions on campus with a Ph.D. in park and wilderness management from Colorado State University and also in the workplace serving in leadership positions with the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the National Audubon Society.

Julie Van Stappen – Bayfield WI

Julie Van Stappen joined the Friends board in August of 2025. After dedicating more than three decades of work to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Julie retired as Chief of Planning and Resource Management at the end of 2023. Her love of – and appreciation for – nature and science grew during her college years, during which she studied geology, earned an advanced degree in aquatic ecology and gained experience in the US Forest Service and at various locations in National Park Service before landing her dream job at the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.

Mark Weller – Waunakee WI

So, who is the guy who leads the team to take killer shots of our famous lighthouses imbued with the Milky Way?  Mark Weller.  In his spare time, he is a full time artist and is recently retired as president and CEO of a telecom firm based near Madison.  Prior to that he was senior producer for news and public affairs at PBS Wisconsin.

National Park Service support provided by:

BriAnna Weldon, Superintendent
Lucas Westcott, Director of Communications and Education