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In Memory of David Page
Executive Director, 2022–2026

David joined Winter Wildlands Alliance in 2016 as Advocacy Director and became Executive Director in 2022. Over ten years with WWA, he helped advance protections for wild winter landscapes, strengthen our alliance, and bring people together through curiosity, collaboration, and a deep love of adventure and wild snowscapes.

A national award-winning journalist and gifted storyteller, David invited people to see winter with greater wonder, care, and purpose. His wit, energy, passion, leadership, friendship, mentorship, words, and so much more left an enduring mark on Winter Wildlands Alliance and the community he helped build. We carry his legacy forward in our work to keep winter wild. 

Read more about David’s life and legacy here.

Kerry McClay
National SnowSchool Director (Boise, Idaho)

Kerry joined WWA in 2013 after helping establish the National Flagship SnowSchool site with Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area and the Boise National Forest. Kerry is a graduate of the University of Montana and Prescott College, and completed a Doctorate of Education at Boise State University. Working collaboratively with snow scientists and educators, Kerry designed the innovative SnowSchool curriculum now utilized across the US snow-belt to introduce thousands of children to the joy of exploring their local winter wildlands every season. Kerry lives in Boise and enjoys being outside whenever possible with his wife and their young daughter.

Email Kerry at kmcclay@winterwildlands.org.

Anneka “Ani” Williams
Policy Director (Salt Lake City, Utah)

Ani grew up in rural Vermont, chasing yaks around her family’s farm, eating wild strawberries in the woods and skiing steep glades at Mad River Glen. She has pursued stories, ski lines, and environmental work in diverse communities across four continents. She holds a B.A. in Biology and Earth & Oceanographic Science from Bowdoin College and a Masters of Science in Climate Change from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. As an External Affairs Fellow at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, she developed climate-smart recommendations for the national Farm Bill and co-authored a report released at COP26 in Glasgow addressing the gap between climate risk and policy. As a climate resilience specialist at ICF, she has been focused on building resilience for electric utilities and local communities. Her writing has been featured in POWDER (print), Backcountry Magazine, Ski, Trail Runner, and The Dark Mountain Project, among other publications.

Email Ani at awilliams@winterwildlands.org

Addi Jenkins
Communications & Marketing Director (Sheridan, WY)

Addi’s life is a tale of a traveling ski bum turned communications specialist. After years spent living in ski towns throughout the Rockies, where she earned her MBA in the Outdoor Industry from Western Colorado University, she recently returned to her home state of Wyoming and now resides in Sheridan. Addi brings years of experience in marketing and communications, most recently with the Wyoming Wilderness Association and the Wyoming Outdoor Recreation Business Alliance, where she crafted compelling campaigns that connected people to the outdoors. Formerly with a national PR agency managing clients such as the National Forest Foundation, Mountain Hardwear, and Koo Eyewear, Addi is passionate about using storytelling to inspire the outdoor community to take action to protect the landscapes that fuel our adventures. When she’s not shaping strategy, you’ll find her skiing, snowboarding, or mountain biking—often with her dog, Churro, in tow. Fluent in Spanish (and known to chat with Churro in both languages), she brings creativity, curiosity, and a lifelong love of public lands to her work with WWA.

Email Addi at ajenkins@winterwildlands.org.

Emily Scott
Operations Manager (Boise, Idaho)

Emily grew up in Sun Valley, Idaho, where snowy winters and time spent outside shaped her connection to public lands and wild places. She studied Environmental Studies and Spanish at Boise State University, building a foundation in conservation, sustainability, and the complex relationships between people and the natural world. Before joining Winter Wildlands Alliance, Emily worked in conservation research and data roles with Boise State University and The Peregrine Fund. At WWA, she manages the national Backcountry Film Festival tour and all things admin and operations to help keep all projects moving. Emily cares deeply about making the outdoors feel more welcoming and accessible, and she loves the way stories can bring people into conservation work. When she’s not at work, she’s usually hiking, skiing, swimming in rivers, dancing, or hugging her cat, Milo.

Email Emily at escott@winterwildlands.org. 

Megan Fiske
California Stewardship Manager (Sonora, California)

Megan was born and raised in the Sierra Nevada, where she enjoys splitboarding, climbing, backpacking and wildlife photography. She began her career in conservation at nineteen working as a biological technician for the Forest Service, and after five years, transitioned to environmental advocacy work. With her B.S. in Wildlife Management and Conservation from Cal Poly Humboldt, she worked as a Wildlife Biologist for the Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center. She then worked as a Watershed Advocate for Foothill Conservancy until being promoted to Executive Director. Most recently, she has been teaching in the Forestry and Natural Resources department at Columbia College, working as an advocate for Ebbetts Pass Forest Watch, an Outreach Coordinator for the Community Action Project, and as Backcountry Ambassador for WWA. Her passion for grassroots nonprofits allows her to help protect the environment for everyone to enjoy.

Email Megan at mfiske@winterwildlands.org.

Brittany Leffel
Colorado Policy Manager (Durango, CO)

Brittany began a career dedicated to building climate resilience and ensuring equitable access to the outdoors as a high school outdoor education leader with the YMCA of the Rockies. She has since worked for conservation organizations like the Association of Northwest Steelheaders, Oregon Natural Desert Association, and Tualatin Riverkeepers; and served as a board member for Friends of Trees. Most recently, she was a legislative assistant for Representative Pam Marsh in the Oregon State Legislature, where she enhanced public engagement and worked on climate resilience, wildfire mitigation, and wildfire recovery. She holds a B.S. in Urban and Public Affairs with a minor in Sustainability from Portland State University. Brittany is excited to be back in Colorado where she can snowshoe, hike, paddle, or camp in her small trailer. She joined WWA in 2024 and works on grassroots organizing, winter recreation data collection, and Forest Service engagement as OSV planning gears up in southwest Colorado.

Email Brittany at bleffel@winterwildlands.org.

John Smidlein
Policy Intern (Truckee, CA)

John’s connection to winter began on the small hills of Ohio and Michigan and grew through family ski trips and years exploring snowy landscapes across the Rockies and Wasatch. After moving to Colorado for college, he realized his love for the outdoors could become a career and began studying Environmental Politics and Policy at Colorado State University to help protect the places that shaped him.

John discovered Winter Wildlands Alliance while listening to a podcast on the drive home from A-Basin and was drawn to the organization’s mix of grassroots community work and strategic policy advocacy. He brings a diverse background in the outdoor industry, including experience as a raft guide, ski instructor, bootfitter, retail specialist, and volunteer SAR member. Outside of work, John is usually snowboarding, backcountry skiing, climbing, or on the river and hopes to squeeze in a hut trip this season.

Heather Distad
Director of Major Gifts (Durango, CO)

Heather is an enthusiastic relationship builder and all-things-outsider. With over 16 years in the outdoor nonprofit sector, Heather is an accomplished guru in fundraising, programming, and community engagement. Heather oversaw the school-aged recreation and events department at Ken-Caryl Metropolitan District, managed the marketing, events, fundraising, and educational programming for Friends of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC), and led the national philanthropy team at Access Fund. Heather is also the founder and lead consultant at High Point Nonprofit Consulting, where she has worked with organizations like the United States Ski Mountaineering Association, Outdoor Mindset, SheJumps, Justice Necessary, and more. Heather holds a Master of Science in Recreation, Sports, and Tourism from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Nonprofit Management, Psychology, and Service Leadership at Wartburg College. Heather serves on the boards of Big City Mountaineers and San Juan Mountains Association. When Heather isn’t working hard, you’ll find her playing harder on the trails and in the backcountry.

Winter Wildlands Alliance is a national nonprofit organization working to
inspire and empower people to protect America’s wild snowscapes.