Board Members
Dedication. Expertise. Involvement.
Our board members come from varied backgrounds, but share a common goal to reject extremism and promote a new form of politics.
Dave Murphy
Dave Murphy is Founder of The Alpine Group, an Executive Search firm, and Board Chair of Grand Valley Peace & Justice. He has been a centrist, unaffiliated voter for many years.
Glenn Whitaker
Glenn is a retired trial attorney with 44 years of experience including having served as Special Litigation Counsel for the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington DC. He is a Board Member and volunteer instructor for the New Dimensions Life Long Learning Institute in Grand Junction. He was a lifelong Democrat but is now a registered Independent.
Tim Sarmo
Tim Sarmo is a former regional manager of the Colorado Department of Local Affairs. He is also the former administrator of Palisade and Silverton/San Juan County. He was a longtime Democrat but is now unaffiliated.
Bernie Buescher
Bernie Buescher is former CEO of West Star Aviation. He served two terms in the Colorado General Assembly, and went on to become Colorado’s Secretary of State. He is a lifelong Democrat.
Norma West
Norma West is a retired Certified Public Accountant. During her career she specialized in healthcare
finance, and retired from HopeWest Hospice. She is registered as an independent.
Thea Chase
Thea Chase is a Palisade trustee, small business owner and consultant, and former director of Grand Junction’s business incubator. She is a former independent candidate for Colorado House District 54 and remains politically independent today.
Dennis Kirtland
Dennis Kirtland is a retired Shaw Construction executive and former Grand Junction City Council
member. He was a lifelong Republican until 2017 but is now unaffiliated.
Betsy Longenecker
Betsy Longenecker is a retired family physician. She served on the faculty of St. Mary’s Family Medicine Residency program for many years. and worked as Associate Medical Director at Rocky Mountain Health Plans Betsy has volunteered in several capacities in the community. She is a registered independent with an interest in consensus-building and moderation.
Kirk Rider
Kirk Rider is a retired Grand Junction attorney and Western Slope native. He has been active in local
affairs for over 49 years. A longtime Republican, he became unaffiliated in 2016.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown has practiced law in Delta, Colorado for over 49 years and has been active on numerous community board’s in the Delta and Montrose areas. He is a former Republican, now registered unaffiliated.
Janalee Hogan
Janalee Hogan is retired after a 30-year career in the financial industry and almost 15 years in local government for La Plata County. She is an active community volunteer in Durango serving with numerous non-profit agencies. She was a life-long Republican until, becoming disappointed with both political parties, she registered unaffiliated.