Meet the Team

Board of Directors: Roger Berlind, Christina Collura, Paul Collura, Catherine Downs, Jackie Dzaluk (Co-Chair), Ali Pai, Terri Riina, Helen Stevens and Bobbe Stultz (Co-Chair). Board Members Emeriti: Susan Henry, Bonnie Robins.
Advisory Board: Rose Bonanno, Linda Broudy, Susan Carpenter, Gregory Monteleone, Anne-Marie Nordgren, Peggy Young Nordgren, Ingrid Ramos, Susan Simon and Daniel Welsh.
Executive Director: Shantala DuGay-Iyengar
Land Steward: David Havens
Bookkeeper: Lisa Alexander, CPA
Consultants: Susan Carpenter, Esq., Deanna Novak, Fran Parker, Esq., Susan Simon, Esq.

Partners: Community Center of Northern Westchester, Community Based Services, Friends of Trailside/Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, Katonah-Lewisboro Schools, Lewisboro Garden Club, North Salem Open Land Foundation and Town of Lewisboro.
Naturalists: Leah Cass, Chris Evers, David Havens, Taro Ietaka, Jim Nordgren.
Volunteers: Dolores Antonetz, Bob Arnold, Lisa Beaty, David Baugnon, John Bergherr, Linda Broudy, Rob Cummings, Eleanor Dennis, Wayne Eadie, Tony Frasca, Mike Gordon, Peter Gross, Mark Hanratty, Bairbre Hanson, Ilene Lieberman, Randi Kitt, Bruce Levinson, Carole Long, Veronica McIlraith, Elizabeth Meyer-Gross, Eric Newland, Althea Nolan, Carol Nordgren, Deanna Novak, Jim Nordgren, Peggy Young Nordgren, Lynda O’Hanlon, Tony Riina, Rich Rodeschini, Roseann Rodeschini, Meg Rogers, Evelyn Tapani Rosenthal, Bill Saunders, Mark Schmid, Andrea Snyder, Curtis St. John, Sue and Joe Tansey, Ellen Weissman, Dan Welsh.
Hike Leaders: Christine and Paul Collura, Wayne Eadie, Tony Frasca, Peter Gross, Ilene Lieberman, John Jim Nordgren, Peggy Young Nordgren, Terri Riina and Bobbe Stultz.

Board Members:

Roger Berlind retired in 2022 after working for 25 years in the software industry. He has lived next to the Mount Holly Preserve that entire time. He and his wife, Carol, walk their dog, Amir, there or in other nearby preserves every single day. He has been an active volunteer on our Remove and Restore project since it began in 2021 and is a strong supporter of environmental groups and local arts organizations. He enjoys reading (especially physics, history, and science fiction), listening to music, watching wild animals, and traveling.

Christina Collura has been a resident of Lewisboro since 2015. Upon relocating to the area, she was immediately drawn to the Lewisboro Land Trust. An avid traveler and lover of nature, she brings a passion for land preservation and conservation. And she keeps all aspects of our financial operation organized as well as assisting with fundraising.

Paul Collura has always had a strong commitment to public service. While his professional efforts are in the health care community, personally he enjoys volunteering through nature-based activities. He can frequently be found on various trails in the Mt. Holly Preserve, of which he is the Chief Steward, when he is not off planning his next adventure to a national park (he’s been to 40+ different ones). A strong advocate of ecological causes, Paul also devotes time to other environmental organizations in the state.

Catherine Downs has been fascinated with animals and nature all her life. Growing up in Yorkshire, England, she and her friends would disappear across the fields and into the woods with dogs, horses and siblings in tow. Moving to Katonah with her young family 20 years ago re-awakened Cath to the wonders of nature. She felt living in Lewisboro gave her children the sense of freedom that she had experienced. A Reiki Master Healer, Cath was called to offer guided Nature Meditations for LLT during the pandemic, and was overwhelmed by the response. Her guidance helped dispel the feelings of isolation and fear we were all experiencing. Her goal is to help us grow our programs to encourage more people to enjoy and treasure our open spaces and rich history.

Jackie Dzaluk’s roots and involvement in Lewisboro are deep. Over the last 30 years, she has been actively involved in a range of committees, boards and organizations, many of which were oriented towards land use issues. As a member of the Lewisboro Planning Board for 10 years, and ultimately it’s chairperson, she has worked to facilitate thoughtful development with an eye towards maintaining green spaces, and mitigating environmental impacts. Jackie was instrumental in the drafting and implementation of the Town’s wetlands law. She is excited to be supporting the efforts of Lewisboro Land Trust in encouraging people, young and old, to learn about and enjoy the natural world around us.

Ali Pai moved to Lewisboro in 2018 after having lived in NYC for several years. He was drawn to the natural beauty of the area and signed up as a volunteer for the Land Trust to gain a better understanding and detailed appreciation of Lewisboro. He enjoys the outdoors, hiking, skeet shooting, cooking and playing tennis in addition to being an avid traveler.

Terri Riina received the Westchester County Volunteer of the Year award in 2005 and was the honoree at The Friends of Karen annual gala in 2020, where she has volunteers for 30 years. She has an accounting degree and CPA license, and recently retired after a long and fulfilling career with Housman & Elezovic CPAs in White Plains. Terri now has time for her favorite hobbies; visiting her son, daughter-in-law and three grandsons in Vermont, hiking, exploring nature, pickleball and helping others. Terri is married to Tony Riina, and together they became stewards for the Marian Yarrow and Mildred Grierson Preserves many years go.

Helen Stevens is a fairlynew Lewisboro resident with a lifelong passion for nature and open spaces. When she’s not working as a psychologist in private practice, you’ll find her playing outdoors in all seasons with her young children and exploring her nearby trails in the Grierson and Yarrow preserves. Having grown up surrounded by natural spaces and witnessing her father’s engagement in their local land trust, Helen was inspired to connect with the Lewisboro Land Trust soon after moving here, and began by volunteering with the Toddler Hikes and Access Nature programs.

Bobbe Stultz has been active in open space preservation and environmental education for the past thirty years. She was on the team that led the initiative to preserve Old Field Preserve and Leon Levy Preserve, as well as the successful Open Space Referendum campaign in 2000. She is a founder of the Lewisboro Land Trust, co-founder of Lewisboro Horseman’s Association, and a past board member of the Lewisboro Conservation Advisory Council. Bobbe has a degree in Marketing, and a BFA from the School of Visual Arts, NYC. She is in charge of communications and marketing for the Lewisboro Land Trust, as well as volunteer outreach.

Susan Henry, Board Member Emeritus, is a lifelong resident of Waccabuc, and co-founder of Westchester Land Trust and the first director of Lewisboro Land Trust. A strong proponent of conservation, she was instrumental in the preservation of Old Field Preserve.

Bonnie Robins, Board Member Emeritus, helped lead the open space initiative and community education campaign which culminated in the formation of a “land bank” in Lewisboro in 2000.

Staff:

Shantala DuGay-Iyengar, Executive Director:  Shantala was formerly our Outdoor Program Coordinator, and was then appointed to the position of part-time Executive Director. This change reflects the robust growth of LLT programming over the past years. She is responsible for overseeing all educational and community programming and social media management. She was chosen for this role because she is a creative and tireless worker and has the skills that we need to grow our programs. She has been running all our outdoor programs (and most of our social media) for a while, including introducing the very popular preschool and toddler hikes. She was instrumental in creating ways to engage the community during Covid. Shantala and her family have been Lewisboro residents since 2013, having relocated to Vista from Manhattan in search of space and nature. She hopes to pass on environmental advocacy to younger generations through direct interaction with nature.

David Havens, Land Steward: We are delighted to have hired David Havens on a part-time basis to oversee our Remove & Restore Project and serve as general Land Steward for LLT. Dave is a retired science teacher and has recently been working for the Norwalk Watershed Association on removing invasives and planting natives. He is a perfect fit for our Remove & Restore initiative which is focused on removing barberry and other invasives, and adding back hundreds of native plants.

Lisa Alexander, CPA:  Lisa keeps us on the straight and narrow when it comes to finances and financial records. She pays our bills for us and keeps an eye out to make sure we are compliant with all regulations related to non-profits.

Consultants:

Linda Broudy is an office manager at a Greenwich, CT hedge fund. She has served as the head of membership for the Waccabuc Landowners Council, as well as editor of its semi-annual newsletter and its website manager.  Away from work, she spends a lot of time trekking about outside, photographing the natural environment in and around Lewisboro and its neighboring communities.  She graduated from the SUNY College of Forestry in Syracuse, NY and has been in love with trees ever since.

Susan Carpenter is a lawyer-environmental scientist, formerly Director of Land Preservation at the Westchester Land Trust for over 20 years prior to her retirement in 2016. Since then, she has assisted local land trusts in Westchester and Putnam with land projects. Susan also volunteers for the Board of Canandaigua Watershed Association. Susan loves being able to keep her hand in land preservation in the Westchester area, and takes pride in helping to preserve the forests, water quality and wildlife habitat that were the focus of her life for so many years.

Peggy Young Nordgren was a 20-year resident of Lewisboro, before recently moving to Madison, CT.  Her professional career has been spent in Sales and Marketing for European companies. She still loves hiking through the beautiful vistas and open spaces of our area, and generously donates her time to leading hikes for LLT and serving as Outreach Coordinator for our Access Nature Program.

Deanna Novak is a nature-based early childhood education specialist. She leads many of our childrens’ programs as well as our 10-week Nature Buddies Toddler Program in conjuction with the Town of Lewisboro. 

Fran Parker is a lawyer, specializing in contract law who has lived in and raised her family in Lewisboro for almost 30 years. 

Susan Simon has served as Lewisboro Town Justice for 18 years, and in many civic organizations including The Nature Conservancy, Lewisboro Library, Mercy College, and Westchester Exceptional Children’s School. Susan and her husband, Dr. Leslie Simon, donated the property which serves as the parking area and entrance to Mt. Holly Preserve. They make their home in Cross River.