About
Board of Directors
The Board of Cape Fear River Watch
is knowledgeable and passionate about guiding CFRW’s work. Our current board members bring a breadth of experience from academia, law, engineering, environmental justice, fishing, photography and small business ownership, to name a few. Board members participate in training including racial equity and organizational development training (ex. the Blue Cross Blue Shield Nonprofit Leadership Academy and UNC Wilmington Quality Enhancement for Nonprofits training). CFRW staff review our activities regularly with our board, providing updates on progress and receiving constructive feedback.
CFRW has a healthy turnover in board leadership. CFRW has taken this opportunity to make improvements where helpful while maintaining the practices that work well. For example, our new Treasurer has made a number of improvements to our financial reporting and management. We have brought expertise onto the board where needed, including two members who are actively working on racial equity and environmental injustice, and a recently retired attorney in the environmental field. Our committee structure is working very well, both getting work accomplished and as an entry point for people who have strong future leadership potential.
More ABOUT items
To view more information about our dedicated Board of Directors, click on their name below:
Sandra Burgman - President
Sandra Burgman is a graphic designer with over 30 years of experience, currently working as an advertising team lead for the N2 Publishing Company in Wilmington, NC. Growing up in Caracas, Venezuela, gave Sandra the ability to speak Spanish as her first language. She studied English from an early age, and eventually attended the Art Institute of Houston, TX where she earned her Visual Communications Degree. Sandra also earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Studio and Digital Arts from UNCW. She moved to Wilmington in 2002, where she lives with her two daughters. In her free time, Sandra enjoys being close to nature, especially the many waterways in the region. Her favorite sport is stand up paddleboarding at the ICWW. She is also an artist specializing in mixed media acrylic painting and pottery. Sandra joined the Cape Fear River Watch board in 2020 and hopes to be a voice for the Latinx community in the Southeastern NC region.
Paul Smith - Vice President
Paul, originally from Superior, Wisconsin, received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, from which he graduated with distinction in 1971 with a degree in aerospace engineering. He was commissioned a Marine Corps officer and served in the infantry until he was selected to attend law school at George Washington University in Washington, DC. After receiving his law degree and admission to the bar, Paul served in a variety of military attorney billets in North Carolina, Virginia, and Japan, and in the Pentagon. Paul returned to GWU for a Masters of Law in Environmental Law and concluded his active-duty career as regional environmental counsel for all Marine Corps installations in California and Arizona, which included negotiating cleanup agreements for four National Priority List (“Superfund”) sites. After retiring from active duty, he continued his Federal service as a civilian attorney with the Department of the Navy in Norfolk, Virginia, and Naples, Italy, in support of Navy and Marine Corps activities in Virginia, North Carolina, Europe, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Paul concluded his government career as an environmental enforcement specialist with the Commonwealth of Virginia with an emphasis on water pollution and wetlands cases.
Paul and his wife Cathy, who is originally from Jacksonville, North Carolina, retired to Wilmington and return every year to their timeshare in northern Wisconsin. He enjoys travel, golf, reading, bird-watching, brewing beer, and spending time with his family. Paul is active in his church and community including service on the boards of the New Hanover County Library and Cape Fear River Watch and as a volunteer pro bono attorney with Legal Aid of North Carolina. He is admitted to practice in Virginia and North Carolina.
He has two grown daughters and three grandsons.
Melissa DuPuis - Treasurer
Melissa graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Business Administration from Roanoke College in Roanoke, Virginia. She has received her certified public accountant certificate and reciprocal certified public accountant certificate. She is also a certified forensic accountant and certified in forensics. She has 36 years of public accounting experience. Her experience in this field includes work as an auditor, tax practitioner, consultant and expert witness in family law. She also has experience as a forensic accountant in criminal and family law. She has 28 years experience as a sole practitioner in Wilmington.
Currently, she is serving as the President at Dupuis – Brown, PC as well as Board President at Domestic Violence Shelter and Services, Inc. and Treasure at Wilmington Art Association, Inc. She has served as the Finance Council Chair and Member at St. Mark Catholic Church as well as Treasurer at Domestic Violence Shelter and Services, Inc.
Rich Carpenter - Secretary
Rich grew up in in Newport News, Virginia He graduated from University of Richmond in 1974 and UVA in 1978. He and his wife Ellen moved to Wilmington in 1978. Rich was employed by the NC Division of Marine Fisheries for 34 years and retired in 2011. Rich has been involved as a volunteer for numerous organizations in Wilmington including: St. Andrews on the Sound Episcopal Church, the YMCA, American Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, Cape Fear Optimist Club, Cape Fear Soccer Association and the New Hanover County Schools. He and Ellen are avid boaters, occasional fishers, regular beach- goers and enjoy traveling. They have three children, Sarah and Kate who live in Wilmington, Thomas who lives in Bend, Oregon and one grandson Zeca who is in Wilmington. Since retirement Rich spends a great deal of time with his grandson, exercises regularly, fishes, harvests oysters, volunteers and takes care of the house. He worked with Cape Fear River Watch in his professional capacity and would enjoy continuing to work with it on a volunteer basis.
Larry Cahoon
Larry is a Professor of Biology and Marine Biology at UNCW with a Ph.D in Zoology from Duke University. He is a biological oceanographer and limnologist (studier of freshwater lakes and ponds) with strong interests in water quality analysis and remediation. He is also a certified Senior Ecologist with the Ecological Society of America. Larry joined the board in 2008.
Dick Brightman
Dick Brightman was born and raised in New Jersey, living for the better part of his life in Ridgewood. His wife, Marge met, went to school and brought their family up there. With the exception of 4 years of active duty in the US Navy from 1965-1969, NJ was their home.
After attaining his CPA certificate, he became a partner in a local CPA firm. In the early 1990’s he left public accounting to become the CFO in a contract packaging company in NJ that was built up and ultimately sold in 2014. He continues to hold membership in the AICPA.
During his professional life in NJ, he was active with the following civic and non-profit organizations:
- First Presbyterian Church of Ridgewood, several capacities and committees.
- Ridgewood Rotary Club- Various committee’s and capacities.
- Local YMCA as board member, treasurer, member of a variety of committees and specifically the annual golf outing committee for 12+ years.
- YMCA board of trustees just prior to relocating to North Carolina.
Mr. Brightman has always felt that “giving back” to the community is a part of what every citizen should be responsible for. When he finally settled in NC, he was drawn to Keep New Hanover County Beautiful because of a strong believe that the environment is there to enjoy and protect, and everyone should help to make that happen; their mission statement fit in very well with his beliefs. After losing their county funding, KNHCB needed a “home” and CFRW was discovered. He felt that this was the perfect outlet to help foster his passion for protecting our “backyard” and he is now re-energized to become very active in many of the opportunities available. Dick joined the Board in 2017.
Erin Carey
Erin Carey is the Coastal Programs Director of the NC SIerra Club, a position she has held for the last five years. Erin grew up in Vermont (where she likely developed her tree-hugging ways) and has called Wilmington home since 1995, attending the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and earning both a B.S. in Environmental Science and an M.S. in Marine Science. Erin has spent her professional career working to protect water quality and advocating for environmental protections in North Carolina. She held positions in the (then) Division of Water Quality in Groundwater Protection and Shellfish Sanitation, later moving to the City of Wilmington where she helped develop and execute the Bradley and Hewletts Creek watershed protection initiative. Before joining up with the Sierra Club, Erin spent two years working with NC State Extension, educating professionals across the state and the country on green infrastructure and innovative stormwater control measures (SCM).
Erin enjoys spending time on the water and in the mountains with her fiance Dave. She has become what promises to be a long suffering fan of the new Charlotte FC soccer franchise and hopes to see all the MLB stadiums in the country one day.
Alan Cradick
Alan is a professional photographer who, before moving to Southeastern North Carolina, founded Sanctuary Friends, a non-profit organization supporting the educational and research goals of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. In addition to CFRW he is also an active volunteer with Audubon North Carolina and the North Carolina Coastal Federation and is an active member of PenderWatch. Alan joined the board in 2010.
Blair Middleton
Blair grew up appreciating the community value of water through her experiences living and studying near Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes, and a multitude of wetlands. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Science from Rochester Institute of Technology, studied massage therapy in Ithaca, and eventually escaped the snow to move to Wilmington with her husband James in 2009.
Blair’s international experiences include a semester studying environmental resources in Costa Rica, seven weeks researching environmental tourism in Belize and hiking around Central America, one enlightening summer backpacking through Southeast Asia, a sweltering month exploring Japan, and several European trips. Most recent and notable is a beautiful trip to Italy with her spouse, preschooler, and toddler. She will emphatically tell you that Venice with tiny kids is not only possible, but wonderful!
Blair currently serves as Commission Liaison for the Battleship North Carolina, a historic site within the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. She previously served as Office Manager for the local preservation nonprofit Historic Wilmington Foundation, Development Director for the Cucalorus Film Festival, and Director of Business Operations for DREAMS of Wilmington. Prior to entering the non-profit sector, Blair was a medical massage therapist for nearly 10 years and was a yoga instructor for four.
To Blair, healthy living means equitable access to resources and the ability to find balance between vocation and recreation. For her family, this value manifests as political awareness and community advocacy, eating a plant-based diet, and enjoying as much time in nature as daylight allows. Favorite local spots include Greenfield Lake, Kure Beach, Carolina Beach State Park, Brunswick Nature Park, and near Blair’s home in the historic Sunset Park neighborhood.
As a mother of two young children, Blair thinks that adequate care and planning for our region’s environmental health feels more critical (and thankfully, more in demand) than ever.
Ted Poucher
Ted graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS Degree in Engineering and then served for 24 years as a Field Artillery Officer in a variety of command and staff positions in both peacetime and combat assignments. Ted received a MBA from the University of Georgia and then, while serving as an Assistant Professor of Military Science at UGA, he completed all course work requirements for a Ph.D. in Management Information Systems with a minor in Organizational Behavior. His graduate studies led to a wide variety of military assignments associated with the development of both tactical and national command and control systems as well as interoperability between various U.S. and NATO C2 systems. After his retirement from the military, Ted spent 15 years in industry where he served as a Principal Engineer and Product Development Team Manager for multiple projects to include all of the Command and Control Software and Electronics for a multi-billion dollar development program for an automated howitzer. His last seven years in industry were spent as a Business Development Manager for United Defense, LP and BAE Systems.
After retiring in 2007 for the second time, Ted moved to Wilmington where he and his wife of thirty-three years reside in a home overlooking the Cape Fear River. He quickly became involved with CFRW when he volunteered to help with the very first Striper Tournament, and he has been an active supporter ever since. In addition to CFRW, Ted volunteers as a Boating Safety and Seamanship instructor for the Cape Fear Sail & Power Squadron, and he has also served as that organization’s Treasurer for the past four years. Ted still does some consulting and, in that role, he has been an advisor to the Board of Directors of a mid-western software development company for the past four years.
Bill Raney
Bill Raney was born at Wrightsville Beach in 1947 and lived there full time until his family moved to Wilmington when he was 5 years old. He continued to spend most summers at Wrightsville Beach until graduating from law school. Bill graduated from UNC-CH law school in 1973 and went to work at the N.C. Attorney General’s Office in what became the Environmental Law Section. He served on the initial Council of the North Carolina Bar Association Environmental Law Section and Chaired the Council in 1993-94. He returned to Wilmington in 1984 and joined the firm of Martin Wessell and Raney (now Wessell and Raney). His law practice concentrated on environmental law with an emphasis on coastal issues. Bill was a founding director of both the Society for Masonboro Island and the NC Coastal Land Trust. He served on the board of the NC Chapter of The Nature Conservancy. His hobbies include sailing, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, paddle boarding and motor boating. Bill joined the Board in 2017.
Roger Shew
Roger is a Geology and Environmental Science professor at UNCW and has been teaching since 1999. He is particularly interested in energy and water resources, coastal plain ecosystems, and other sustainability issues; among other courses he teaches courses in sustainability. Roger also conducts field seminars as part of UNCW outreach as well as Teacher Education workshops including trips to coastal area beaches and barrier islands, the Green Swamp Preserve, and to the Bay Lakes areas. He volunteers with the Coastal Federation and with the Nature Conservancy where he helps with longleaf pine restoration and with endangered species studies. Roger grew up in Brunswick County and worked in the Energy Industry for 20 years. Roger joined the board in 2008.
Byron Toothman
environments. He has been a Research Biologist with the NC Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve for 15 years where he manages their environmental monitoring programs. He continues to take advantage of the Coastal Reserve as a platform for grant writing, teaching, outreach, and student mentoring to further stewardship and understanding of the coastal landscape.
Denise Chadurjian
Originally from NY’s Hudson Valley region, she grew up exploring the surrounding woodlands and waterways, and developed a keen desire to protect and nurture native environs. As a long-time, outdoors enthusiast, she wants to help preserve the Cape Fear river, its wildlife and beauty, for future generations to appreciate and enjoy.
Denise’s work experience spans over 20 years as a Financial professional working primarily in the technology industry. Her skills include: oral and written communication; technical spreadsheet, analytical, and Word skills; and, team participation and leadership.
Her educational background is in Government & Law (political science) where she graduated magma cum laude and was nominated for the U.S. Presidential Intern Program. She received her Masters in Public Administration from Columbia University, where she was a University Fellow, interned at the Urban Academy for Management, and graduated with honors.
Denise lives in Downtown Wilmington, in an historic home. She’s not much of a gardener, though she would like to be. More often she is bird-watching, out kayaking or cycling, or plying her skills as a ceramic artist and painter.
Steph Lancaster
Steph graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with a degree in Public Policy and earned her MBA from UNCW. She has been a Human Resources professional in the Wilmington area for 20 years with full-time roles at PPD, Alcami, and most recently as Executive Director of HR at nCino. Currently she is working as an HR consultant to allow her the flexibility to volunteer more in the community. In the past Steph has served on the Board for the Lower Cape Fear HR Association, the Board for Island Montessori Charter School, the Cape Fear Credit Union Board, and the HR advisory committee for the local Red Cross. Currently her focus is on conservation efforts, stemming from her personal passion for the outdoors. In addition to the CFRW Board she serves on the DE&I committee for the Coastal Land Trust.
Steph lives in Carolina Beach with her partner and has 3 kids ages 15,18, and 20. She loves hiking, backpacking, and stand up paddleboarding.
Jason Rogers
Jason Rogers was raised on Long Island, NY and graduated UNCW with both a graduate and undergraduate degree studying fisheries biology. After working for several years with the Division of Marine Fisheries, Jay was hired as the department biologist for the Marine Technology program in 1999. In 2005 he was appointed as the department chair overseeing the Marine Technology and Boat Building programs at Cape Fear Community College. He has been married to his wife Penny for 25 years and they have a son Cooper who is a senior at New Hanover High School.
Cape Fear River Watch | 617 Surry Street | Wilmington, NC 28401 | Phone: 910.762.5606
