About
Our Team
Who We Are
Cape Fear River Watch is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1993 and incorporated in 1994 by a group of local citizens concerned about the future of our River and our Region. This small grassroots beginning was dedicated to improving and preserving the health, beauty, cleanliness, and heritage of the Cape Fear River basin. We aim to protect and improve the water quality of the Lower Cape Fear River Basin through education, advocacy, and action.
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Executive Director
Dana Sargent
dana@cfrw.us
Dana earned a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from San Diego State University, and a Master of Science in Environmental Sciences & Policy from The Johns Hopkins University. She worked in communications for a large nonprofit out of D.C. for 13 years and moved to Wilmington in 2013 with the intention of transforming her career to align with her passion for the environment. She began volunteering throughout the community and writing freelance and was soon invited to chair the CFRW advocacy committee, before being elected to the Board of Directors. Cape Fear River Watch then hired her to manage an outreach campaign on water quality issues including GenX and industrial agriculture. She is honored to have been hired in January 2019 to serve as the Executive Director at this small organization that does huge things. She loves music and her two magnificent daughters.
RIVERKEEPER®
Kemp Burdette
kemp@cfrw.us
Kemp Burdette is the Cape Fear Riverkeeper and he works to protect and improve the water quality of the Lower Cape Fear River. He is a Wilmington native who grew up exploring the waterways and swamps that make our area so special. Kemp has lived and traveled around the world as a US Navy search and rescue swimmer, a Fulbright Scholar, and a Peace Corps volunteer. At home and abroad Kemp has always been interested in the way humans interact with their environment. His academic background is in geology and history, graduating from UNCW magna cum laude with honors, and he holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA), also from UNCW. He also holds a certificate in nonprofit management from Duke University. Kemp spends most of his free time with his two daughters Olivia and Caroline, working in his garden, or tinkering in his workshop, or exploring the waterways and swamps of the Lower Cape Fear Region.
AmeriCorps Resiliency Coordinator
Savannah Lytle
savannah@cfrw.us
Savannah was born and raised in Greensboro, NC. While Savannah has always lived in North Carolina, she has gotten the unique opportunity to live all over the state, living in both the Piedmont and the mountains before moving to the coast. Savannah graduated from Montreat College with a B.S. in Outdoor Education. In 2021-2022 Savannah served an AmeriCorps term at MountainTrue in Asheville, NC. She is looking forward to serving again, this time along the coast! After spending the summer as a paddle guide in North Topsail sharing this ecologically diverse area with others, Savannah is especially excited to protect and educate others about this special area. In her free time, you can find Savannah hiking, backpacking, kayaking, reading, baking, spending time with friends, and exploring new places with her husband.
Water Quality Programs Manager
Rob Clark
rob@cfrw.us
Rob Clark graduated from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington with a B.S. in Environmental Science with a specialization in conservation. He has experience in both the private and public sectors of the environmental field. He has worked from the mountains to the coast and everywhere in between. He feels strongly about the environment and is looking forward to being able to serve his community as well as its ecosystems. In his free time he enjoys reading, trail running, biking, and playing disc golf.
UNCW Health Equity Bonners Fellow
LJ Hammer
lj@cfrw.us
LJ Hammer is from a small town outside of Charlottesville, Virginia, and is currently a sophomore at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She is hoping to study marine biology and go into a conservation based field working with wetland vertebrates. She is a part of the Health Equity Bonner Fellowship at UNCW and is working with CFRW as a four-year intern through the fellowship program. LJ is passionate about making positive and effective environmental changes here on the East Coast and hopes to make that into her career. She loves to spend her time paddle boarding, scuba diving, hiking, looking for shark teeth, and hanging out with friends.
Outreach & Engagement Manager
Hannah Nystrom
hannah@cfrw.us
Hannah Nystrom is a Kansas native. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies and a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from the University of Kansas. While at KU, she worked as a feature and business reporter for the Eudora Times, which is an online newspaper serving the community of Eudora, Kansas. She recently moved to Wilmington with the intention to pursue a master’s degree at UNCW. She enjoys reading a good book in her hammock as well as traveling, hiking, running and scuba diving!
Boathouse Manager
Artie Rendina
artie@cfrw.us
Artie was born and raised in Pearl River, New York, about 20 miles north of Manhattan. He graduated from Pearl River High School in 1982 and went to DeVry University from 1982-1984 studying electronics repair. Artie worked for Park Site Construction from 1984-1987 as an equipment operator and was hired in 1987 at Orange and Rockland Utilities as a fleet mechanic, before transitioning into the role of relay technician which he worked until his retirement in September of 2020. In total he worked for Orange and Rockland Utilities for 33 years. He is married to his wife Terri and they have three children, Derek, Vinny, and Angela. He and his wife moved to Leland in December of 2020 and he is proud to be working as boathouse manager for a great organization. In Artie’s free time he likes to camp, fish, hunt, cook, and above all spend time with family and friends!
Cape Fear River Watch | 617 Surry Street | Wilmington, NC 28401 | Phone: 910.762.5606
