Five community residents have stepped up to serve on the editorial board of the Estes Valley Voice. The board met for the first meeting May 20 in the conference room of the Graves Avenue Plaza where the Estes Valley Voice has its offices.
The role of the board will be to provide feedback to the editorial team about the direction of our news reporting, feature stories, opinion, and other content with an eye on helping to ensure the Voice is responsive to the many voices in the Estes Valley.
Board members are independent community members with no financial or advertising ties to the Estes Valley Voice.
The Estes Valley Voice would like to expand its editorial board by two additional members. Those interested in serving should contact the Estes Valley Voice at news@estesvalleyvoice.com
Members of the editorial board include:
Sybil Barnes has been a full-time resident of Estes Park for more than 50 years. Her family first started coming to Estes in the 1940s and she moved here after college in the 1970s. Barnes is a local historian and the former history librarian at what is now the Estes Valley Library. She also served as the reference specialist at Rocky Mountain National Park Library. She has a listing in the Library of Congress for a Story Corps interview with Enda Mills Kiley, the daughter of pioneers Enos and Ester Mills and a social and environmental activist in her own right. Barnes is the author of the pictorial book Estes Park: Images of America published by Arcadia in 2010. On social media, Barnes describes herself as a former pet sitter and movie critic, and she says she is pretending to work on a book about the happy little Estes Park village.
Andy Brittan is a physician, a potter, the father of five adult children, and the grandfather of two granddaughters. Originally from Nebraska, Brittan attended medical school in Kansas and practiced clinical medicine for more than 30 years. He was a professor of diagnostic radiology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville and is currently the medical director at Anthem Health Insurance. Brittan relocated to Estes Park in 2021 and works remotely. He is an “out an out and proud” member of the LGBT community and interested in fostering a diverse, open, and welcoming community. His pottery studio is Mountain Stoneware, and you may run into him at weekend festivals in Bond Park or at an Estes Park Newcomers event. Two of his most popular items are ceramic mugs with a bunny or a small teddy bear figurine that look up from the bottom of the cup to make the drinker smile.
Deanna Ferrell has a master’s degree in public health. She lived in Ecuador from 2009 to 2012 as a Peace Corps Volunteer and speaks Spanish. In 2022 Ferrell was appointed to the Town’s Family Advisory Board. After the board was disbanded, the members regrouped and formed the Family Advocacy Coalition to represent the voices of families in the community. She and her husband, a psychiatrist, are parents to a two-year-old son. Ferrell embraces hiking, rock climbing, strength training, and “anything outdoors” as activities to improve mental and physical health.
Jim Jameson is a former public company vice president and general counsel who grew up in Wisconsin. He has held positions in law firms specializing in corporate finance, banking, and securities law. He is currently licensed in matters of Texas law, only, and serves as a general counsel of a private international company headquartered in Austin, Texas He was recently appointed by the Estes Park Town Board to be a Commissioner on the Estes Park Housing Authority Board. Jameson is married to a retired Episcopal priest and is the father of two adult sons. Since moving to the Estes Valley, Jameson has chaired the Little Prospect Road Association and been the secretary of The Estes Park Newcomers Club. He is an active volunteer and supporter of Crossroads Ministries and La Puente Home, Inc. in Alamosa.
Reed Woodford is the owner, chief executive officer and chief financial officer of KMAC Guides (Formerly Kent Mountain Adventure Center) a rock climbing, mountaineering instruction, and outdoor education business which is an accredited member of the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA). KMAC Guides complies and operates within rigorous industry standards for climbing schools and guide services. Originally from Iowa, Woodford has lived in Larimer County, either in Estes Park or Fort Collins, for 20 years. He has a degree in elementary education from the University of Northern Iowa. His newest role is being the dad to a future mountain climber, a little boy who is just six months old.