Board of Directors

MINNESOTA VALLEY REFUGE FRIENDS BOARD OF DIRECTORS & STAFF

Minnesota Valley Refuge Friends board members are a dedicated group of individuals who are personally and professionally committed to the long-term success of the mission of the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge and Wetland Management District. Members are purely volunteer in bringing their individual and collective knowledge, experience, skill, integrity, passion, and motivation to this agenda.

Robert (Randy) Petzel - President

Randy is a retired physician. He served as Chief of Staff at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, was Director of the VA Midwest Healthcare Network, and from 2010-2014 was the VA Undersecretary for Health. During his tenure at the VA, he was an Associate Professor of Medicine, Assistant Dean, and Director of the first two years’ clinical curriculum at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

He has been a volunteer at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge since 2014. Randy is particularly involved in Urban Ventures and elementary school education programs at the Refuge. He was introduced to the outdoors when, at the age of four, his family began camping at Minnesota State Parks.

He received a BA degree from St. Olaf College and an M.D. degree from Northwestern University Medical School.
He has lived in Minneapolis most of his life, and now resides in South Minneapolis with his wife, Sue.

Dave Guzzi - Vice President

Dave has been passionate about the outdoors since before he could remember and was introduced to it by his parents with camping and fishing in remote locations across North America. Dave continues this passion, having gone on several extended hunts and backpack trips throughout the Rocky Mountains in Canada and the United States. While he has hiked, fished and skied much of North America, his passion lies with his home state of Minnesota. “There is nothing better than a Minnesota waterway or lake site,” says Dave. His current passion includes training service and hunting dogs as well as introducing youth to outdoor experiences. After Dave’s spinal cord injury in 1996, he has devoted much of his life to ensuring that wild places are accessible in ways that are practical. Dave began volunteering with the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge in 1997, dedicating much of his time in creating accessible hunting opportunities for wild turkey, deer and duck.

Pat Graham - Secretary

Pat was introduced to the outdoors by her dad who took her hiking, hunting and fishing. She graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Natural Resources Management. She went on to serve in the U. S. Marine Corps and worked in aircraft maintenance management for her career, however she continued to spend time in the outdoors on vacation and weekends. On retirement in 2016, she began volunteering at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge which has become an important part of her life.

Barbara Corriveau - Treasurer

A native of Michigan, Barb spent most of her career in Wisconsin as a director at a national accounting, tax, financial advisory, and consulting organization. When not serving on the board as treasurer, Barb is often found volunteering at the Refuge’s Blufftop Bookstore. Barb has volunteered more than 500 hours at the Refuge and is the “go-to” trainer at the Refuge’s Bloomington visitor center front desk and Blufftop Nature Store. She was named the Volunteer of the Year in 2020 by the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. Barb lives in Apple Valley and enjoys traveling.

Andy Grewell - Director

Andy joined the board of directors to help strengthen partnerships among community-based organizations working on environmental impact and civic engagement issues. Andy believes that youth and underserved populations need to assume leadership roles in conservation, environmental education, and sustainability for meaningful change to occur.

Andy has a background in service-learning, public policy, grant making, planning, youth leadership, and nonprofit governance. He has served in AmeriCorps, worked in local nonprofits, and in local governments on low-income assistance and community development programs. Andy currently works in Minnesota’s Department of Human Services. Andy lives in Minneapolis with his family and likes to spend as much time outside as possible.

Mercedes Akinseye - Director

Richard Sanford - Bookstore Manager, Director

Rich was first introduced to the outdoors at about age seven when my grandfather took me fishing in the Yellowstone River near his home in Sidney, Montana. In that river near its confluence the Missouri, you never know what is on your line until it comes out of the water. It was a big carp, but Rich was thrilled. He was also fortunate to grow up at the edge of the Badlands, which Rich and his friends spent many days exploring.

While at the University of Montana and then in Minnesota, Rich spent my summers working on the trail crew in Glacier Park and loved the job, especially when they did work deep in the wilderness. After receiving his dental degree from the University of Minnesota, the next 40 years went by taking care of my patients in his St. Paul, but vacations were generally spent doing something close to nature. Rich and his wife, Jean, have three grown children and six grandchildren. One of his granddaughters goes to a partnership school (Keewatin) and loves coming out here.

Since old things often become new again, Rich has found that volunteering at the Refuge since 2012 has been a good fit, upgrading the Bloomington Education & Visitor Center's Nature Store computer system and revamping the merchandise displays. You will find Rich many days as front desk volunteer for the Refuge.

"I believe in the mission of Minnesota Valley Refuge Friends and in the importance to America of educating the next generation."

Shannon Breimhurst - Director

Shannon is a marketing/communications consultant and writer with a background in healthcare, nonprofit organizations, and journalism. She is a co-owner and partner of Long Lost Communications. She holds a master's degree in Strategic Communications from the University of Minnesota. She has served on the Friends' board since 2019, lending her expertise in writing, fundraising, and donor relations and communications. When not working, she enjoys time spent outdoors hiking, camping, and playing with her husband, son, and daughter.

Steven Sutter - Founder, Director

Steve has been volunteering at Minnesota Valley NWR since retiring after careers in retail sales and then firefighting. Since age 9, he grew up spending many hours in the woods of Burnsville before getting a business administration degree and starting a family. The quiet call of the outdoors continued to beckon. The night before he retired in 2000, Steve attended a Refuge Volunteer orientation meeting and has been hooked on the Refuge ever since. He has experienced many opportunities because of Refuge or Friends' projects such as: Info Desk, Volunteer Black Dog Ranger, Youth Fish Day, Nature Store Manager, Blue Goose and No Kids Left Indoors fundraisers, etc. He helped establish Minnesota Valley Refuge Friends in 2006.

Steve and his wife now live on a lake in Wisconsin, but continue to remain active to protect, preserve and promote the Refuge for our grandchildren's grandchildren.

Staff

Sara N. Blood - Executive Director

Sara first learned how to use a manual SLR camera and a pair of binoculars while birdwatching in northeastern Illinois, skills which took her to the farthest corner of Minnesota where she served as a photographer and reporter for the International Falls Daily Journal. A public relations veteran for nearly 20 years, Sara has worked for some of the most well-known agencies in the Twin Cities and as an independent nonprofit consultant for brands that included outdoor, hunting and fishing. In 2015, she was first connected with the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge when she was tapped to lead a multi-prong marketing campaign for the Refuge's 40th anniversary. After leading PR efforts for the Refuge's launch of its Discover Nature apps, she was asked to return again as interim executive director of Minnesota Valley Refuge Friends, assuming the role of executive director in October 2020.