Amanda Gilbert (she/her) – Executive Director
Amanda joined the Coast Fork Willamette Watershed Council as Executive Director in November 2015. Amanda has worked with various watershed councils for two decades in multiple capacities. She began her watershed council career in 2005 with the McKenzie Watershed Council and continues to be their Finance Director to this day. During her time with the Long Tom Watershed Council, she was the Fiscal Manager for eight years. Cottage Grove holds a special place in her heart as she lives, works, and raised her family (now all grown) in this community. Serving the community outside of her work is integral to her values. She has served on the City of Cottage Grove Budget Committee and is a member of the Cottage Grove Rotary. Free time is spent with her favorite pups, family, and friends on many adventures.
Reilly Newman (she/her) – Projects Manager
Reilly is a 5th generation Oregonian and grew up in Cottage Grove. She began working with the CFWWC in 2013. She holds a bachelor’s degree (BS) in Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences w/ a specialization in Wildlife Ecology from Oregon State University. She has 11 years of field experience working in federal, state, and nonprofit organizations and 2 years in conservation genetics research labs at OSU. Reilly enjoys spending time with her family, reading, and exploring the local forests and rivers in her free time.
Penny Feltner (she/her) – Working Lands Project Manager
Penny grew up in the Ohio River Valley, finding adventure in the hills and forests just outside of Cincinnati. She earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Environmental Science, with an emphasis on agroecology and community-based projects. With over 10 years of experience working in community-based programming and environmental initiatives, Penny’s donned a variety of hats, including Laboratory Manager, Farm Camp Counselor, and Agroforestry Advisor. She began working with the CFWWC in 2022 to help empower farmers, foresters, and ranchers to adapt to emerging challenges in agriculture. In her free time, Penny’s an enthusiastic illustrator, a novice baker, a passionate bookworm, a Very Serious Gardener, and an all-around daydreamer.
Rachelle Kelty (she/her) – Office Manager
Rachelle has spent her life in Oregon, and for the last 25 years, she has called Cottage Grove home. With a background in service and helping people in our community in various fashions, it seemed predestined to have her come work with us as well. In May 2023, she officially joined the CFWWC staff to help with our community engagement efforts as we gear back up after several years off due to the pandemic and accepted the position of Office Manager in 2023. Rachelle is dedicated to her family, friends, and the animals.
Heather Endicott (she/her) – Business Development Manager
A 5th generation Oregonian, Heather grew up in Springfield and comes from a family with longstanding ties to, and a great appreciation of, the Willamette and McKenzie rivers; a passion she shares. Before joining the CFWWC in August of 2024, Heather enjoyed a varied career including over five years at Metro Planning, Inc. where she worked as project and media manager, two years in Arizona working in real estate photography and marketing with Those Callaways and OBEO, and the last nearly nine years at Coast Fork Brewing in Cottage Grove filling a variety of roles, including marketing manager. She is also an artist and musician whose work and performances have been shown throughout downtown Cottage Grove and at numerous and popular public events. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Media Arts and Animation from the Art Institute of California – San Francisco, and has a life-long passion for the forests, waterways, and spectacular plants and creatures that make this region so extraordinary. Heather is devoted to her family and makes time to slow down and enjoy life with them on their small farm as often as possible.
Ezra Weybright (they/them) – Watershed Restoration Intern
Ezra has been working for the Coast Fork Watershed Council for the past 4 years as a watershed restoration intern. They are currently attending the University of Oregon where they’re majoring in biology. Ezra is very passionate about restoration work and they plan on continuing it as a career in the future. Outside of work they spend most of their time playing Ultimate Frisbee and backpacking.
Sydney Nilan (she/her) – Upper Willamette Stewardship Coordinator
Sydney came on board in July of 2019 as the Coordinator for the Upper Willamette Stewardship Network. Sydney’s position brings together the Coast Fork & Middle Fork Willamette, Long Tom, and McKenzie Watershed Councils, the McKenzie River Trust, and the Friends of Buford Park & Mt. Pisgah, helping them to leverage each organization’s unique strengths to create new opportunities and landscape scale impact throughout the Upper Willamette basin. Sydney has a BA from the University of Oregon and her master’s from the University of Florida’s Tropical Conservation and Development program and has spent the last decade working at the intersection of community based natural resource management, conservation, and sustainable development in Latin America. Having spent the past 6 years living and working with indigenous communities in the Amazon rainforest, Sydney is glad to be back home in Oregon enjoying the seasons and the great pacific northwest with friends and family.
Haley Case-Scott (she/her) – Upper Willamette Stewardship Network Tribal Liaison
Haley is a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and a descendant of the Klamath Tribes, Yurok Tribe, and the Sakaogan Band of Chippewa Indians. Haley graduated from the University of Oregon in 2018, and is an experienced climate change and environmental justice leader. Prior to her position with the Upper Willamette Stewardship Network and partners, she served as a Policy Assistant with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in their Climate and Environment division. Haley also served as a Climate Justice Grassroots Organizer with Beyond Toxics and the NAACP and as an intern with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service and Pacific Northwest Tribal Climate Change Project. Haley enjoys spending time outdoors and with her family whenever possible.