Colleen O’Neal is a retired educator with over thirty years’ experience as a teacher, principal, and education advocate. Upon retiring in 2015, she stepped in as BGEF president and began helping to rebuild the foundation to better serve the students and schools of the Battle Ground Public Schools. Married to Rick O’Neal, a retired Battle Ground High School teacher, the mother of three Battle Ground High School graduates, and grandmother of six, she continues to be a strong advocate for quality public education.
Jackie Lane worked in Technology and Finance for many years before retiring to spend more time in the community. She attended Leadership Clark County class of 2017, where she was part of a project team working with the Foundation, and after which she took a position on the board. She also sits on the board of Friends of Clark County, is active with the League of Woman Voters, and continues to volunteer with Leadership Clark County and other organizations. She has lived in the Battle Ground school district since moving to the Pacific Northwest in 1991.
Linda Gellings retired in 2018 as the Director of Business Services & Risk Management for Battle Ground Public Schools. She previously worked for the City of Vancouver, in public accounting and for the Washington State Auditor’s Office during her career. She has worked with the Foundation since 2006. Her two children both attended Glenwood Primary, Laurin Middle School, and graduated from Prairie High School. Linda is currently the treasurer of the Foundation.
Jackie Maddux is an Accounting Manager for Clark Public Utilities and School Board Director for Battle Ground School District. Four of her children graduated from Battle Ground Public Schools and during that time was actively involved with volunteering in the district including 6 years with the Prairie High School Boosters, Grad Night Committee, and multiple sports teams. Currently, she is a member of the Battle Ground Education Foundation where she continues to volunteer and support the students in Battle Ground schools.
Julie Hills is currently an assistant principal at River Homelink. She has 32 years in public education with 24 years in the classroom and 8 years in administration. Julie joined the foundation to be able to help in the community and have another avenue to give service to Battle Ground Public Schools. She is married to her husband, Dan, and they have two grown sons that graduated from Battle Ground High School.
Ken Root has lived in the same house in the Battle Ground neighborhood of Venersborg for over 23 years. Both of his children attended Battle Ground Public Schools, and he currently has two family members teaching in the district. His daughter is a teacher in Cheney, WA. It has been his pleasure to have served for many years as a board member for various organizations, including Juvenile Diabetes, Foundation Research, Apollo’s, Rainbow, Battle Ground School District, The Breakers Hotel and Condominiums (current), and Battle Ground Education Foundation (current).
Cheri Dailey is the Director of Risk Management and Business Operations for Battle Ground Public Schools and has worked for the district for 19 years. Cheri grew up in Battle Ground and is a graduate of Battle Ground High School. Her two daughters attended Battle Ground Public Schools and were the 4th generation in her family to graduate from Battle Ground High School.
Cherish DesRochers-Vafeados is a long-time Battle Ground resident who attended Battle Ground Public schools. She is currently employed at C-TRAN, Clark County’s Public Transit Agency, where she works as a customer service representative. DesRochers-Vafeados currently serves as the Deputy Mayor for the City of Battle Ground, where she serves on various boards and committees for the city. In addition to her service to the city, she is the founder/president of local nonprofit Food with Friends, home of the Shower Outreach Project. DesRochers-Vafeados is a 2020 recipient of the Vancouver Business Journal’s Accomplished and Under 40 Award.
Troy McCoy is a current Battle Ground city councilor and local business owner with a passion for education, as evidenced by his 4-year stint on the Battle Ground School Board.
Husband, father of 2, and domicile partner of too many dogs, Troy spends his free time enjoying the bounty our local area has to offer. Be sure to always check the benefit auction to see if Troy’s crabbing adventure is on the docket!
Lydia Sanders is the Family Resource Services Coordinator for Battle Ground Public Schools where she oversees the McKinney-Vento, Foster and FCRC programs for the district. Lydia is a current board member of Family Promise of Clark County and served on the Community Action Advisory Board for Clark County from 2010-2019. Alongside teams of advocates and students, she has helped drive local, state and nationally recognized efforts such as Just One Thing Battle Ground in an effort to end homelessness. A 24-year resident of Clark Country, Lydia is at home in Battle Ground and can often be seen at public events in Battle Ground with her mobility service dog Rosie. This unique pair loves to take road trip adventures in the van she recently made into a very sparkly camper van!
Dina Sweeny-Lathrop has a long history in Technology, Program/Project Management and Administration. She moved to Battle Ground in 2002 from Portland so that her son could reap the many rewards this community has to offer. Her own investment in Battle Ground began with Sodexo as Administrative Assistant/