The Nominating Committee of the SWTU Board presents the following slate of candidates for the election to be held at the Annual Meeting on Tuesday, May 14.
- President: Steve Musser (incumbent)
- Vice President: Topf Wells (incumbent)
- Treasurer: Marty Chiaro (incumbent)
- Secretary: Henry Nehls-Lowe (incumbent)
- State Council Delegate: Michael Williamson (incumbent)
Four open Director positions:
- John Freeborg (incumbent)
- Josh Reilly (see bio below)
- Riley Bellin (see bio below)
- Ben Mechelke (see bio below)
Hi, my name is Josh Reilly. I grew up in Edgerton with my grandparents, I currently live in Madison.
My grandfather was an avid outdoorsman. He had a small game farm with pheasants, wild turkeys, quail, Canada geese and a variety of ornamental pheasants. He and I spent many a day fishing, especially ice fishing.
My grandfather was part of the Conservation Congress back in the day and pushed for stream rehabilitation of the Badfish Creek to bring it back to a well functioning trout stream.
My introduction to SWTU occurred in 2022 when I went to Trout days in Cross Plains. I partook in the casting clinic as well as the other educational stations. It was after that experience that I decided to join SWTU.
I hope to be a good steward for SWTU and to help see the natural environment restored where and when possible.
My name is Riley Bellin, and I just recently joined the Southern Wisconsin TU Chapter this past February and attended my first meeting in March. I’ve been fishing most of my adult life, picking up the interest in high school when my friends and I would try to get outside most weekends, fishing for whatever we could find in the lakes and rivers in the Northeast Wisconsin area. I went to UW-Madison for my schooling, and had the opportunity to discover the Driftless my sophomore year – safe to say I was hooked, pun intended! I’ve been looking for a way to get involved in the protection and longevity of the rivers and streams of southern Wisconsin ever since. I’m excited at the possibility of using my skills to further the mission of TU and the Southern Wisconsin Chapter, and am looking forward to getting to know more folks like myself who feel the same way.
In my career, I’ve worked in various marketing roles but have found my home on the content side, and am currently a Content Specialist with NORD Drivesystems in Waunakee. I’m hoping I can use my skills to bring the marketing of the chapter to the next level, grow our memberships, increase our audience, strengthen our partnerships, put new and exciting content on our website, and find new opportunities to collaborate with other organizations around the area. All that’s to say I’m excited to contribute to the Chapter and look forward to working together with everyone here!
My name is Ben Mechelke and I joined the Southern WI TU chapter last fall after hearing about the great work the chapter does from a neighbor. I started trout fishing in the spring of 2023 and was blown away by scenic beauty of the cold water fisheries of southern WI. Chasing trout has quickly become a new passion of mine and connecting with like-minded individuals involved in the chapter and on the stream has brought me into a new community that I’m forever grateful for. I’m really looking forward to helping the chapter further by serving on the board and can’t wait to see the great work ahead of us this year.
A little more about myself, I grew up visiting my grandparents on Long Lake in northwestern Wisconsin near Spooner. I learned to love the outdoors from those experiences and have been fortunate to be able to explore many corners of the country. Besides fishing, I enjoy hiking, trap/skeet shooting, rock climbing, fly tying and learning about the natural environment. My career so far has been in the aerospace and automotive industries working as a mechanical design engineer. My Fiancé and I have been living on the far west side of Madison for a couple years now. In the warmer months, you can find me on Black Earth Creek in the evenings enjoying a BWO hatch. See you on the stream.
We will also take every opportunity we can to thank Kevin Maes, Tom Thrall and Jim Beecher for their service to the SWTU board and our cold water resource.
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Posted: May 8, 2024 by Drew Kasel
Board Elections at the May Meeting
The Nominating Committee of the SWTU Board presents the following slate of candidates for the election to be held at the Annual Meeting on Tuesday, May 14.
Four open Director positions:
Hi, my name is Josh Reilly. I grew up in Edgerton with my grandparents, I currently live in Madison.
My grandfather was an avid outdoorsman. He had a small game farm with pheasants, wild turkeys, quail, Canada geese and a variety of ornamental pheasants. He and I spent many a day fishing, especially ice fishing.
My grandfather was part of the Conservation Congress back in the day and pushed for stream rehabilitation of the Badfish Creek to bring it back to a well functioning trout stream.
My introduction to SWTU occurred in 2022 when I went to Trout days in Cross Plains. I partook in the casting clinic as well as the other educational stations. It was after that experience that I decided to join SWTU.
I hope to be a good steward for SWTU and to help see the natural environment restored where and when possible.
My name is Riley Bellin, and I just recently joined the Southern Wisconsin TU Chapter this past February and attended my first meeting in March. I’ve been fishing most of my adult life, picking up the interest in high school when my friends and I would try to get outside most weekends, fishing for whatever we could find in the lakes and rivers in the Northeast Wisconsin area. I went to UW-Madison for my schooling, and had the opportunity to discover the Driftless my sophomore year – safe to say I was hooked, pun intended! I’ve been looking for a way to get involved in the protection and longevity of the rivers and streams of southern Wisconsin ever since. I’m excited at the possibility of using my skills to further the mission of TU and the Southern Wisconsin Chapter, and am looking forward to getting to know more folks like myself who feel the same way.
In my career, I’ve worked in various marketing roles but have found my home on the content side, and am currently a Content Specialist with NORD Drivesystems in Waunakee. I’m hoping I can use my skills to bring the marketing of the chapter to the next level, grow our memberships, increase our audience, strengthen our partnerships, put new and exciting content on our website, and find new opportunities to collaborate with other organizations around the area. All that’s to say I’m excited to contribute to the Chapter and look forward to working together with everyone here!
My name is Ben Mechelke and I joined the Southern WI TU chapter last fall after hearing about the great work the chapter does from a neighbor. I started trout fishing in the spring of 2023 and was blown away by scenic beauty of the cold water fisheries of southern WI. Chasing trout has quickly become a new passion of mine and connecting with like-minded individuals involved in the chapter and on the stream has brought me into a new community that I’m forever grateful for. I’m really looking forward to helping the chapter further by serving on the board and can’t wait to see the great work ahead of us this year.
A little more about myself, I grew up visiting my grandparents on Long Lake in northwestern Wisconsin near Spooner. I learned to love the outdoors from those experiences and have been fortunate to be able to explore many corners of the country. Besides fishing, I enjoy hiking, trap/skeet shooting, rock climbing, fly tying and learning about the natural environment. My career so far has been in the aerospace and automotive industries working as a mechanical design engineer. My Fiancé and I have been living on the far west side of Madison for a couple years now. In the warmer months, you can find me on Black Earth Creek in the evenings enjoying a BWO hatch. See you on the stream.
We will also take every opportunity we can to thank Kevin Maes, Tom Thrall and Jim Beecher for their service to the SWTU board and our cold water resource.
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