Board Matters
2023 Board Members
Denise Garland, President
Gary Bruins, Vice President
Donna Snyder, Secretary
Sue King, Treasurer
Ethan Henderson, Member
Tony Knight, Member
Karen Sweeney, Member
Contact the board:
And with thanks...
We are indebted to our GPANA members, our elected representatives, and the Pima County staff who gave and give time to make all this happen...
GPANA and TMWNA Board Presidents - past and present: William Saller, Roger Carpenter, Donald Uhlir, Keith Johnson, Joe Jablonski, Barbara Fleming, Gary Kordosky, Denise Garland
GPANA and TMWNA Board members - past and present: Mike Addis, Melisa Ambers, Bill Bracker, Gary Bruins, Olivia Cajero Bedford, Hector Campoy, Helene Cann, Judy Constantine, Janice Crowder-Torrez, Joan Darnell, Pat Darnell, Doris Evans, Denise Garland, Joanne Garry, Bruce Gungle, Ellie Hawkins, Richard "Pete" Hawkins, Ethan Henderson, Michael Jones, Suzanne King, Tony Knight, Carolyn Leigh, Diane Luety, Laural Park, Bob Smith, Jack Snider, Donna Snyder, Karen Sweeney, Al Weigel, Patricia Wersal, Jim Wilson, Roger Wolf, John Zadrozny, Nancy Zeller (Please send us any names we may have inadvertently omitted.)
Contributing area elected officials - past and present: Congressman Raúl Grijalva (formerly our District 5 Supervisor, Pima County Board of Supervisors), the late District 5 Supervisor Richard Elías, District 3 Supervisor Sharon Bronson and State Representative/State Senator the late Olivia Cajero Bedford.
Pima County Staff and, since 1993, Pima County Administrator, Chuck Huckleberry, with whom we have a good working relationship - even when we disagree.
Meet the Board, 2023
Denise Garland, President
Denise came to Tucson in 2017. She’s a born and bred California girl and spent 20 years living in the Sacramento area. Her professional career was with the California Department of Justice in Sacramento. Her husband Mike Cardwell is a very well-known rattlesnake expert and author. They are members of the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum. Denise says the Sonoran Desert is her sanctuary.
Gary Bruins, Vice President
Gary lives on the west side of Painted Hills Road. He’s been a resident since 1979 with a career at Tucson’s VA Hospital. Retired, Gary enjoys yard work and hopes to help grow our membership by enlisting neighbors in his area.
Donna Snyder, Secretary
Donna, a graphic designer, has lived off of Trails End Road since 2007. She is an East Coast transplant where she and her husband Bob owned an advertising/marketing firm. She enjoys the beauty, flora and fauna of the Sonoran Desert and has concerns about speeding cars/trucks on Trails End and other local roads.
Sue King, Treasurer
Sue moved to Tucson in 1971 from Maine. She and her husband Jerome were attracted to the west side, loved the Desert Museum and hiking Gates Pass. In 1978 they bought their house in Mountain Gardens. She retired from accounting five years ago and has done a lot of traveling, but loves coming back to their desert home.
Ethan Henderson, Member
Ethan and his wife, Gretchen, recently relocated to Tucson from Washington, DC where he was on the faculty and also curated the rare books and manuscripts at Georgetown University. Ethan now works for the University of Arizona Foundation where he leads fundraising for the University Libraries. Ethan is also a marathoner and enjoys training in the new elevation! Gretchen, an environmental writer, teaches (online) at the Steve Hicks School of Social Work at the University of Texas.
Tony Knight, Member
Tony was born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya. He is a former Professor, Colorado Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University and a Pima County master gardener. Tony’s “pet” project is helping to maintain Feliz Paseos Park as part of GPANA Adopt-A-Park mission.
Karen Sweeney, Member
Karen moved to Tucson in March of 1978 and was instantly hooked on the Sonoran Desert. She worked at the School for the Deaf and Blind until 1985 and taught 2nd-4th graders in Flowing Wells until retirement. She and her husband Bob recently moved into their new house on Placita de Laroca. They hike the neighboring washes daily, and enjoy their welcoming neighbors.