Meet Our Chapter Members

Juanita Armstrong is the Natural Resource Specialist  for Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Department. She has more than  20 years’ experience planning and managing high quality natural areas  and open space; from developing plans to implementing projects that  improve the biodiversity and health of our natural open space public  lands. She enjoys mentoring, teaching, and working with environmental  and natural resource-minded volunteers. She is passionate about natural  resource management and maintaining the natural biodiversity within the  county for current and future generations 

 Kathy Balman is a homeschool mom, wife, naturalist,  chronic pain warrior, artist, wanderluster, writer, fieldtrip expert,  community science addict, homeschool group leader, literacy advocate,  and technology wizard. She is the founder of and educator of an environmental education program called Educating Children Outdoors.

Volunteer Commitments:
-Maricopa  County Parks Master Naturalist (President, Technology Wizard,  Curriculum Committee, Timekeeper, Communications Committee)
-Tucson Audubon, Desert Rivers Audubon (Vice President, Technology Committee), Rio Salado Audubon
-AZ Association for Environmental Education (Professional Development Committee)
-The Native Plant Society (Board Secretary)
-And….Watershed  Management Group, Sky Island Alliance, Friends of the Tonto, South  Mountain, Keep Nature Wild, Forestry Service, Maricopa County Parks,  Desert Defenders, NASA Develop, SciStarter Projects, EarthEcho Water  Monitoring, US National Phenology Network, Wild Wonder Nature  Journaling, GLOBE Observer, CoCoRahs, AZ Fish and Game

Certifications:
-AZ Certified Environmental Educator
-Outdoor Wildlife Leader
-Conservation Leader
-National Geographic Certified Educator
-Certified Phenology Leader
-Project Wet , Project Wild, Project Learning Tree, Aquatic Wild, GLOBE
-CPR/first aid certified

Projects:
-Greater Phoenix City Nature Challenge Co-organizer

-Metro Phoenix Christmas Bird Count Leader
-Frog Watch Chapter Coordinator
-Pollinator BioBliltz Co-organizer

Volunteer Interests and Knowledge Areas:

-Working With Youth

-Working With Those With Special Needs  and/or Accessibility Challenges

-Community Science (Phenology, BioBlitzes, Surveys)

-Family Events

-Tabling Events

-Program/Curriculum Development

-Professional Development

-Birds, Frogs, Invasive Species, Plants

-Technology (Website Design, Data Managment, Newsletters)

 Alexis Woods is originally from Houston, Texas, and  moved to Arizona in 2005. She lives with her husband and two grade  school-aged boys in Ahwatukee. Alexis currently works as an internal  medicine physician in a private practice in Ahwatukee and as a  hospitalist at Mercy Gilbert Medical Center Hospital. She earned her  Doctor of Medicine from the University of Texas Medical School at San  Antonio, and a Masters of Public Health from the University of Texas  Houston School of Public Health.  Alexis completed the Maricopa County  Master Naturalist Program in Spring 2020 with Cohort 2.  She serves as  the current Vice President, and has served on the former Recruitment and  Outreach Committee, as well as the Volunteer Projects Committee.   Alexis and her family also have a home in the White Mountains of Arizona  in Heber-Overgaard.  She has completed both the University of Arizona’s  Maricopa County Master Gardener Program and the Northern Arizona Home  Horticulture Program in Spring 2021.  She volunteers with Friends of the  Tonto, participating in the Riparian Photopoint Program and the  Milkweed Watering Program.  She also participates in the Desert  Botanical Garden’s Tonto Rare Plant Program.  Her primary interests are  riparian areas, native plants, pollinator plants, and birds. 

Dr. Molina Walters known as Dr. Mo, is a Clinical Professor in the Mary Lou  Fulton Teacher College.  Prior to entering higher education, Mo spent  twenty-four years teaching  elementary, middle school and high school in Northern California. Since  coming to Arizona State University, she is well-known for her dedication to teaching educators and children about scientific inquiry, Environmental Education and STEM.  Mo currently teaches elementary and secondary  science method courses and environmental education courses in the  Environmental Education Program of Distinction program. In addition to teaching, Mo is the  program coordinator for the Elementary STEM program, course coordinator  for elementary science methods and the environmental education program,  runs Family Science Night events in East  Valley schools, and is involved in many collaboration projects with  Fulton Engineering.  Mo was the first university professor to receive the Educator of  the Year award from the Arizona Game and Fish Department; awarded for her work in environmental education for integrating wildlife programming  into her Science Methods class and partnering  in field activities.

Mo is the creator/lead  teacher consultant for Teaching Inquiry Based Science, a professional  development for educators. She is a Life member of NAAEE, an AZ  Certified Environmental Educator, an AZ Master Naturalist,  a NAI Certified Guide and soon to be Master Gardener. She is certified in Project Learning Tree, Project WET, Project WILD, Aquatic WILD, Flying WILD and GLOBE.

Previously  she has served in positions, such as the co-chair of the Professional  Development and Teaching group for the North America Association for  Environmental Education, the Project  Learning Tree and Project Wild CDO-State Coordinator, Secretary for the  Arizona Association for Environmental Education, a Council member on  both the Audubon Education Committee and the AZventure Advisory Council for Arizona Foundation for Resources in Science Education.

Jessica Bell

 Tawsha Trahan has a passion for projects and a love of  farmers, food, and promoting equitable opportunities. Organizations  invested in climate action are my interest, and being a Master  Naturalist provides another layer of knowledge and understanding, to  assist in those efforts. 

(Kim serves on the MCPMN Curriculum Committee) 

 (Rebeca serves on the MCPMN Communications Committee) 

 (Rick serves on the MCPMN Communications Committee and Advanced Training Committee) 

 (Jess serves on the MCPMN Communications Committee) 

 (Kathleen serves on the MCPMN Communications Committee) 

Jodie Snyder is a native Arizonan, Jodie Snyder has spent most of her life writing about the state’s triumphs and challenges. A former reporter with The Arizona  Republic, she now works for Banner Health. She has two energetic  beagles and has written “Happy Dog Phoenix,’’ which benefited Phoenix  area animal rescues. She enjoys hiking and hopes to finish the Maricopa Trail one of these days. As a master naturalist, she helped create the county’s natural resource plan, harvested and grew native seeds and kept  track of the beetle population in Phoenix. 

Emily Williams moved to Arizona in 2017 from  Indiana.  She lives in Tempe with her husband, three sons, and her very  loud dog.  Emily loves spring ephemeral wildflowers. aquatic ecology,  and geology.  She has an MS in Environmental Science and works at ASU as  a Laboratory Coordinator.Emily currently volunteers with the Beetle  Brigade and No More Deaths Phoenix. (Emily serves on the MCPMN Communications Committee and Curriculum Committee) 

Rachel Hewitt is an Army Logistics Officer, Biologist, and Biomimicry Professional Rachel is a certified Master Naturalist who obtained her certification in 2020. She graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Conservation Biology and Ecological Sustainability and a Master of Science degree in Biomimicry. She serves in the military as a logistics officer with the Arizona Army National Guard with a current total of twenty-three years of service. Rachel brings her passion for natural sciences and community stewardship to both professional and volunteer career paths with an emphasis on exploring and researching biomimetic approaches to solving everyday challenges. Her science interests include entomology, biochemistry, astrobiology, and biophysics. Rachel aspires to

be a thought-leader and change-agent through the lens of biomimicry. In her free time, Rachel loves to research and learn more about nature, hike, and especially enjoys exploring the gifts of nature with her family.

Contact: rb4freedom@gmail.com

Pablo Cazares moved to Arizona in winter of 2019.  Coming from the Pacific Northwest, he fell in love with the alien desert  landscape and surprising diversity of species. Pablo is a freelance  illustrator and designer, and is an instructor with The University Of  Fashion. He is also a Master Gardener and is always looking to learn  something new. He lives near Lake Pleasant, where he gardens, drives  around tractors, and makes structures out of stone and concrete. (Pablo serves on the MCPMN Communications Committee and handles our graphic design needs)

 (Edward serves on the MCPMN Partnerships Committee) 

Kevin was transplanted to the Sonoran desert at age 11 from the suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Forty-some years of living here has taught him a profound appreciation and respect for the toughnessand resilience of desert life. His passion is connecting people and nature, protecting all things wild, and being a curious human. When he’s not working as an Educator at the Phoenix Zoo, you might find him volunteering with Liberty Wildlife, Friends of the Tonto National Forest, or the Maricopa County Parks and Rec Department. He received a B.A. in English from ASU, a M.Ed. in Secondary Education from

Grand Canyon University, and is certified as an Interpretive Guide through NAI. His home is in Peoria, where he lives with his wife, two daughters, two dogs (both female), and a guinea pig (you guessed it – female!) named Chocolate. He encourages everyone to become a curious human, and to get started today wherever you are, even if it’s just your own backyard. In fact, if you’re curious to see an assortment of plants and critters he has found in his own backyard, check out iNaturalist. Look for the house in Peoria covered in green, red and a few blue dots.