Board of Directors

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Board of Directors

Cha Boyce, President, Marine Committee Chair

Cha was born in Marsh Harbour and has lived in Abaco for over 30 years. She also lived in California, and graduated from California Polytechnic University at San Luis Obispo. Cha returned to the Bahamas in 1985 and managed the Abaco Inn, a small resort in Hope Town until 1990. During this time, she became involved with Friends of the Environment, where she served as president in the early years of the organization. Cha lives in Marsh Harbour with her husband and their two children.

Jim Richard, Vice President, Education Committee Chair

Jim is the Principal of Forest Heights Academy, and has been involved in education in the Bahamas for 10 years. He has served on the FRIENDS board since Jan 2005, and during that time has also chaired the Education Committee. Prior to joining the board, he helped to organize the annual Earth Day Events as President of the Abaco Science Association. Some of the accomplishments attained in the area of education during his tenure include the artificial reef ball project, successful annual Earth Day events and the awarding of environmental scholarships to both Abaco's teachers and students. He lives in Central Abaco with his wife and two children.

Charlotte Dunn, Treasurer, Sustainable Development Chair

Charlotte was born in Nassau, Bahamas and has grown up in Hong Kong and the UK. Her background is in computer programming, working for Merrill Lynch for 8 years in New York, London and Hong Kong, writing software for stock market trading. She completed her Master of Science degree in Environmental Biology at the University of St. Andrew’s, Scotland in 2005 and is currently working on her PHD in Biology focusing on vocal communication in Blainville’s beaked whales:implications for social interactions and conservation. Charlotte has been living and working in Sandy Point with the Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organization since 2004. She has been involved in Community service work in London, New York, Hong Kong and now is an instrumental part of the board at FRIENDS here in Abaco.

David Knowles, Secretary, Terrestrial Committee Chair

David is originally from Nassau and has lived in Abaco for the past 7 years. David was recently hired as the first Abaco Park Warden for The Bahamas National Trust in Abaco. He previously worked as the Agricultural Officer in charge of Abaco for the Department of Agriculture and has extensive knowledge of the terrestrial environment in The Bahamas. He and his wife and three children live in Marsh Harbour.

David Price, Assistant Secretary:

David Price serves as Attorney at Law for Food for the Poor from his home in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. He and his wife have a second home in Treasure Cay, Abaco. David worked diligently to help FRIENDS receive our 501c3 status from the US IRS and continues to assist with our annual 990 filing.

Jody Albury, Marine and Sustainable Development Committee

Jody is a Bone Fishing guide, one of the fastest growing ecotourism industries in the Bahamas. Jody's roots are in Abaco, his family has been here for generations. Jody is a true outdoorsman and enjoys many of the opportunities Abaco has to offer. He lives in Marsh Harbour, Abaco

Joy Chaplin, Education Committee & Marine Committee

Joy Chaplin is a retired school teacher, who taught students both in Nassau and Abaco. Joy came to FRIENDS as a volunteer and help to get the Discovery Club, an environmental education after school program up and running. She ran the Discovery Club for three years, sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm with countless students before moving onto a position on the Board. She lives in Leisure Lee.

Diane Claridge, Serves on Marine Committee and Terrestrial Committee

Diane was born and raised in Nassau. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science in 1988 from the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida and completed an Overseas Research degree to fulfill requirements for a Master’s degree in Zoology at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland in 2006. Diane is presently working on her PHD in biology focusing on Spatial processes in the population ecology of beaked whalesat St. Andrews University in Scotland. In 1991, Diane began the Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organization where she currently serves as Project Director and principle investigator. BMMRO documents the occurrence, distribution and abundance of marine mammal species found in Bahamian waters. Diane’s research has taken her to Alaska, California, Mexico, Greenland, and Iceland. In addition to serving on the board at FRIENDS Diane has been a Council Member for the Bahamas National Trust, and currently sits on the BNT’s Scientific Advisory Committee, and is a Life Member of the International Society of Marine Mammologists. She has received numerous awards in recognition of her contribution to the conservation of marine life, including the Ministry of Tourism’s Cacique Award and the Zonta Club of New Providence’s Living Legends Award.

Bernadette Hall, Waste Reduction Committee Chair

Bernadette was raised and schooled in Hope Town as a young child. She returned to the Abacos in 1999 after graduating from Padworth College, in England. She is currently operating Oasis Services. Since returning to the Abacos it has been a passion of hers to volunteer and offer assistance with community projects. “Education is important to me and it’s a pleasure to be involved with a group like Friends of the Environment to bring this much needed aspect to our communities.”

Justin Higgs, Education Committee

Justin Higgs currently works as the Grade 5 & 6 teacher at Hope Town Primary School. He and his wife Amanda live in Hope Town, with their daughter Journey. His class has won at FRIENDS Earth Day Science Fair for two consecutive years. One of the winning projects was an experiment about how mangroves help fight against global warming. Justin was also the recipient of the 2008 FRIENDS' scholarship to the Island School. Justin has a master's in Education from Florida Atlantic University. In addition to serving on FRIENDS' Education committee for the last two years, Justin has also shown a commitment to the environment by working to start a new eco-tourism company, Abaco Eco. The company is doing kayak rentals and tours around Hope Town.

Wynsome Ferguson, Waste Management & Sustainable Development Committee

Ms. Ferguson is currently the Director of the Abaco Tourist Office. She is from Abaco and has been a dedicated and enthusiastic employee of the Ministry of Tourism for 15 years. Her service on the Board only serves to strengthen the relationship between FRIENDS and the Ministry of Tourism. Keep Abaco Beautiful is a partnership between the Ministry of Tourism and FRIENDS.

Glender Knowles,

Ms. Knowles is a Tour Operator/ Bus Driver in Abaco. She came to FRIENDS first to learn more about the environment in conjunction with her tour operations and our relationship has grown from there. Her company has also worked with FRIENDS to provide transportation for school field trips. She lives in Marsh Harbour.

Chovez McBride, Education and Marine Committees

Chovez is currently the manager of the new Furniture Plus store in Marsh Harbour. He came there from his position as Director of Finance, Marketing and Sales for The Abaco Club on Winding Bay. In his free time Chovez coaches children's basketball and is an active member of New Visions Ministry. He and his family live in Marsh Harbour.

Reg Patterson, Terrestrial Committee

Reg is a long time Abaco resident and is the proprietor of Lucayan Surveying in Marsh Harbour. As a land surveyor, his profession has provided him with extensive knowledge about The Abaco’s. He currently lives in Marsh Harbour with his wife Donna and has 2 children in college in the U.S. He is an avid birder and leads many of FRIENDS bird walks. Reg possesses extensive terrestrial knowledge, as his father, Jack Patterson, was the author of the book Native Trees of The Bahamas, which many consider to be the premier book on native plants in The Bahamas. Reg has also been a dedicated Rotarian for many years and is excited about sharing his knowledge and time with FRIENDS.

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