Our Team
Every great organization is powered by great people.
Meet the team behind the mission—strategic thinkers, passionate doers, and community champions working together to make a real difference. These are the faces you’ll see at events, on calls, and behind the scenes, moving ideas forward and building a stronger region for all.
Kate Forrer, Executive Director
(802) 214-4846 | director@vermontwoodlands.org
Kate Forrer brings over 20 years of forestry, program development, and organizational leadership experience in Vermont to her role as Executive Director of the Vermont Woodlands Association. As a woodland owner and Vermont-licensed forester, Kate has built her career around connecting people to Vermont’s forests and helping them care for the woods. She first moved to Vermont to work as a horse logger, where she developed a hands-on appreciation for sustainable forestry and the hard work of caring for the woods.
Kate holds a Bachelor’s degree from Bates College in Maine and a Master’s in Sustainable Forestry from the University of Vermont. When she’s not advocating, educating, or supporting others in their stewardship journey, Kate can be found out in her own family’s land in Tunbridge. She shares her love for exploring the woods with her husband, three kids, and their loyal yellow lab, Huckleberry.
Jenn Detweiler, Membership and Engagement Coordinator
(802) 214-4847 | jenn@vermontwoodlands.org
Jenn joined the VWA team in August 2026 as the new Membership and Engagement Coordinator. Jenn will help strengthen the ways we connect with members, from welcoming new members and supporting renewals to sharing opportunities to learn, gather, and get involved.
Jenn calls 10 acres in the Northeast Kingdom home, where she enjoys birding, gardening, and creating functional pottery and textiles inspired by the natural world.
You can reach Jenn at 802-214-4847 or jenn@vermontwoodlands.org.
Kathy Beland, Vermont Tree Farm Program Administrator
vermonttreefarm@vermontwoodlands.org
Kathy Beland grew up in the rolling hills of Carroll County, Maryland, and earned her A.A. in Forest Technology from Allegany College of Maryland in 1982. In 1986, she and her late husband Tom moved to Vermont — with a full moving truck, a Ford pickup, and a dream — where she began working as a consulting forester alongside Mark Skakel, eventually taking over the business as Not Just Trees, Inc.
From their home in Clarendon Springs, Kathy and Tom built a life rooted in hard work, family, and the outdoors — raising two children, tending a menagerie of animals, and spending countless hours exploring the woods. Today, Kathy continues to balance time with her family and three grandchildren with the simple pleasures of gardening, bird watching, and “attacking invasives” with her trusty tractor.
A passionate advocate for forestry education, Kathy also coordinates the Forestry Building at the Vermont State Fair, where she works with a dedicated crew of volunteers to engage the public in forest stewardship. She has been a Tree Farm Inspector since 1984, first in Maryland and then in Vermont, where she’s served as Vice Chair of the Tree Farm Committee, Inspector Training Facilitator, and since 2020, Program Administrator for the Vermont Tree Farm Program.
Catie Raishart, Education and Communication Coordinator
(802) 214-4849 | catie@vermontwoodlands.org
As Education and Communications Coordinator, Catie Raishart leads programs that help landowners and communities connect with and care for their woods. From coordinating workshops and woodland walks to sharing stories of stewardship, Catie helps bring VWA’s mission to life across the state.
Catie brings a rich background in education, small business management, and community engagement. She has worked in both public and nonprofit education settings, volunteered in farms, prisons, and shelters, and now manages Foxglove Farm, her family’s maple and cut-flower operation — also enrolled in the Tree Farm Program.
A former member of the VWA Board of Directors and Education Committee, Catie is deeply rooted in the organization’s work and community. She’s a natural connector who finds joy in conversation and believes forests give us all a common point of connection. When she’s not organizing programs or meeting landowners, you’ll find her exploring the woods with her three kids and dogs.
Stephen Peters-Collaer, Education Program Coordinator
(802) 214-4849 | stephen@vermontwoodlands.org
Stephen recently joined Vermont Woodlands Association as Education Program Coordinator. He completed his PhD at the University of Vermont in Bill Keeton’s Forest Ecosystem Monitoring Cooperative lab, where his research explored how New England forests have recovered from historic land use and how they may change in the future. He is excited to bring this background to Vermont Woodlands, helping promote sustainable and climate-resilient forest stewardship on private lands across the state.
Stephen grew up in Middlebury, Vermont and attended Vassar College in New York. After college, he worked as an ecological technician on research projects across the United States, studying forests in Michigan, sagebrush ecosystems in Utah, and orchards in California.
Outside of work, Stephen enjoys spending time outdoors skiing, canoeing, and attempting to improve his gardening skills. When he’s not in the woods or thinking about trees, he can often be found playing music with friends or sledding with his nephew.
Tim Emperor, VT LEAP Coordinator
Ask Tim Emperor how he ended up running VT-LEAP and be ready to sit awhile — the story's a good one. Forty-five years in forestry and forestry safety will do that. Today he's Director/Coordinator of VT-LEAP at Vermont Woodlands Association, working to keep Vermont's loggers safe and its working forests thriving — and he'll tell you it's the best job he's had, which, given everything else on his résumé, is really saying something.
Tim got his start the way most loggers do: out in the woods, running an open-air skidder, learning the trade the hard way. From there his path took more turns than anyone could have predicted, and even now, alongside running VT-LEAP, he still finds time for international air medical rescues and sawmill safety work — because apparently one full-time job was never quite enough for him.
Ask about Barron and you'd better clear your schedule. Affectionately known as "Bear," Barron is Tim's closest companion and the nearest thing he's got to a sage of reason. The two have jumped out of a helicopter together, though these days Barron prefers a quieter kind of adventure — marking the perimeter of every timber harvest he can find and keeping his Dad safe, sane, and never short on company.