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Greater Sandy Spring
Green Space, Inc.
PO Box 92
Sandy Spring, MD 20860
301-869-5358
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Bobby Berg lives in Olney, and he has been a resident of Maryland since 1983, which is long enough to have seen development change the landscape. For him, a good weekend is one that includes a long jog along a quiet road (not Route 108!) or a path next to a stream in the Rock Creek or Northwest Branch watersheds. Such jogs show that Montgomery County still has open space, but maps show that much of it is unprotected and could disappear in the next 10 years. All three of Bobby's children attended Montgomery County public schools and the University of Maryland. Bobby has served as a 4-H club leader, a Cub Scout den leader, and a Cub Scout pack committee chairman. He works as a physicist at the National Institute of Standard and Technology in Gaithersburg.

John Chirtea has been a resident of the Sandy Spring area since 1972. He is a retired real estate developer, having developed residential and commercial properties in areas of Montgomery County, Washington, DC, Northern Virginia, and Anne Arundel County. John is a member of the Board of Directors or Trustees of: The Olney Theater Center for the Arts; Sandy Spring National Bank; Sandy Spring Mortgage Corporation; Sandy Spring Museum. With the Montgomery General Hospital he is Chairman of MGH Diversified Services, Inc., MGH Properties, Inc., past Chairman of MGH Board of Directors, and past Board member of the MGH Health Services, Inc. His extensive involvement in community activities and fund raising has earned him the recognition as Citizen Of The Year by the Greater Olney Civic Association in 1997.

Sharon Dooley moved to Montgomery County more than 30 years ago. In business, she started as a nurse then moved into health care consulting, where she currently works in audits and compliance issues as well as health care education. Currently she serves as President of GOCA, the Greater Olney Civic Association, is a board member of Mobile Medical, and is Legislative Director of Upcounty Action, an advocacy group. She is past President of the District 14 Democratic Club and is a Democratic Precinct Coordinator. She is a vigorous supporter of the Agricultural Reserve, our threatened green spaces and forests, and an environment with clear air and clean water. She is Vice-President and a founding member of the Olney Farmers Market.

Don McCandless has been a resident of Montgomery County since 1949. He is retired from active work as a principal in real estate consulting firms with national and regional practices specializing in market analysis, valuation, and counseling for purposes of acquisition, disposition, and institutional lending of investment class properties. He holds designations from The American Appraisal Institute and the American Society of Real Estate Counselors. He participated as a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee for the Sandy Spring/Ashton Master Plan.

Joli McCathran, Executive Director, lives with her family in Washington Grove. She is the Meeting Secretary for the Sandy Spring Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Previously, Joli was a Legislative Aide for the Maryland General Assembly and held various positions including work with the Legislative and Agricultural Director of Monsanto Chemicals, Gustin Gardens, Parsons & Werwerka Landscape Design-Build Firm, and Stadler Nursery. She is a graduate of the George Washington Landscape Design Program, current President of the Gaithersburg-Washington Grove Garden Club, and an officer in the Washington Grove Woman’s Club. Joli is a former member of the Washington Grove Town Council. She is currently a member of the Montgomery County Forest Conservancy Board. This position includes working with the Champion Tree list and with the Maryland Big Tree Program. Her hobbies include camping, sewing, and canning produce.

Barry Newton is a consulting computer specialist, and a principal with Ashton Computing & Management Services. He has 28 years experience in the field, most recently with the National Institute for Standards and Technology. His family has lived in Sandy Spring since 1973. He has been active in PTA activities, and teaches computer-related courses for Adventures in Science, a volunteer-driven science education program for children and young adults.

Meg Pease-Fye grew up in southeast Idaho, where she learned to value the importance of maintaining the wilderness. She and her family moved to Rockville in 1993, to escape the disorganized chaos of Northern Virginia development. In 2001, the family moved to Olney to be closer to Sandy Spring Friends School and get away from the increased traffic in Rockville. A long-time Quaker, Meg is a member of the Sandy Spring Friends Meeting, and is currently acting as assistant treasurer. She is also a coordinator for the local Community Support Agriculture group and volunteers to coach her son's soccer team whenever possible. Meg believes in sustainable living, and is committed to conserving resources, protecting water supplies, and public health. She works at the Food and Drug Administration and has a Masters in Science in Biotechnology from John Hopkins University.

John Spears is a native of Kentucky, and graduated from the University of Kentucky with a B.A. in Political Science and an M.B.A. His wife, Pamela, is also a graduate of the University of Kentucky, and is active in many Olney area civic groups, including the Chamber of Commerce and the Women’s Board of Montgomery General Hospital. They have one daughter, Rachel, a Senior at Sherwood High School. Olney residents since 1996, John and Pam previously lived in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, where John saw firsthand the consequences of unrestricted growth, as many new housing developments sprang up without much oversight. Witnessing the effects of haphazard growth in a formerly rural area prompted his interest in Greater Sandy Spring Green Space. John is employed as a Sales Manager with General Electric.

Aleen Starkweather, is a founding board member of GSSGS. Aleen is a retired Computer Systems Engineer. An active volunteer, she is Land Use Chair of The League of Women Voters of Montgomery County, co-administrator of the Patuxent Unit of the League of Women Voters of Montgomery County, a member of the Citizens’ Advisory Group of Legacy Open Space, and an active environmentalist. Formerly she was the Chair of the Eastern Panhandle Group of the West Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club. When she was a resident of Washington, DC, she was one of the founding members of Gardening Resources of Washington (GROW), an organization promoting community gardening in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

John Weske is a biological and computer consultant who has resided in the greater Sandy Spring area since 1954. He formerly worked as a staff zoologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He does research on colonial water birds along the Atlantic Coast.

Robin Ziek moved with her family in 1996, from downtown Takoma Park to rural Sandy Spring. She was a founding Board Member of Greater Sandy Spring Green Space, making use of her experience with preservation/conservation easements while at the Maryland Historical Trust. She is active with the Sandy Spring Civic Association, the Bentley Road Civic Association, Montgomery Preservation, Inc., and has taught a class on historic structures at Montgomery College. Other interests include gardening and care of a small flock of sheep and chickens. Robin works for the City of Rockville as a Historic Preservation Planner. Let’s speak up for our past as we happily build our future.