Contact Us Please review the staff list below to determine who can best address your needs. Any member of PRIDE's staff may be reached at 866.222.1648.
If you are unsure whom to contact, you can fill in the information on the form below and we will be in touch with you shortly.
To contact members of Bluegrass PRIDE's board, please click here.
To find our office take New Circle Road to Alumni Drive and turn toward Man O' War Blvd. Once you reach the Alumni/Man O' War intersection, turn right. Turn right at Pimlico Parkway and then immediately turn left into the Park Hills Shopping Center. Once in the center, veer to your left and park when you see signs for Allstate Insurance and A Furry Makeover. You will find Bluegrass PRIDE between these two businesses.
Leah Anderson
Environmental Educator
Leah@bgPRIDE.org
Leah Anderson is a native of Central Kentucky and joins Bluegrass PRIDE as an environmental educator. She holds a B.A. from the University of Kentucky in sociology and an M.S. in recreation and park administration from Eastern Kentucky University. Contact Leah with questions about environmental education in Central Kentucky.
Kara Benge
Environmental Educator/Rain Garden Project Coordinator
Kara@bgPRIDE.org
Kara Benge is an environmental educator, focusing on middle and high School grade levels. In addition, she serves the Bluegrass Rain Garden Alliance as rain garden project coordinator. Kara hlds a B.A. with a focus on Ecological Design and Sustainable Agriculture from The Evergreen State College. She also received an A.S. in Environmental Technology at Bluegrass Community and Technical College. Contact Kara with questions about environmental education in middle and high schools or rain gardens.
Lauren Bennett
Program Manager
Lauren@bgPRIDE.org
Lauren Bennett joined Bluegrass PRIDE in 2008 as program manager for the organization's litter abatement activities. She also coordinates PRIDE's public relations efforts and oversees its volunteer activities. She holds a B.A. in Integrated Strategic Communication from the University of Kentucky. Contact Lauren with questions about litter abatement, volunteering or public relations.
Carol Bradford
Carol@bgPRIDE.org
Carol Bradford is an environmental educator focusing on elementary schools in Fayette County. She received a B.A. at Rhodes College and a Master’s in Social Work at the University of Tennessee. She is a certified teacher in Kentucky and taught kindergarten for three years at Co-op Pre-School and Kindergarten in Lexington. Contact Carol with questions about environmental education for elementary students in Fayette County.
Darcy Everett
Darcy@bgPRIDE.org
Darcy Everett joined Bluegrass PRIDE as a Program Manager in 2009. She works with the award-winning WasteBuster program, helping businesses and apartments establish or expand recycling programs. She also serves as a contact for the Live Green Lexington Water Partner program. Darcy earned her B.A. in Interior Design at the University of Kentucky and recently graduated from the Ecosa Institute for Ecological Design in Prescott, AZ. Contact Darcy with questions about waste reduction and stormwater issues in Fayette County.
Deborah Larkin
Deborah@bgPRIDE.org
Deb Larkin joins Bluegrass PRIDE as an Environmental Educator. She will be working with water education in PRIDE’s outreach program to the ARC funded counties. Deb received her B.S. in Horticulture from the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture. She worked for 27 years at the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, near Harrodsburg, where she researched and
re-established the 19th century apple orchard, herb garden, and heirloom seed industry. Contact Deb with questions about water quality education in the eight ARC funded counties.
Chris Muesing
Chris@bgPRIDE.org
Chris Muesing joined Bluegrass PRIDE as an Environmental Educator in 2009. Chris received a B.S. with a focus in Environmental Stewardship from Houghton College, NY. Before joining Bluegrass PRIDE he taught environmental education to various summer camps and school groups. Contact Chris about environmental education in Fayette County elementary schools.
Tammy Patrick
Finance Officer
Tammy Patrick works as Bluegrass PRIDE's finance officer on a part-time basis. She graduated from Morehead State University with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with an accounting emphasis. She obtained her Certified Public Accountant license in 1997 while working as an auditor for the Auditor of Public Accounts. There she specializes in local government audits and manages the annual statewide audit of Motor Vehicle Registrations. Contact Tammy with questions about PRIDE's finances.
Michelle Patterson
Administrative Assistant
Michelle@bgPRIDE.org
Michelle Patterson works as Bluegrass PRIDE's administrative assistant, providing support for many of the organization's programs and initiatives. She majored in Mass Communications at Eastern Kentucky University. Contact Michelle with administrative questions.
Maxine Rudder
Education Director
Maxine@bgPRIDE.org
Maxine Rudder has been with PRIDE since 2004. She was the Education Coordinator for two years before taking on the role of Education Director. Before joining PRIDE, Maxine was a teacher in London, Kentucky for 28 years. She attended Eastern Kentucky University where she earned a teaching certificate in Biology and Chemistry. She also has certifications in Supervision K-12 and Secondary Principalship. As a retired teacher and administrator, Maxine’s responsibilities at PRIDE are to develop classroom activities, design units of study, and align educational materials to Kentucky Core Content. Contact Maxine with questions about environmental education in Central Kentucky.
Gene Slusher
Grants Administrator
Gene@bgPRIDE.org
Gene Slusher received his bachelor’s degree from Centre College and his J.D. and Master of Studies in Environmental Law from Vermont Law School. During college, he spent considerable time abroad, living and studying in France, Mexico and the Central African Republic. While at law school he focused on water law issues, water-related public policy, and environmental business strategies. In 2004, he was admitted to the Kentucky Bar Association. After spending several months fly fishing throughout Idaho and Montana, he spent a year working with the U.S. EPA on national water quality issues before deciding to get out from behind the computer and manage a local small business within the fly fishing industry. In his role for PRIDE, he administers a series of grants designed to provide resources to local governments, schools and citizen groups to improve the quality of their local environment.Contact Gene with questions about grants in Appalachian Regional Commission communities.
Amy Sohner
Executive Director
Amy@bgPRIDE.org
Amy Sohner started at Bluegrass PRIDE in 2002 as a Program Manager and soon became Deputy Director before taking on the role of Executive Director in 2006. Amy is a graduate of the University of Kentucky with a B.S. in Natural Resource Conservation and Management. After taking time to travel Amy settled back down in Kentucky where she spent time time knee deep in wetlands and students as an environmental educator at both the KY Departemnt of Fish and Wildlife Resources and 4-H. Contact Amy with questions about Bluegrass PRIDE's administration.
Pattie Stivender
Pattie@bgPRIDE.org
Pattie Stivender is an Environmental Educator working with Fayette County elementary schools. Pattie attended Eastern Kentucky University where she majored in Occupational Therapy. Pattie developed a passion for environmental education while working for UK’s Cooperative Extension Service in 4-H/Youth Development. She spent three years in FCPS directing summer camps and after school activities. Pattie oversees community outreach and community organizations in Fayette County. Contact Pattie with questions about environmental education in elementary schools or to schedule an event in Fayette County.
Andrew Stoeckinger
Program Coordinator
Andrew@bgPRIDE.org
Andrew Stoeckinger is the Program Coordinator for the “Green Infrastructure Electronic Handbook for Municipalities” that is part of Bluegrass PRIDE’s stormwater education initiative. Andrew earned a Master of Science in Water Resources Engineering from Oregon State University and worked as a Water Resources Engineer for a private engineering consulting firm in Portland, OR. He has returned to his native home in Central Kentucky to help Kentucky continue the trend toward holistic stormwater management. Contact Andrew with questions about stormwater management strategies for municipalities.
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