Steering Committee Members:
Tracey Howe-Koch (Coordinator) – Tracey has been involved with organizing MO IPL since its very beginning. She is passionate about helping congregations understand their responsibility in caring for the environment. She has gone back to school and completed her MS in Sustainability with a focus on religion and the environment at St. Louis University she also has her MSW from Washington University in St. Louis concentrating on social and economic development. She is an active member of the Unitarian Universalist denomination.
Polly Rutherford - Polly is a dedicated environmentalist. She is a member of the Chesterfield Citizens for the Environment Committee and has been chairman of Environmental Stewardship at St. John's United Church of Christ for over 20 years. She believes in the mottos "Earth Day/Every Day" and "You Can Make a Difference".
Jeanne Clauson - Jeanne has been a member of the Chesterfield Citizens for the Environment for 18 years. She has been concerned about global warming since reading Al Gore’s ‘Earth in the Balance’ in 1994. At St John’s UCC, she has been a participant on the Environmental Stewardship committee and maintains their Certified Wildlife Habitat Garden of native plants. She has driven a hybrid Prius since 2006 and is enjoying the electricity
generated by the 18 solar panels that were recently installed on her home.
Susan Mlynarczyk - Susan is an accountant and Chair of the Jewish Environmental Initiative. She has been very involved with their green efforts and Project Noah environmental campaign.
Rev. Kristen Koch – Kristen is the Minister at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in St. Ann Missouri. She is very interested in connecting earth stewardship to religious teachings.
Diane Waddell – Diane is a Nurse Practitioner. She has worked with Earthkeepers of Heartland Presbytery in writing and sending to General Assembly several recent environmental justice-related overtures. She has served as Overture Advocate in the past 3 GAs. She serves as moderator of PEC as well as Earthkeepers. She is located in St. Joseph, MO.
Michael Hoey - Mike is a member of the All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church in Kansas City, MO. He is the Kansas City Food Circle representative for the Kansas Food Hub working group. He is part of the local Slow Money group and has been active in trying to get Kansas City to be transition town.
Jude Huntz - Jude moved to a career in church ministry in 2007, earning an M.A. in Pastoral Studies from Loyola University of Chicago and serving as pastoral associate at St. Michael the Archangel in Leawood, Director of the Human Rights Office for the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Chancellor of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, and Director of the Office of Peace and Justice for the Archdiocese of Chicago. Currently, Jude serves as pastoral associate at Visitation Catholic Church in Kansas City, MO and adjunct professor of philosophy at Metropolitan Community College. Married to Cristen for the last 18 years, they have two boys, Paden (13) and SImon (7), and they live in Kansas City north of the river.
Mark Walter - Mark Walter grew up in Missouri heavily involved in the United Methodist Church. As the son of a Pastor (who is currently pastoring at Salem UMC in Salem, MO), Mark grew a passion for the community and spirituality that faith communities provide. Because of this passion, Mark decided to got to Drury University in Springfield to receive his BA in Philosophy and Religion. Since then, Mark has focused his career on fighting climate change through working in clean energy. He began his career working for a solar company in the Pacific Northwest. In 2014, Mark decided to move back to Missouri and work as Deputy Director of Renew Missouri, a non-profit focused on clean energy policy. After two years working on policy in Jefferson City, Mark moved back to the private sector. He currently lives with his wife in Kansas City where he serves as the Regional Sales Manager for Kansas City and Columbia for US Sun Solar.
Mark Walter - Mark Walter grew up in Missouri heavily involved in the United Methodist Church. As the son of a Pastor (who is currently pastoring at Salem UMC in Salem, MO), Mark grew a passion for the community and spirituality that faith communities provide. Because of this passion, Mark decided to got to Drury University in Springfield to receive his BA in Philosophy and Religion. Since then, Mark has focused his career on fighting climate change through working in clean energy. He began his career working for a solar company in the Pacific Northwest. In 2014, Mark decided to move back to Missouri and work as Deputy Director of Renew Missouri, a non-profit focused on clean energy policy. After two years working on policy in Jefferson City, Mark moved back to the private sector. He currently lives with his wife in Kansas City where he serves as the Regional Sales Manager for Kansas City and Columbia for US Sun Solar.