OBA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President
Peter Olsoy
Peter is an Ecologist at the Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center in Burns where he researches how remote sensing technologies can help conservation and management of rangelands. He grew up across the Pacific Northwest, living in Washington (Seattle, Pullman), Idaho (Nampa, Boise), and now Oregon (Burns). Birding became an interest while working on his PhD at Washington State University, when he saw a Mandarin Duck at a local park. Now each year seems to have expanding goals (often unplanned) from county to state big years and filling in the eBird map by birding in every county. In 2024, he co-led two back-to-back Big Day Tours for the Harney County Migratory Bird Festival, and is interested in contributing more to the Oregon birding community, particularly in the southeastern corner of the state. Outside of birding, he is active on iNaturalist looking for plants, insects, and anything else he can find, and enjoys playing chess, hiking, camping and going on road trips.
Vice President
Brodie Cass Talbott
(he/him)
Brodie grew up in Portland, turning over every rock in Balch Creek. After graduating from Portland State University with a degree in Applied Linguistics and working summers as a wildland firefighter, he began six years of birding and working across Asia, from teaching English in Taiwan, teaching at a monastery in Bhutan, and photographing waste picker communities in Pune, India. To escape the monsoons he spent summers working as a raft guide and managing a rafting company in Maupin, which gave him a particular love of birding Wasco county.
He now resides in Portland with his wife, and combines his love of natural history and his passion for teaching as an educator with Bird Alliance of Oregon, where he also leads bird walks and ecotours. In his free time, he goes birding.
Secretary
Rey Snyder
(they/them)
Rey is an Autistic/ADHD educator and passionate bird nerd who grew up in NW and Central Oregon, where they found belonging and solace in the outdoors. Their fascination with birds ignited as a young child when a Red-winged Blackbird mobbed them at a pond during breeding season, but up-close encounters with a Western Grebe and a Common Poorwill at Bird Alliance of Oregon’s Wildlife Care Center in 2016 inspired them to explore birds beyond the backyard. During the pandemic, birding evolved into an obsession, and they discovered invaluable support from and connection with the local birding community.
Rey is an early childhood educator and runs the Portland chapter of the Feminist Bird Club (International), which focuses on providing opportunities for historically marginalized folks to learn and find community. They teach classes and lead trips for Bird Alliance of Oregon, OBA, and more. They are passionate about conservation efforts and believe birds can tell us much about what’s going on in the world around us, if we are only willing to listen and pay attention. They are committed to ethical birding and to creating safe, inclusive spaces for all humans and all birds. Outside of bird activities, Rey loves to study nature, write poetry, read, play piano, create art, and, with their partner Taylor, nurture a household that includes their combined 5 children, two spoiled indoor cats (Lord Remington and Jilliam Shakespeare), and a ball python.
Treasurer
Katie Sorenson
(she/her)
Katie grew up in the Seattle area and has always been interested in birds. She has taught K-8 and always finds a way to include birds in the classroom. Katie moved to Burns in July 2023 and teaches 7th and 8th grade science at Hines Middle School. Her favorite thing to teach is a project-based learning unit that culminates in the creation of bird trading cards. One of Katie’s favorite parts about birding is the way it fosters connections among people and deepens their bond with nature. It’s always a joy to hear personal stories and favorite moments, whether it’s an encounter with a majestic bald eagle or another memorable sighting of wildlife. If you ever see her out and about (usually wagoning her dog Charlie around) be sure to share a story with her.
Field Notes Editor
Lorin Wilkerson
(he/him)
Lorin Wilkerson grew up in Central Oregon, rambling through the woods, hills, and fields surrounding Terrebonne and Redmond. He attended college in Bend and Portland, studying music, journalism and foreign languages, and received his B.A. in Russian Language and Literature from Portland State University. A career civil servant by trade, he has also been active in Portland’s arts community for over a decade as a musician, writer and non-profit board member. He currently lives in Gladstone with his wife Kristin Sterling and their rescue pup Django (aka The Bird).
While he birds the Portland Metro counties extensively, he loves getting further afield to see birds, wildflowers, butterflies, landscapes and clouds. He volunteers for Bird Alliance of Oregon in several capacities, runs BBS routes that go through Wheeler, Crook, Clackamas and Marion Counties, and serves as Field Notes Editor for the OBA Journal Oregon Birds. As an active citizen scientist primarily focused on birds, he looks forward to serving the OBA, and heartily appreciates the examples set by the many dedicated volunteers in Oregon’s birding community.
Director
Clara Oliverson
(she/her)
Clara is a recent OSU graduate and early-career wildlife biologist. Her mom introduced her to birding when she was in middle school, and she’s been birding (and photographing birds) ever since. She’s from Seattle, but loves exploring Oregon and it’s quickly becoming her home. In 2023, Clara set out to do an Oregon Big Year and ended with a total of 356 species. She also loves going herping, tidepooling, and wildflower-searching.
Director
Spencer Parsons
(he/him)
Spencer started dragging his kids outside to go birding during the pandemic in an attempt to get them away from their computers. Although success in that regard was limited, he got himself hooked on birds. He spent his childhood in Southern California, Southwest Colorado and Central New Mexico before moving to Oregon in the winter of 1995-96 (every winter since that first one has seemed pretty mild). He earned undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Oregon, and has spent over twenty years practicing local government law. He lives in Northeast Portland with his wife, two children, two dogs and a now-indoor-but-once-feral Greek cat. In addition to birding, Spencer enjoys outdoor pursuits like hiking and backpacking, camping, skiing and casual bike riding.
Director
Annie Tucker
(she/her)
Annie is retired after 43 years of working in various capacities including teaching natural sciences both in and out of the classroom, running backback trips in Montana and Wyoming, working at a natural history museum, and finally running Cascade Radon with her husband Steve Tucker in Portland. Annie always loved nature and kept journals with birds she had seen on various trips. When Annie first learned of eBird in 2016 it was a natural fit. The fun of finding and listing birds came naturally. The acquisition of good “bins”, a decent camera and a spotting scope improved skills. Being introduced to so many wonderful and knowledgeable birders the Portland community has made the whole experience complete. Now Annie is working on completing 100 birds in every Oregon county and when she can traveling to other countries to see more birds.
Director
Diane Cavaness
(she/her)
Diane is a 37-year veteran of teaching middle school science, now retired. For several years, she ran a 7th and 8th grade birding club, and was the grateful recipient of two grants from the OBA, which helped keep kids outside birding, instead of indoors in front of screens.
Birding was initially an empty nester hobby, but over the past 25 years has led to many adventures and opportunities to share her passion. She was once the Curry County compiler for the North American Migration Count and now helps with surveys for Bird Alliance of Oregon, as well as participating in Christmas Bird Counts. She leads walks for the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, where she is a volunteer naturalist and helps in many capacities, including working with school groups and training volunteers.
Diane served on the OBA Board of Directors for two years just before the Covid pandemic, and is happy to be working with Oregon birders once again.
She was born in New York State, and lived in Colorado and Wyoming before settling in Brookings, Oregon, where she lived for more than 30 years. Diane now resides in Sherwood with her two indoor wonder cats, Theodore and Simon. A spring morning on a trail in the Gorge reveling in birds and wildflowers is her version of paradise!
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