Matthew is a native North Dakotan who has been loving Ann Arbor since 2019. His bird addiction started with his first eBird checklist in March of 2014. Birds have opened a door to the wider natural world that has found his interests expand to plants, insects, and fungi. He particularly enjoys leading birding and nature walks while introducing people to the wonders of our interconnected ecosystems. You will often see him biking around town or wandering the natural areas of Ann Arbor. More here: eBird – iNaturalist – Twitter
James Weir was born in Ann Arbor, went to college in Burlington, Vermont, and lived and worked in Shanghai for eight years before returning to Ann Arbor in 2019. He discovered birding in 2020 and joined the Washtenaw Bird and Nature Alliance in 2021. James believes that there is joy to be found in nature, that it is better when we experience and learn about it together, and that we must do what we can to restore, protect, and preserve the natural world. When he is not leading field trips or volunteering with WBNA, he works at the University of Michigan Law School, and he enjoys gardening, playing tennis and chess, laughter, cooking, hiking and biking, a good book, advocating for a more equitable society, and spending time with friends and family. James’s favorite bird is whatever bird he is looking at, but he is especially fond of rough-legged hawks.
Jessica has served on the board since 2016, contributing her time and expertise in various roles, including as Secretary and Membership Chair. Her passion for birding began in her 20s while living in the vibrant birding hotspots of New York City and London. Now a Washtenaw County transplant, Jessica enjoys sharing her love of birds and nature with her young family. A graduate of the MSU Conservation Stewards Program, and a volunteer with the City of Ann Arbor’s Natural Area Preservation, Jessica is deeply committed to environmental stewardship and conservation. She believes in the power of connecting people with nature and inspiring the next generation to become stewards of the environment. When she’s not exploring the natural world, Jessica works in the President’s Office of the University Musical Society, the renowned performing arts presenter on the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus.
Keith Dickey is an avid birder and passionate amateur wildlife photographer. He is the treasurer for the Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance, and a relatively new resident of Michigan, having moved to Ann Arbor from New Hampshire in 2017. When not traveling, birding, working in his garden with his wife Alison, or hiking with his Irish Water Spaniel Phineas Finn. Keith leads strategic planning for Michigan Medicine, the academic medical center of the University of Michigan. Keith has a PhD in classical archaeology and was a Fulbright scholar to Greece in 1987.
Karrie was first introduced to birding while taking an Ornithology class in college, and quickly added it to her list of favorite outdoor hobbies. She joined the WBNA when she moved to Washtenaw County in 2022. She joined the board of the WBNA as the Communications Chair in 2024. When she’s not birding or working as an extractionist in a water testing laboratory, she enjoys reading, playing guitar and other instruments, and raising chickens. She has a spouse – Glenn, a daughter – Dexter, a son – Hollis, and a beloved mutt named Grandpa.
Tim McKay’s daughter Isabel brought him to the Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance 25 years ago, and he has been interrupting conversations to notice birds ever since. As a scientist, Tim especially enjoys participating with family and friends in community science projects like the Christmas Bird Count and the NAP Breeding Bird Survey in several parks. When not birding, Tim helps to advance liberal arts education at UM, with a special focus on ensuring that all students have opportunities to learn about and act on climate change and sustainability. He is also an avid reader. Tim is excited to work with the Washtenaw Bird and Nature Alliance on conservation efforts, including habitat restoration, human-caused harms like window strikes, and community awareness of bird life.
Victor has always loved being outdoors and enjoys taking long hikes with his family (photo shows him with his wife, Jill, and daughter, Morgan, after they saw California Condors at Pinnacles National Park). He got into birding during the start of the pandemic and was awestruck at how many species of birds visited the nature areas near his house. For his work, Victor teaches chemistry at Thurston High School in Redford. He is passionate about teaching the youth of today about the environment and conservation, as well as working for equity and inclusion in the outdoor spaces. Taking inspiration from the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) birding club of Wisconsin, Victor started leading monthly BIPOC walks with Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance. As the education chair, he loves leading these walks and helping elementary school students learn about birds and the outdoors.
Born and raised in Ann Arbor, Diana has been an outdoor enthusiast since her childhood days of Girl Scout camping, hiking, and backpacking. Diana has traveled extensively on birding trips to a number of different spots around Michigan, the nation, and the world, including: the Leelanau Peninsula Birding Festival, the Tawas Birding Festival, several UP Winter Birding trips in Sault Ste. Marie, Sax-Zim Bog Birding Festival near Duluth, MN, The Biggest Week in American Birding Festival at Magee Marsh and Maumee Bay in northern Ohio, Point Pelee Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada, the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival in southern Texas, the San Diego Birding Festival, the Southeast Arizona Birding Festival in Tucson, Costa Rica, the foothills of the Himalayas in Northern India with Himalaya Birding Tours, a private Birding trip to Southern India’s Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, and she also spent considerable time birding while on safari in Botswana, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. Diana is especially looking forward to continuing her birding adventures with the wonderful folks of the Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance.
Jacco was introduced to birding by his dad and older brother when he was 7 or 8 years old and spent his youth looking for birds in and around his native Netherlands with them. After moving to the Ypsilanti-Ann Arbor area in the late 1990s, Jacco joined the vibrant Washtenaw County birding scene and has never looked back. He participated in his first Ann Arbor CBC in 1999, became area leader for area 6 soon thereafter, and has been the overall count compiler since 2007. In the early 2000s, he served for several years as the WBNA field trip coordinator and has recently re-joined the board as Newsletter editor. He also writes the Washtenaw County rare bird report for that publication. For many years, Jacco has volunteered for the Ann Arbor City Parks breeding bird survey, for which he currently covers South Pond, Scarlett-Mitchell Woods, and Redbud Park. Aside from birding locally, Jacco tries to get in some birding time whenever and wherever his family travels take him and has enjoyed birds in Europe, Peru, Costa Rica, Mexico, most of the Greater Antilles, and numerous states in the US.
Kate Jackman fell in love with birding on her first spring migration walk in Nichols Arboretum with Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance. She has since participated in the Washtenaw May Bird Count, the Christmas Bird Count, and the Ann Arbor Parks Breeding Bird Survey. She is an avid world traveler and photographer. When not birding, Kate enjoys reading, cooking, gardening, camping with her spouse and two dogs, and playing board games with friends. She’s run her own chef business since 2001, but counts her years working at Borders as some of her best. Kate is passionate about protecting birds and the environment, and bringing more people to birding and the outdoors.
Rob has been involved with Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance (formerly Washtenaw Audubon Society) for more than 30 years, serving previously as Newsletter Editor and President. He has been running the WAS website since launching it in early 2001. In addition to birding (which he doesn’t do enough of any more), he has enjoyed nature photography, beekeeping, and outdoor sports ranging from hiking and running to cross-country skiing and mountaineering. He retired in March of 2020 after more than 30 years with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, where he developed regulations and policy for vehicle emissions and fuel economy. He currently works part-time for the Ann Arbor Running Company. He and his wife Nancy are longtime Dexter residents.
Sherri grew up in Colorado in a family that identified everything outdoors. She has been a wild bird rehabilitator since about 1990 and now serves on the Board of The Bird Center of Michigan, the local rehab center. She has had her hands on most of the local birds. If it lives in your yard, you can bet she has worked with many of them.
Karl went birding with his father at a young age all around Saginaw Bay. He remembers going around the bay to see Tundra Swans on their major stopover there and Yellow-headed Blackbirds at Fish Point. He joined WBNA about 8 years ago and has been active on field trips, learning from the amazing birding community in Washtenaw County. More recently he has participated in the Christmas and May bird counts and now leads the May count for Superior Township. He has also participated in the Ann Arbor breeding bird survey for many years along the Huron River. Living in Superior Township, he frequently birds the preserves of Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy there and is an active donor and supporter. He hopes to help WBNA with conservation and habitat improvement, and however he can.
Juliet’s been in love with birds since her earliest memories, birding with her Dad at Pointe Pelee Provincial Park. She served as President of Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance (WBNA) (previously, Washtenaw Audubon Society) from 2014 to 2025, and has been the ornithologist for Natural Area Preservation (NAP), a division of City of Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation since 2016. She coordinates and compiles the Washtenaw May Bird Count, as well as leading many field trips for WBNA and NAP. The joke at work is, “What does Juliet do in her free time, when she’s not working? The same thing she does when she’s at work!” Juliet enjoys cooking, baking, and canoeing, as well as anything outdoors. Her many friends and her family are her greatest gifts. Juliet lives in Ann Arbor with her husband, and they have a college-age son and daughter.
Questions? Comments? Send us a message. Please remember that we are all volunteers, and as such we may be out birding and won’t reply until later.
