Meet The Board Of The LESTC!

Francine has been serving the Friends of the LESTC since 2012 because she has a love and passion for Lake Erie. She believes that all people should have easy, free, and safe access to the Lake Erie to include residents and non-residents, visitors, tourists, our pet dogs, kayakers, rock or beach glass collectors, nature lovers, science students and lovers, beach lovers, water lovers, swimmers, sunset lovers, bird watchers, and everyone else who wants to enjoy something about our precious Lake Erie. Francine lives with her husband Peter in Hamburg on Lake Erie, the north side of Hoover Road and enjoys the beach life year long, including the brutal winters and the beautiful WNY summers, the seasonal winds and storms that Lake Erie delivers as well as the unbeaten summer sunsets. They raised both of their children as Lake Erie beach kids and are now enjoying their first and soon to be second grand-daughters grow up in our beautiful town of Hamburg NY.  She retired after 35 years of employment with HSBC Bank, starting as a part time teller and expanding her career to include multiple areas of banking including branch banking management, risk management, and project management. Being an international bank, she was afforded travel opportunities that exposed her to the endless beauties of the great planet Earth. Her hobbies include downhill skiing, golfing, kayaking, bike riding, and yoga (both in practice and as a teacher).

Dave is a graduate of Canisius University with a Bachelor's degree in Secondary Social Studies and History and also received Master degrees from Cansisus in History, General Education and Education Administration. Dave began teaching in West Seneca part-time in 1997 and later went on to teach at Our Lady of Czestochowa in Sloan, Heim Middle in Williamsville and at Riverside Institute of Technology and the Academy of Science, Mathematics and Business Technology in the Buffalo City Schools. In 2004 he became Assistant Principal of Frontier High School in Hamburg and later became Director of Operational Services for the Frontier district. Dave represented Frontier on the Education Committee of the Southtowns Chamber of Commerce and currently serves on their Board of Directors, the Hamburg Drug-Free Communities Coalition and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Hamburg Parent-Child Connection. Dave was the long-time Vice President of the Frontier Parent Teacher Student Alumni Association (PTSA) and also served on the Board of Directors of the Western Region PTA, chairing the Education and Advocacy Committees. He is a former member of the Character Council of Western New York Board
of Directors, and currently is a member of the Hamburg Youth Board and the Erie County Youth Board. Dave is a former member (President and Vice President) of the West Seneca Board of Education, the Erie 1 BOCES Board of Education, the Board of Directors of the Erie County School Boards Association and is the immediate past Regional Director of the New York State School Boards Association, elected to represent Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming Counties. Dave also previously served on the board of directors of Promoting Partners in Public Education, Incorporated and the WNED Think Bright Advisory Board. He also was a board member of the Kosciuszko Foundation of Western New York, the Professional and
Businessmen’s Association, the Stiglmeier Park Steering Committee and the West Seneca Development Corporation. Dave has been active in his church, St. Philip the Apostle Parish in Cheektowaga and with Southline Athletic Association – Little League. Dave has been honored for his service to students, youth and the community with the following awards: Western New York Foreign Language Educators’ Council – Friend of Foreign Languages Award, Western Region PTA – Jane Skrzypek Educator of the Year Award, Business First – 40 Under 40 Award, Business First – Pathfinders Award, Town of Cheektowaga – Service to Youth Award, and the Am-Pol Eagle – Citizen of the Year Award. Dave resides in West Seneca.

 Lyn Braun co-owner of SERVPRO of the Southtowns, a fire and water restoration company, located at 97 Evans Street in the Village of Hamburg. For 25 years Lyn Braun has helped SERVPRO of the Southtowns grow into a successful business winning numerous awards including Double Volume, Outstanding Performance in Sales and President Platinum. She is the President of the Cynthia Cervoni Memorial Scholarship fund and sits on the Board at The Lake Erie Seaway trial.
She enjoys sailing, RVing, jet skiing, cooking and traveling. Lyn’s passion is college football and art of all media.

Chloe Mokadam is a scientist and educator at Frontier’s Big Picture Learning Academy. She is passionate about educating young people and the public on the unique ecology of Lake Erie and the WNY region.

Mike Delmont is a science educator at Frontier High School and Canisius University, and a researcher of scientific literacy. He is passionate about the environmental sciences and strongly believes in the importance of spreading awareness of environmental problems and their solutions. Mike hopes to increase community engagement, and to particularly build more opportunities to teach kids about the wonder of the local ecology.

Nancy A Maisano
Treasurer of Lake Erie Seaway Trail Board of Directors
Owner/Operator of Longboards Paddle Co.
Co-Owner of the Buffalo Paddle - Bike - Run
Yoga Instructor - Yogis in Service
Lululemon Legacy Ambassador

ACA| Canoe-Kayak - SUP - Raft - Rescue Certified
Nancy has been an active Board member at the Lake Erie Seaway Trail since May 2015 and an officer on the board since 2017. During this period, we accomplished several goals with the ongoing support from the Town of Hamburg. This team of working Board members are committed to improving and reinventing the center to a place where the community can thrive and gather through a variety of guests featuring topics around maritime history, lake effect weather, lake and river pollution, cleanup and recovery, and planting gardens to help sustain pollination. We have nurtured partnerships with educational groups and our district schools. We offer internships, community planning sessions, fitness and wellness services, environmental awareness work with local experts and professionals, the creation of an outdoor park complete with a pollination garden peace path, picnic tables, Adirondack chairs that have been purchased by the LEST funded and dedicated by private individuals, the commission of a beautiful sculpture “Red Fish” that is the centerpiece of our outdoor space reinforcing the messages of protecting our environment by reducing the use of plastics, recycling, and overall environmental awareness, we have officially been named as a destination on the Birding Trail, and we proudly hosted our 1st Annual Art Show with The Big Picture Academy. All that said, we are just
getting started! Nancy is the owner of a Longboard’s Paddle Company established in 2012. Nancy currently has 4 locations on Lake Erie and the Buffalo River. The business is community focused. The mission of the business is to provide WNY locals and guests with a fun-filled outdoor adventure experience which may
nclude kayaking, paddle boarding, fitness on land and water, yoga on mats or floating on sups. Along with that, Longboards offers a pedal piece to explore the 716 by bike. We also have a lakeside bistro which has been recognized by Independent Health as a “Healthy Options” location serving up all kinds of
delicious beach bites and more. Longboards Paddle Co. has a tender spot and supports individuals in Western
New York with physical or special needs. In many cases these efforts are realized through working with various organizations serving this community including respite care groups, Kids at Risk, Fantastic Friends of Western NY and several other community focused support organizations. Nancy has also expanded the support to family members of the children and young adults that are on the spectrum. Under Nancy’s leadership hundreds of guests ranging from 8 to 80 years old experience one on one training every summer either kayaking or paddle boarding. In almost all cases this is their first experience being in a kayak or paddling. Nancy is a former special education teacher and has chosen to invest her time and energy supporting that segment of our community via this unique opportunity. Nancy was part of a teaching team in charge of running the Buffalo State College Learning Lab Campus West for classroom integration earlier in her career. Nancy lives in Lake View with her husband of 40 years and has two children. Her son Andrew is a West Point graduate and after serving our country for six years then went on to graduate from Harvard Business School in May 2018. Nancy’s Daughter Chelsea is an attorney in Washington DC after attending Georgetown University and GW Law School. Both children are married to wonderful, accomplished partners and Nancy is the proud “Gigi” to 4 beautiful grandchildren.

Bill Barrett, has been in Hamburg/Lake View most of his life. He did spend 10 or so years in Boston attending Northeastern University, then working there along with New Jersey and Vegas before making his way back. He grew up at Hamburg beach, has had businesses and houses on Lake Erie and knows the value it brings to the town and region. He founded Golden Hire, in Hamburg, December of 2000 and thrives on bringing national companies and candidates together. He has built a career, and now a company, that puts companies and candidates in the right place at the right time. He then took part in converting the old Block Buster in Hamburg to a wellness center destination. Bill understands that the world of business never stands still, but is a universe unto itself where the only constant is change. Believing such, he works tenaciously to stay on top of business trends and shifts, especially in the rapidly evolving world. He enjoys being part of supporting the Sea Way trails because it marries his passion for the lake and free access along with the value it brings to the local community.

Joe Kilian is the President of the Hamburg Taxpayers Association, as well as Vice Chair of the Shoreline Revitalization Committee, Lake Erie Seaway Trail member, Hamburg Historic Preservation Committee member, Hamburg Moves member, and is retired from Erie County Water Authority.

William "Bill" Mayer is a journeyman, painter, union, and labor activist fighting for the kids of Western New York. He is also a political activist.

Vincent Smiraglia is our newest board member of the Lake Erie Seaway Trail Center.  Vincent is a Senior at the Frontier Big Picture Academy. Frontier Big Picture specializes in making education more equitable and student-centered by allowing students to find their careers by obtaining internships and knowledge of their local communities. Last summer, Vincent was hired by the Lake Erie Seaway Trail Center. During the summer, Vincent created the Lake Erie Seaway Trail Website and manages it currently. Vincent is passionate about connecting with the community and helping people in need. During his sophomore year, Vincent interned at the Buffalo House of Hope, a non-profit organization that houses immigrant refugees. ​​​