Meet Our Board
We are a working board consisting of artists & community members passionate about reducing waste & finding creative possibility in what others see as “trash.” Most board members are also active volunteers at our retail store ReClaim It, at the dump, or at our pop-up events.
We’re always on the lookout for talented & conscientious new board members & committee members to help us strengthen our team. If you’re a dumpster diver at heart, are deeply committed to waste reduction and reuse & have an eye for the artistic, we’d like to talk with you.
Miriam Hecht
President
Board Member Since 2015
In college, a long time ago at Northwestern University outside of Chicago, Miriam started recycling & went to her first estate sale. She immediately got hooked on both. “Waste” is not part of her vocabulary—”collecting” is. The stranger, the better. After many years with the Portland's Planning & Building Bureaus, Miriam spends her time as a docent with the Portland Art Museum, volunteering & playing soccer. She finds that Cracked Pots & ReClaim It are a great fit to her lifestyle.
Rachel Steffen
Secretary
Board Member Since 2018
Rachel moved to the Pacific Northwest ten years ago after a lifetime of scheming how to get to here. Preserving the environment is a social justice issue & it's important for Rachel to find social justice in all of her primary activities.
Rachel earns her keep at an educational technology company. Her educational & professional background includes a degree in Comparative Literature, affordable housing development, bookselling, educational sales & technology. Gardening, beachcombing, firegazing & yoga fill out the rest of her time.
Donna Deacon
Treasurer & Past President
Board Member Since 2018
Donna was born & raised in Illinois, attended Northern Illinois University, then lived with her husband in Ohio, California & Georgia before setting down roots in Portland in 1981 to raise three children, who are now grown. She has volunteered & worked for various non-profits over the years & in retirement focuses her time volunteering with organizations that understand the value & power of re-use & recycling. ReClaim It is a perfect fit. Other passions are traveling, gardening & her two grandchildren.
Tess Beistel
Co-founder
Board Member since 1998
Tess moved all over the place during her growing-up years & has nested in Portland for the last twenty-plus years. She earns her living as a garden designer & is nuts about having clients use garden art made from recycled materials. Formal education includes two master’s degrees, one in English Literature & the other in Public Administration.
One of the co-founders of Cracked Pots, Tess has served continuously on the Board since 1998. In addition to environmental activism, she is deeply interested in peacework, meditation, hospice volunteering & enhancing the existing community gardens program in Portland. Her car is Sweet Pea, her cat is Olive & her favorite color is green.
Jane Comerford
Board Member since 1999
Jane is a 4th generation Oregonian who has been involved with Cracked Pots since 1999. She’s a graduate of U of O & Howard University (DC) & a happily retired community college administrator. When she is not dumpster diving, she tries to keep mentally & physically fit by reading (lots!), playing tennis, delving into local history & hiking far & near. Jane lives with her partner Joan, two goats & two cats.
Christine Carlson
Past President
Board Member since 2013
Chris is a transplanted Ohioan & an environmental advocate. After law school, she worked for the Kettering Foundation & got involved in the field of conflict resolution & consensus building around public policy issues. She came to Portland to help found the National Policy Consensus Center at PSU. She is now a retired dilettante & spends her time reading, gardening, traveling, dabbling & enjoying the good life.
Meghan Towner
Board Member Since 2024
This is Meghan Towner in her natural habitat, serving as a pillow for her cat, Lemeur. Meghan has been volunteering at ReClaim It it since 2021, enjoys dioramas & resetting the display window. It has been ascertained she can also be found sorting yarn, working in the back & organizing the closets. She never ceases to amuse herself.
Nora Paul
Board Member Since 2024
Nora finally found Oregon after years of living in Connecticut, Florida, Texas & Minnesota—& she's not leaving! She stumbled on ReClaim It soon after arriving in Portland three years ago & found her tribe among all the wonderful employees, volunteers & board members. In addition to making weird stuff from finds at ReClaim It, she's a devotee of burlesque dance, live music, river kayaking & quirky people/places. All of which are blissfully in abundance in her new hometown. Her favorite saying is "One man's trash is another man's treasure." She's thrilled to be part of an organization that enables the treasure hunt.
Tod Thayer
Board Member Since 2024
A lifelong PNW resident, Tod attended Washington State University & majored in Business Administration. With over 33 years of professional fundraising & management, Tod chose to volunteer with ReClaim It because of his love for creative reuse; repair & repurposing; & the incredible efforts of ReClaim It to make a difference.
When not volunteering Tod can be found hanging with the love of his life—his wife Joy—at the Oregon Coast, walking many trails throughout the NW, collecting blown glass, or booking his next travel adventure!
