Board of Directors

Renee Edwards has lived in Durham since 1993 and has 1 adult son and one attending CRHS. Renee earned her PhD in Neuroscience, conducted research for several years in both academic and industrial settings, and currently is a Director at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company in the area of Global Regulatory Documentation. Renee has served her community as PTO President, CRHS Scholarship Fund Committee Vice President, Durham Board of Selectman, Durham Board of Finance, DFA Director, and Durham Volunteer Ambulance Corporation treasurer. Renee enthusiatically joined CVEF as a board member in 2008 because of their mission to bring enrichment and learning opportunties to the entire community across all age groups. Renee’s husband serves on a CVEF committee.

Rebecca Anderson has lived in Durham for 30 years. Becky has three grown daughters and a stepson. She has an MSW from the University of Chicago and has worked for 35 years as a professional social worker specializing in health care and geriatrics. She currently works at Middlesex Hospital as the social worker on the Hospice and Palliative Care unit. Becky has a long-standing commitment to volunteer service in the Durham/Middlefield community. She has served on several local boards including the RSD13 Board of Education (1990 to 1993), the Senior Citizen Commission, the Regional Mental Health Board, the John Lyman Parent Association and the Memorial/Strong PTO. She is currently an active member of a number of professional organizations. Becky and her husband, Martin, were CVEF Founders and she has been on the CVEF Board since 2010. Becky is honored to be able to contribute to an organization dedicated to promoting life-long learning in Durham and Middlefield.

Liz Conroy has lived in Durham with her husband since 1997, though she has long-time family ties to both Durham and Middlefield. Liz has three adult children. She has a background in accounting and finance, and works in these fields both professionally and as a volunteer. Liz has served on a number of PTOs and was instrumental as a committee member in the Town of Durham in developing an ordinance for elderly tax relief. She is active in the United Churches of Durham and a key contributor to the Coginchaug Regional High School (CRHS) Parents of Performers (POPS). She is a founding member of the CVEF board. CVEF is important to Liz because she believes that we never stop learning and that fostering all types of education strengthens our community and ties to each other.

Betsy White Booz has lived in Durham with her husband since 1989 and has two adult sons. The majority of her professional career has been in the healthcare field, initially as a lobbyist, but primarily as a managed care benefits and contracts manager and consultant. Locally, she was a contributing writer to the Town Times Newspaper and associate editor for six years. Betsy has also freelanced for several other publications. Betsy’s volunteer work has included membership on a number of PTOs and RSD13 special committees. She is a long-term member of the Durham Fair Association (DFA), serving five years as head of marketing and currently as a Resident Director. She is a founding member of the CVEF board, a decision that was easy for her to make, since the importance of lifelong learning is a “no brainer”. Formal education is, of course, a critical component of the process, but learning is a lifetime commitment, one that CVEF supports 100%.

Merrill Adams has lived in Middlefield for over 40 years. She and her husband, Richard, have two adult daughters, one of whom still lives in Middlefield, and three grandchildren. A graduate of Dickinson College and Wesleyan University, she taught English in Wallingford and at Coginchaug for 25 years. In 1968, she worked with residents from Middlefield and Durham to create Regional School District #13 (RSD13). In 1970, she and other parents in the district petitioned to form an alternative elementary school program now located at John Lyman School. Merrill has served on boards and commissions in town and presently is in her third term on the RSD13 Board of Education. In 2005, Merrill began the planning for a local education foundation. Coginchaug Valley Education Foundation (CVEF) is the culmination of her goal and the hard work of many early volunteers.

Dina D’Amato has lived in Middlefield her entire life and graduated from CRHS. Dina and her husband have two children who both currently attend RSD13 schools. She holds a BS and MS in Human Development and a Physician Assistant Certificate. Dina worked as a Physician Assistant at the Hosptial of St. Raphael, was on staff at Yale University School of Medicine, and volunteered at a local Hospice. Currently, she is involved as a parent volunteer at her children’s schools and is a founding member of the CVEF board. In her spare time, she likes to garden, play tennis, and rowing, but particularly, she likes to spend time with her family, watching the kids play soccer, and perform in music and drama. Dina is a passionate supporter of lifelong education and was excited to join up with Merrill Adams after hearing her idea for a local education foundation, back in 2006.

Nancy Earls has been a resident of Middlefield for almost 30 years and has four adult children. Nancy has been an educator for most of her professional life and received her MA in Counseling from the University of Hartford. She is presently a language arts and social studies teacher and team leader at Strong Middle School. She has served on various building, curriculum, strategic planning, and hiring committees, and is proud of her contribution to helping articulate the importance of values in the school system resulting in the establishment of the RSD13 Core Ethical Values. Nancy is also one of the original founders of the Middlefield Children’s Center. Currently, she volunteers at the Bushnell of Performing Arts. As a professional educator and a parent who successfully instilled the notion of lifelong learning in her children, Nancy is proud to work with other dedicated CVEF members to continually seek ways to promote learning for all ages in our communities.

Maggie Peterson has lived in Durham for 30 years with her husband and has three adult children. Professionally, Maggie is an award-winning graphic designer with more than 25 years experience running her own business. She has worked with Fortune 500 companies, publishing companies, advertising agencies, design studios, universities, and non-profits. She also does work for Middlesex Hospital doing graphic design for the Philanthropy Department. Maggie has been active in the DFA in many different capacities for more than 20 years, and is currently the Superintendent of Information Booths. She is a board member of the Durham Cemetery Company. Maggie designed the CVEF logo and subsequently became a CVEF board member in 2008. She designs all of the CVEF’s collateral materials.

Mary Ryan has lived in Durham since 1994 and has one adult son. After 11 years as General Counsel to a construction industry supplier, Mary went back to private practice in 2010 in the Construction and Commercial Litigation Team at the Hartford law firm Gordon, Muir and Foley, LLP. Mary was an active member of the Cheshire Chamber of Commerce serving three consecutive terms as President of the Board of Directors. Currently, she serves as Vice-Chair of the Durham Public Library Board of Trustees. She is also an active member of Durham’s Public Association of Library Supporters, an approved Town Moderator for Town of Durham Town Meetings, and the chair of the DDWC. Mary is proud to have served as Pack 27 Assistant Pack Leader and as a den leader when her son was young. Mary enjoys gardening, reading, travel, and the arts. Mary was pleased to be asked to join the board because she supports its mission of supporting the inter-generational life-long learning and its exploration of increasing the presence of the arts in the community.

Martha Temple has lived in Middlefield since 1992 with her husband and three sons who currently attend RSD13 schools. Martha has worked in the insurance industry for over 25 years, and currently runs the New England Market for Aetna, Inc. in Hartford. Martha attended the Pennsylvania State University and graduated with a BS in Mathematics. She is a Fellow in the Society of Actuaries (FSA). Martha sits on the Boards of the Middlesex County United Way and Achieve Hartford!. Martha is a member of the CRHS Scholarship Fund Committee. Her sons actively participate in soccer, basketball, and baseball. Martha joined the CVEF board in 2011. Her interest in the organization is to help the communities cultivate education and to help get all members of the communities more engaged in promoting and fostering education at all levels.

Jen Zettergren has lived in Durham since 2003 with her husband and three daughters who currently attend RSD13 schools. Jen is an attorney at Dzialo, Pickett & Allen, PC, a general practice firm in Middletown and Old Saybrook. Jen focuses her practice in the areas of commercial and residential real estate, wills, and business planning. As a parent, Jen actively participates in the Coginchaug Soccer Club, Coginchaug Little League, and the John Lyman Parent’s Association. Jen has been a board member of CVEF since it formed in 2008. CVEF is important to Jen because of the grant program. Grant awards enhance our community and are great examples of the lifelong learning we seek to provide. In addition, Jen enjoys collaborating and learning from the dedicated and caring people involved with CVEF.