Team

Stacy Nimmo

Executive Director

Stacy began her role as Executive Director at Red Wing Ignite in February of 2020, just a week before the pandemic caused a state-wide shut down. She leads an exceptional team dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs and fostering business growth and community vitality across SE Minnesota.

 

Before arriving at Ignite, Stacy supported a variety of nonprofits in the Twin Cities area in a consulting capacity, assisting them in improving operational processes, development and grant writing, technology enhancements, and more. She served as regional executive director for the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Minnesota, the Dakotas and Western Wisconsin, and as Director of Operations at nonprofit Wildwood Hills Ranch of Iowa, in Winterset Iowa.

 

Born in Cedar Rapids, IA, Stacy is the daughter of successful entrepreneurs, the granddaughter of Czech & Norwegian immigrants, and a first generation college graduate. She loves sauerkraut and poppy seed kolaches and has had a life-long love affair with the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness where she spends as much time as possible. 

Dr. Christine Beech

Director of Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Dr. Christine Beech is a military veteran, entrepreneur, community board leader, and former university professor.

After completing her 20 year military career, Christine spent 6 years launching and leading a $21M annual revenue consulting business supporting the Federal Government. She then spent several years as a private consultant teaching and coaching FBI agents before transitioning to higher education where she served as core faculty in the business department at Saint Mary’s University. There she taught and led programs on entrepreneurship and nonprofit business models.

In 2020, Christine founded Copiavia, a consulting firm dedicated to strategy and education for entrepreneurs, small businesses, and nonprofits. Christine also founded the Rochester Women’s Entrepreneur (WE) Forum in 2018, providing monthly programming to help women grow and develop their leadership skills as business owners.

An active community leader, Christine serves as Board Chair for the nonprofit organizations Salt & Light Partners and the Jeremiah Program. She also serves as a board member for Collider and Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce. Christine holds a Doctoral degree in business management, and has a research focus on entrepreneurship and nonprofit business models.

Shannan Harris

Director of Operations
Shannan Harris is a member of the Red Wing Ignite team, and previously served as the Program Coordinator. (January 2015-December 2020) Prior to joining RWI, Shannan owned and operated Moments on Main, a local gift and décor store from 2005-2014. Moments was recognized as a Home Accents Today Retail Star in 2010 and also named as a Gifted Retailer the same year by Gifts and Decorative Accessories Magazine. In the shop's 9 years of business, the store created a loyal customer base. The store was known for its product selection, attention to detail, customer service, and public events. When she is not working at Ignite, Shannan does interior design, seasonal décor, and sales for wholesale companies at various trade shows around the country. Shannan has called Red Wing home since 1998 and has served on a variety of boards, commissions, and committees.

Shannan holds a Bachelors of Art degree in Psychology and an Interior Design degree.

Ben Koppel

Entrepreneur Coach
Coming Soon

Eve Mayer

Entrepreneur Coach

Eve Mayer, the latest addition to the Red Wing Ignite team, brings a wealth of entrepreneurial expertise as a Coach. With three decades of experience as an entrepreneur, Eve is not only a New York Times Best Selling Author, Speaker, and Strategist but has also earned accolades for her contributions to diversity, marketing, and management. Her accomplishments include recognition for outstanding company culture, being among the best places to work, and receiving awards for women-owned businesses.

 

Residing in Rochester, MN, Eve shares her life with her husband, Levi, their 17-year-old daughter, Luna, and their lovable mutt, Holly. Currently, Levi is undertaking a complete rebuild of their camper van, a vehicle that has taken them on memorable journeys from San Antonio, Texas, all the way to the stunning landscapes of Banff in Canada.

Brooke Samuelson

Outreach & Communication Director
​Brooke Samuelson is a seasoned professional with a diverse background in telecommunications and software-as-a-service (SaaS) industries. With over 18 years of experience at Wireless World Verizon, She advanced her career to the position of District Manager. She successfully managed multiple locations in SE MN & western WI, consistently surpassing sales targets. Throughout her tenure, Brooke refined her leadership, coaching, and communication skills, fostering robust connections with both her team and clients.
 

Upon departing Verizon,​ ​Brooke transitioned to the SaaS industry as ​the Director of Customer Success. ​She was responsible for​ ​developing processes to improve client outcomes, ​strategic thinking, and implementation​. She led a team of customer success and support managers​. Built strong relationships​ with clients ​to ensure their satisfaction throughout the entire customer lifecycle.​
 
 
Brooke's all about outdoor fun with her family, no matter the season. She's a big animal lover and gets a kick out of giving old furniture a new lease on life through refurbishing.

James Clinton

E1 Navigator
With partnership development, fundraising, and program implementation experience in small and large nonprofits, higher education, and community-based organizations, James brings expertise and enthusiasm to Red Wing Ignite as E1 Navigator. He works with 16 member organizations across the 11 county southeastern Minnesota region to improve outcomes for small business owners and entrepreneurs by boosting the capacity of the incredible resources in southeastern Minnesota through collaboration and partnership.

A graduate of Winona State University and the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, James has had the opportunity to work for several Red Wing-based organizations, including serving as Project Director for Water/Ways, a Smithsonian exhibit that was brought to the Goodhue County Historical Society. Through authentic partnership building, he has also secured over $3M in funding through grants and individual philanthropy, including awards from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, and the National Science Foundation.

James is thrilled to have the opportunity to serve southeastern Minnesota, the place he and his wife call home. Outside of work, James enjoys taking his beagle for long walks, keeping his cat from destroying the furniture, and playing drums in local band Sheep For Wheat.

Burke Murphy

Strategic Initiatives and Development
Burke brings years of experience in organizing and implementing regional economic competitiveness initiatives. Her emphasis has been in building partnerships across systems of the public and private sectors to deliver relevant education, training, and workforce development opportunities. Burke has been working with RWI since 2017, providing strategic support and technical assistance, including grant development and writing to secure the MN Department of Labor and Industry Youth Skills Training grants and the EDA I6 Challenge grant to support SE Minnesota's Regional Innovation Cluster. Burke is the Workforce Lead for this initiative.

Randii Waddell

Project Manager
Randii brings over 23 years of experience leading complex system implementations, driving process improvements, and launching new products to Red Wing Ignite. Her focus has been in supply chain and manufacturing, but she enjoys working across all functions of the business. Randii has made Lunchables, sliced Oscar Mayer cold cuts, ate cereal hot off the assembly line, assembled robots that build fireplaces, helped design board games, and made Red Wing boots. Her super power listening to her customers' needs to design simple solutions that meet them where they are at on their personal journey. Randii is also an entrepreneur! In August, 2019, she launched her first business, SawRise Woodworks & Arts LLC. Randii teaches woodworking classes to adults and youth out of her shop in downtown Red Wing; in addition to selling pieces of wood art out of local stores in the area. The highlight of every year is the annual Summer Woodworking Camp she leads in the Red Wing Makerspace - nothing beats witnessing a young child transforming their terrified tears into pure confidence while using a power tool!In 2022, Randii wanted to do more with her community and started a consulting business that focuses on helping small businesses simplify their daily processes. She is very excited to bring her experiences as an entrepreneur and logistical guru to the Entrepreneurial Specialist role where she will help ensure new businesses get connected to the resources they need.

Jocelyn Pyle

Program and Operations Assistant

Jocelyn's 10+ years of experience in customer-based jobs, her love for Google Suites, and an associate's degree in Business Management have led her to Red Wing Ignite, where she utilizes her skills every day as an Entrepreneur Coordinator.
 
She and her family are originally from Ellsworth, WI, but moved to Bigfork, MT when she was about ten. From there, she spent nearly seven years in the Big Sky Country before returning to her hometown in Ellsworth, WI. After moving back to her hometown, she met her husband Benjamin, and they currently live in Ellsworth, WI, with their five animals (3 dogs and 2 cats).
 
Jocelyn and her husband love going on adventures playing board games and Mario Kart on the Nintendo Switch. Their three dogs and two cats animals are their pride and joy: Tillie (Basset Hound), Zoey (Siberian Husky), Barrett (Cocker Spaniel), Roman (Tabby Cat), and Bob (Manx).

Ellen Hutchinson

Director of Finance

Let’s do the boring part first. I am the accountant for Red Wing Ignite. I have been in this line of work for over 30 years with much of my focus on non-profits. I fell into this line of work because I was a theatre arts major and desperately wanted to live in New York City. I found a job with the Charles Reinhart
Management/American Dance Festival as the assistant to the finance director and here I am! I found I had an aptitude for numbers but I still needed to feed my soul.

 

My focus in school was dance and I love to move. When I stopped dancing I fell into the aerobics craze. Years later I became a personal trainer and fitness coach. My love is working with people who have movement impairments due to injury, sickness or other factors and those who are just starting out. Helping people feel
better, move better and improve their lifestyle is so essential to my core belief that attitude and lifestyle will get you through just about anything. As an eight year cancer survivor I have lived this belief.

 

My other passion is working with my hands, be it my artwork, sewing, or building
a house. Yes, we built our dome although we will never be finished. I have lived in Red Wing for 28 years with my husband Rich Huelskamp and our two beagles Moose and Squirrel (aka Becka).

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