Team
Stacy Nimmo
About Stacy
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
About Christine
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
About Shannan
Shannan holds a Bachelors of Art degree in Psychology and an Interior Design degree.
Ben Koppel
About Ben
Eve Mayer
About Eve
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
About Brooke
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.
James Clinton
About James
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
About Burke
Randii Waddell
About Randii
Ellen Hutchinson
About Ellen
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).
Jocelyn Pyle
Admin Coordinator
About Jocelyn
Denise Heckel
Community Manager
About Denise
Valerie Lockhart
Director of Communications and Outreach