Board of Directors Biographies
Cal McKnight has been working and fully immersed in the Outdoor Industry since 2002. She has primarily worked for non-profits such as the YMCA and Outward Bound as an Instructor, manager, and staff mentor. Her most recent positions have been the Assistant Patrol Director of Mt Abram Ski area in Maine, as well as the Director of Operations for the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School in Maine. Originally hailing from Northern Florida, but currently owning a home in Western Maine, Cal enjoys the simplicity of nature and the juxtaposition between mountain and water activities. She has a B.S. in Recreation Programming from the University of Florida and is currently pursuing her MBA in Sustainability Leadership at Prescott College. Cal is inspired by working with youth and adults alike, learning about how to be a better ally for Social Justice, and studying ways to create Climate Resilient communities. In her off-time, she can be found human powering herself uphill by hiking or skinning, and will dip her toe into just about any swimming hole she can find! She would gladly take anyone up on a mountain bike or paddle as well. cal@outdoorswoman.org.
C. J. King is a professional writer for 35 years, C.J. serves as Grant Writer and Marketing Assistant for Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend, Vermont. Her publications include numerous articles in newspapers and magazines, including Vermont Magazine, Stratton Magazine, Catholic Digest, and New Orleans Magazine. She is the author of Four Marys and a Jessie: The Story of the Lincoln Women, published in 2005. A resident of Jamaica, VT and a native Hoosier, she holds a B.A. in journalism from Ball State University and an M.F.A. in writing from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. C.J. has always loved camping and the outdoors. She had no exposure to hunting while growing up but took the Hunter Safety course in 2010 and has participated in every deer rifle season since. In 2015, she had a successful moose hunt and recently, she took up archery. She has attended fall and winter VOW Camps for the past several years. cj@outdoorswoman.org.
Robin Nesbeda has served on the VOW Board of Directors since 2020. She specializes in rescue and pre-hospital emergency medicine in remote environments. She currently works as a fulltime ski patroller, teaches wilderness medicine, is a member of a backcountry search and rescue team, and is a federal disaster responder. She has served as the health and safety officer for environmental field studies in the US and aboard, worked on tall ships, and traveled the world. She has a B.A. in Geology from Colby College and a M.S. in Disaster Science from University of Richmond. When not in her gardens, she enjoys backpacking in the summer, backcountry skiing in the winter, and trail running during any season. She is a perpetual-beginner whitewater kayaker and currently learning to mountain bike. She lives in the mountains of western Maine with a collection of rescued pets. robin@outdoorswoman.org.
Sawyer M.L. Alberi, Ed.D brings over 20 years of leadership and nine years working with non-profit organizations to Vermont Outdoors Woman. A retired veteran of the U.S. Military, Sawyer was deployed to Iraq as a flight medic and again to Afghanistan where she ran the largest aid station in the region and was tasked with validating the mission of women engaging women for future dynamic battlefields. While her academic specialty is Leadership Education in Media and Gender studies, Sawyer teaches as part time faculty for Norwich University in the behavioral sciences. Sawyer also has designed and teaches many of the courses in the Wellness and Alternative Medicine Degree at Northern Vermont University. Sawyer has been teaching wilderness, remote, travel, and conflict medicine for the past 16 years. Sawyer enjoys snowshoeing all winter long, deer hunting in every season, and summers at the lake. In her spare time, Sawyer and her family breed Bernese Mountain Dogs. treasurer@outdoorswoman.org.
C. J. King is a professional writer for 35 years, C.J. serves as Grant Writer and Marketing Assistant for Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend, Vermont. Her publications include numerous articles in newspapers and magazines, including Vermont Magazine, Stratton Magazine, Catholic Digest, and New Orleans Magazine. She is the author of Four Marys and a Jessie: The Story of the Lincoln Women, published in 2005. A resident of Jamaica, VT and a native Hoosier, she holds a B.A. in journalism from Ball State University and an M.F.A. in writing from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. C.J. has always loved camping and the outdoors. She had no exposure to hunting while growing up but took the Hunter Safety course in 2010 and has participated in every deer rifle season since. In 2015, she had a successful moose hunt and recently, she took up archery. She has attended fall and winter VOW Camps for the past several years. cj@outdoorswoman.org.
Robin Nesbeda has served on the VOW Board of Directors since 2020. She specializes in rescue and pre-hospital emergency medicine in remote environments. She currently works as a fulltime ski patroller, teaches wilderness medicine, is a member of a backcountry search and rescue team, and is a federal disaster responder. She has served as the health and safety officer for environmental field studies in the US and aboard, worked on tall ships, and traveled the world. She has a B.A. in Geology from Colby College and a M.S. in Disaster Science from University of Richmond. When not in her gardens, she enjoys backpacking in the summer, backcountry skiing in the winter, and trail running during any season. She is a perpetual-beginner whitewater kayaker and currently learning to mountain bike. She lives in the mountains of western Maine with a collection of rescued pets. robin@outdoorswoman.org.
Sawyer M.L. Alberi, Ed.D brings over 20 years of leadership and nine years working with non-profit organizations to Vermont Outdoors Woman. A retired veteran of the U.S. Military, Sawyer was deployed to Iraq as a flight medic and again to Afghanistan where she ran the largest aid station in the region and was tasked with validating the mission of women engaging women for future dynamic battlefields. While her academic specialty is Leadership Education in Media and Gender studies, Sawyer teaches as part time faculty for Norwich University in the behavioral sciences. Sawyer also has designed and teaches many of the courses in the Wellness and Alternative Medicine Degree at Northern Vermont University. Sawyer has been teaching wilderness, remote, travel, and conflict medicine for the past 16 years. Sawyer enjoys snowshoeing all winter long, deer hunting in every season, and summers at the lake. In her spare time, Sawyer and her family breed Bernese Mountain Dogs. treasurer@outdoorswoman.org.