BMAC Hires Garbe Reser as Interim CEO

WALLA WALLA—The board of directors for Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC) is pleased to announce the hire of Danielle Garbe Reser as Interim CEO, effective Monday, December 5, 2022.

“We are delighted to have Danielle joining our team to bring steady leadership through this time of transition for BMAC. As the former CEO of Sherwood Trust, Danielle has been a long-time partner of BMAC and shares our deep commitment to our mission of alleviating poverty,” said board chair Amie Peterson. “On behalf of the board, I also want to thank Rick Claridge for serving as acting CEO and for his continued leadership at BMAC in the critical role of CFO. We appreciate all of the BMAC staff members and are grateful for their hard work to serve our region.”

Garbe Reser will serve as interim for at least four months to allow the board time to conduct a full search for a permanent CEO. Garbe Reser stated, “I am honored by the trust and confidence placed in me by the BMAC board and look forward to supporting the staff and board through this leadership transition. I’ve enjoyed partnering with BMAC in the past and appreciate the critical role BMAC plays in our region. Our team will continue to work with area partners to ensure BMAC’s programs continue to support our neighbors, provide opportunities, and transform people’s lives.”

Originally from Moses Lake, Washington, Garbe Reser is a Whitman College graduate who returned to Walla Walla in 2015 to serve as CEO of Sherwood Trust. During her tenure from 2015-2020, Garbe Reser oversaw the private foundation’s annual grantmaking across Walla Walla, Columbia, and Umatilla Counties, including grants for BMAC’s Commitment to Community program and capital projects with The Hub and the new BMAC office. From 2001- 2015, she served as a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State with diplomatic assignments at the U.S. Embassies in Jakarta and Beirut and postings at the State Department, U.S. Senate, U.S. Department of Energy, and National Security Council at the White House. She has a master’s in public administration from Columbia University. From 2021-2022 Danielle chaired Whitman College’s presidential search committee and continues to serve as a Whitman College trustee and as a board member for Rural Development Initiatives, a nonprofit supporting rural economic development in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. She and her husband, Todd Reser, make their home on the family’s farm in Walla Walla County.

BMAC is a nonprofit community action partnership serving Walla Walla, Columbia, and Garfield counties since 1967. BMAC announced the departure of former CEO Cate Daniels on November 23, 2022.