About Us

The McKenzie Community Development Corporation

The McKenzie Community Development Corporation began wildfire response and recovery work literally the day after Labor Day and have been working tirelessly in the months since to help with the response, recovery, and rebuilding efforts.

The Board of Directors of McKenzie Community Development Corporation is made up entirely of volunteer McKenzie residents. The CDC also provides a Community Taskforce made up of local residents supporting the community on the ground and online. The Board has also just announced some changes to member’s roles to better meet the evolving needs of our community as we continue to recover and rebuild.

The Board

Jeffry Dehne

President

About

Jeff is a life-long McKenzie resident who resides on a family farm started generations ago. After military service in the 1970’s Jeff returned to the McKenzie to continue the work on the farm, and volunteer in the Valley. For many years and until very recently Jeff led the Walterville Grange. Currently, he is President of the McKenzie CDC and serves on the Tourism Committee of the McKenzie Chamber of Commerce.

Madison Kleiner

Secretary

About

Madison operates and manages the McKenzie General Store and the Obsidian Grill, a local family business. After graduating she moved to McKenzie Bridge to have a lifestyle full of intention and connection. Madison created and managed the grassroots organization of the Blue River Relief Center, located at the McKenzie School. The Relief Center operated for more than four months providing food, clothing, water, and other essentials for families devastated by Holiday Farm.

Jane Wilson

Treasurer

About

Jane is our newest member and has taken over as Treasurer from Larry Brown.

Chris LaVoie

Director

About

Chris owns and operates McKenzie Mountain Resort in Blue River, most of which was destroyed by the wildfire. Chris has been on the CDC Board for many years lending his support to promote the economy, enhance the environment, and support McKenzie Communities. Chris’s business acumen and perspective as a long-term resident are invaluable to the reconstruction discussions and deliberations.

Carol Tannenbaum

Director

About

Carol is a retired research scientist. In retirement, Carol owns and operates McKenzie River Lavender in Walterville. Each summer during the lavender bloom she welcomes many visitors to her farm for a festival. Through her farm Carol has been involved in the McKenzie tourism for many years. She is current Chair of the McKenzie Chamber Tourism Committee, serves on the Travel Lane County Board and works in support of outdoor recreation and tourism in the Valley.

Deborah Blair

Director

About

Deborah is a resident of the McKenzie Valley and commutes from Leaburg to Eugene for work.

Tom Atkinson

Digital Communications Manager

About

Apart from being the resident Englishman on the river Tom is an experienced film, television and digital content producer working with clients from start-ups and large international corporations to global brands.
Recently settled in Blue River Tom runs the CDC’s mckenzierecovery.org website and produces video and photography showcasing the incredible businesses and people who make the McKenzie tick.

Rebuild Bigger & Better!

“Rebuilding bigger, better for the kids, giving them something to hold on to for good. Our timeframe for that is a year or two, hopefully, sooner, but there’s a lot of cleanup to be done and we’re not going to jump ahead and leave our neighbors behind. We don’t want to rebuild our house and see someone next door that still has their pile of ash.”

Tiffany Lemmerz

Blue River #McKenzieStrong

More Businesses Upriver

“I think in the process of rebuilding it would be nice to have a lot more small local businesses drawing more people up the river. I’d like to see more options for food and entertainment, we want to see more businesses up the river supporting each other, purchasing each other’s products to help grow those businesses and keep people working up there.”

Brian Jackson

Honey Paddle Farm
#McKenzieStrong

I See Opportunity

“I think the river community will rebuild and from what I see I think it’s going to rebuild stronger. It’s something that I’d love to be there to see and be a part of. I see a lot of opportunity right now. I see a space for people to not only rebuild but to improve and add on. I’d like to see people build back how they wanted Blue River to be but couldn’t before the fire.”

Sarah Slowick

Serendipity Coffee
#McKenzieStrong