Meet the GOALS Board of Directors

Listed in alphabetical order by last name

Dr. Michael Cavanaugh (Board Chairperson)

Background: I grew up in Topeka, KS, but my heart was always in Colorado. I completed my DVM degree at Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine. I practiced small animal medicine, working for others for 5 years and owning my own animal hospital for almost 10 years. I then spent 14 years working in the animal pharmaceutical industry prior to becoming CEO of the American Animal Hospital Association, a position I held for 10.5 years. I now works as a consultant in the animal health industry. I'm an avid outdoorsman with a passion for white water kayaking and rafting. I live in the mountains near Conifer, CO with my wife of 40 years, Beth, and 2 border collies named Seamus and Holly. We have 2 grown children of whom we're very proud, Caitlyn and Kevin.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: My many years of experience as an entrepreneur and in the corporate world followed by over 10 years running a large non-profit organization gives me a very broad perspective when approaching challenges and problems. I've faced many challenges through it all and now have the ability to contribute learnings from those experiences. I have a great deal of leadership experience to share and believe in clear, concise communication and transparency in all organizations.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: Participating in GOALS trips as an adult leader in the past allowed me to witness firsthand the impact that time on the river has on young people. Providing such a wonderful growth opportunity at pivotat times in a person's life is priceless. I also think creating passion for wild rivers and the backcountry in others is very important to the future of planet earth. I also had the opportunity to join a GOALS trip to Chile in 2019 and was immersed in the phenomenal culture and the amazing Rio Futaleufu. The experience was truly life-changing and an amazing growth opportunity.

Greg Harrington

Background: I grew up in southern California and went to college at California State University Long Beach. The highlight of my college experience was as a being a four-year oarsman on the rowing team! I’ve spent my career working in the construction equipment rental industry. I’ve worked at large national companies, as well as owning Contractors Equipment Center - a Denver-based company that we sold in 2019.

As a typical over-committed business owner, I quickly learned how important natural places were to me, my friends, and my family. Spending time in the wild creates balance and perspective, that was hard to tap into in my hectic daily life. For me, Personal reflection has always come more easily when I’m camping, riding a mountain bike, or floating down a river. The personal growth and community that people can build when they are exposed to wide-open spaces is invaluable, and access is lacking for today’s youth.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: I am optimistic that my lack of experience in the non-profit or outdoor industry will be secondary to the knowledge I have building profit-based businesses quickly, safely & efficiently. I want to bring those skills to GOALS so the organization can flourish, and positively impact more young people.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: Access, appreciation, and experience in wild places builds a strong foundation for our children’s future success. Many of us take advantage of the level of comfort we have when we’re in natural places, based on the fact that it was ingrained into us at an early age. GOALS not only introduces kids to the outdoors it teaches them valuable skills that transfer to everyday life.

Geoff Holmes

Background: Bitten by the rafting bug, I spent my 20's leading river trips in several parts of the world, working with amazing teams on wild rivers. But increasingly, I could see the trouble these wild places were in due to climate change, so decided to leave for a career in the field of carbon removal, where I've spend the past dozen years building technology and business models to tackle the challenge.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: I bring my passion for the kinds of experiences that people can have when out of their comfort zone and in the wild outdoors, and a lot of hard lessons learned from helping to run and build a small company from scratch that now has over 100 employees.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: To me the value of GOALS is self evident; take today's youth out of their comfort zones and routines, give them a chance to disconnect from the online world and instead connect with one another and with wild places, and do all this to the backdrop of wild places and outdoor challenges that build confidence! What could possibly be more in need in today's hyper-connected world?

Sylvia Min-McCray (Board Secretary)

Background: I am from the Chicagoland area, with the majority of my time spent in bustling cities and suburbs. I have it as a personal value of mine to make sure to prioritize time to disconnect and appreciate the world outside of big city life.  My husband and I love to explore new places and prioritize making time for the outdoors to pause and reflect on the more beautiful and important things that the rest of the world has to offer.

Professionally, I bring 10 years of experience in helping organizations to meet their large-scale change objectives, while emphasizing the overall people experience and impacts. Though I have had various industry experiences, I am currently a Manager of Organization Transformation and Change with Ernst & Young, LLC, with a primary focus on the financial services industry.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: My professional and personal passion is all about making a positive impact through the most powerful resources we have – people and use of self. To apply this passion towards positively impacting individual lives and wildlife through GOALS is an opportunity that I cannot pass up!

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: What resonates with me most about GOALS is the power it has in helping to develop a stronger sense of resilience, purpose, confidence, and clarity in its participants. Where I have had many fortunate opportunities in my life, I have also had many personal struggles navigating my own personal identity and understanding where I belong. Regardless of background, there is no denying that GOALS is necessary.

Al Mussman

Background: As a child, my parents sent me to camp for 7 weeks in 3 summers in Northern Michigan, a great gift of privilege I received in formative years. My last year there, at 13, I spent about half my nights in the woods on hike/canoe trips. I LOVED IT. The other great gift was moving us, a few years later, from the suburbs and the country club scene to a farm and the ‘put-up-hay-and-shovel-manure-12-hours-a-day” scene. I loved that too. As a grown up (if it can be assumed I have achieved such “status”), I have 25+ years combined experience as a restaurant chain franchisee and franchisor, and 25+ years combined experience in non-profits as a volunteer, and board member.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: Experience in 3 areas. 1) almost 40 years as an off-road/adventure race participant/organizer, coach, instructor, and general outdoor-fun-haver with an emphasis on human powered endurance. 2) as a donor advisor of 5% of the value of a small fund initiated by my parents. 3) as a selector of grantees in a recurring grant I designed with our local community foundation that supports sustainability, human resources, (PEOPLE who do the work in non-profits), and overhead generally. (see Dan Pallotta, “The Way We Think About Charity Is Dead Wrong.”)

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: I have lived it. After spending about 30 minutes in the parking lot with middle schoolers getting gear loaded for a GOALS trip (my first, and the second or third for at least 2/3 of them), I found myself thinking, “Whatever these kids have going for them, I want some. I’m pretty sure my wife and my employees would appreciate it if I acted a little more like these kids.” By the end of the trip I was absolutely sure. Brett has lead GOALS to huge success by virtue of his incredible talent, hard work, and endurance. I am honored to be involved in helping GOALS become more sustainable, with a broader and deeper reach.

Christa Nenaber

Background: Growing up in Central Illinois most of my outdoor experiences were on a bike around my neighborhood or climbing trees in the park. I distinctly remember the first family camping trip to a river in Missouri and my heart instantly knew this was my happy place. At a young age, I realized disconnecting and spending time outside with those I love was the best way for me to recharge. Since moving to Colorado 20 years ago, I have only deepened the love and desire to play outside as much as possible.

I am passionate about supporting others to be outside and having the opportunity to connect with something bigger and finding places which are important and magical to them. 

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: I bring a joyful but grounded perspective around leadership, business and team development. My different life experiences have allowed me to be comfortable with not following the rules and thinking outside the box, which I feel is important for any organization to be okay with doing.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: I have had the opportunity to be in wild places and experienced how this changes our lives. I am also a bigger believe of coaching and developing other, especially youth, in leadership and emotional intelligence. When we are outside on a river, all the distractions melt away and help to facilitate a perfect place for this to be fostered.

Tom O’Connor

Background: I grew up in Momence, Illinois about an hour south of Chicago. After graduating from Illinois State University in 1991 with a degree in PE & no job opportunities, I decided to visit Colorado for a couple of weeks and fell in love. My summer were spent on a lake in Northern Wisconsin, but outside a couple of float trips on inner tubes down the Kankakee River, I never really understood how magnetic rivers could be. Nor did I understand the lessons I could learn from them. I experienced my first GOALS trip with my son Patrick in 2013 & have enjoyed 11 more trips with kids from all over the Denver metro area, including 4 with my daughter Sunna. I owned a Kids Adventures for 15 years where we served kids and families in before & after school and during the summers. I’m currently the COO for the Child Care Success Company in Carbondale, CO. I reside in Littleton, CO with my wife of 20 years, Dara & have 4 children – Thomas Jr (never been on a river), Patrick (4 GOALS trips), Sunna (5 GOALS trips) & Ben (waiting to go on his 1st trip)

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: When I was first introduced to river rafting & GOALS in 2013, I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting into. I had vast experience with kids in school settings, but not outdoors. I went from running around with kids every day to running a business with 40+ locations and 130+ employees. Like a river, my life became a series of calm, crazy & some going backwards. The business, life & GOALS experiences I own give me the opportunity help GOALS continue to thrive for a generation of kids who need calm now more than ever. I love to: Connect. Educate. Inspire.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: I was in a place in my life in 2013 where I was looking for personal transformation. Really looking and trying to learn who I was, not who I thought others wanted me to be. Sleeping under a billion stars & for the first time in years not being attached to a cellphone or computer, I had the opportunity to really just be. I have to admit it was pretty uncomfortable. GOALS & the river has allowed me to connect to me and with my kids on a level that I never would have imagined. To share my “trip” on and off the river with kids, families and colleagues in a vulnerable manner is something I just don’t think would have been possible without GOALS. And of course, my clock is always set to 11.05.

Adam Odoski (Board Vice-Chairperson)

Background: Originally from Georgia but growing up in the mountains of Western North Carolina learning to kayak, backpack and adventure outside I knew from a young age that the west was calling. I’ve lived in Colorado for 26 years and loved every minute. I’m a father, husband, small business entrepreneur, ultra-endurance athlete, and explorer of anything rivers. I’ve started, operated and transitioned 5 different businesses located in 3 different countries. I now operate a business in the Coaching/Consulting world working with people and businesses who desire to show up as their best selves living a fulfilling life every day.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: Through many years of entrepreneurship I believe that anything is possible and adversity breeds wisdom. I bring the knowledge shared with me and the hard fought knowledge learned through experience in life and business offering a unique approach to challenge and discovery. Many years of building, leading, following and working alongside great teams has built a foundation of leadership and operational knowledge to share and I stongly believe that together we can accomplish the extraordinary.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: When kids decide to join a GOALS expedition they are deciding to step outside their comfort zone. They are different people on day 1 of the trip then they are on day 7. The kids take away a new sense of empowerment, connection, and camaraderie that can only be found with the growth-focused approach GOALS guides kids through in our most wild natural places. GOALS is changing the world one kid and one river day at a time.

Steve Welch

Background: Most relevant: Father of two sons who “grew up” on the river. Additionally relevant: 35 years as General Manager of ARTA River Trips, a non-profit commercial whitewater rafting outfitter offering guided adventures on 14 majestic rivers in the western United States. Not relevant: Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of California at Davis.

This is what I am proud to bring to the board: Perspective, experience, creativity, and a resilient blend of unvarnished reality and blind optimism.

The GOALS mission resonates with me because: I know how transformative a river trip can be and I’ve seen how the GOALS program enhances that transformation for young adults. I think it is important to our society and our planet for young people to connect with themselves, their peers, and the natural world around them. I want to give back to others what the river and Mother Nature have given to me and my family.