Meet Your Government: Summer Frederick

 Meet your government: Summer Frederick

Project Manager, Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

I was born in Lake Forest, IL, and raised in Annandale, VA

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

I moved here July of 1997 to finish my undergraduate degree at UVA

What neighborhood do you live in now?

Belmont!

Family (spouse, kids, etc)?

Parents and extended family scattered near and far.

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I started college at West Virginia Wesleyan College, left after two-and-a-half years, took a good bit of a break from higher education, then returned and graduated from UVA.

Twice - 1999 BA, and 2005 MUEP

What were you doing before coming to the TJPDC?

I worked for Albemarle County as a Senior Planner of Current Development. The "Current Development" division no longer exists. The Community Development Department has changed so now all long range planning and development review is under the "Planning Services" division.

Your job title is Project Manager for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission - what, in your own words, would you say you do?

I keep the Livable Communities Project moving forward, making sure all the various pieces and parts are working together as they should.

Meet Your Government: Mark Graham

 Meet your government: Mark Graham

Director of Community Development of Albemarle County

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

Born in Oakland, California (one of the first Kaiser Permanente babies) and raised in La Grange, Texas (home of the Chicken Ranch for those who know Texas), first came to Virginia for grad school and loved it. I seem to have kept moving from the left to the right throughout my life.    

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

Moved to Albemarle in 1999 from Nashville.  My wife and I went to grad school at Virginia Tech, fell in love with the mountains, and when an opportunity arose to get back to this part of Virginia, we jumped. 

What neighborhood do you live in now?

Ivy and love it.

Family (spouse, kids, etc)?

Wife of 32 years, Ann, statistician working in pharmaceutical research. Adult daughter, Scout, who lives in Austin. Adult son, Kyle, proudly serving in the Old Guard of the U.S. Army.

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin in 1979 (3^rd generation U.T. grad);  M.B.A. from Virginia Tech in 1986.

What were you doing before coming to the County?

Working as an engineering consultant in Nashville, Tennessee, primarily in water resources.

Meet Your Government: Mary Joy Scala

Meet your government: Mary Joy Scala 

Preservation and Design Planner, City of Charlottesville

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

Born in Trenton, NJ but grew up in a historic  house on the main street of a small town in Yardley, Pennsylvania.

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

To attend UVA. I remember first arriving via Rt. 22/231 and thought it was beautiful. Having grown up between New York and Philadelphia, I was intrigued by the rural mailboxes and gravel roads.

What neighborhood do you live in now?

Fry’s Spring Neighborhood. I like living in a historic neighborhood but my house is not historic. My front door is painted Lime Pop.

Family (spouse, kids, etc)?

I adore my two wonderful and creative sons and equally fabulous daughters-in-law who live in Alexandria and in the Bronx. I will become Abuela Mary Joy in a couple weeks!

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I studied architecture at UVA and graduated with a Masters in Planning the same year as Ralph Sampson. Which was lucky because, even though it was pouring rain, I got to graduate on the lawn. My undergraduate degree is in Studio Art from Mary Washington.

What were you doing before coming to the City?

I was Executive Director at Valley Conservation Council, http://valleyconservation.org/ a non-profit in Staunton, VA.  It’s a great organization that protects farmland in 11 Shenandoah Valley counties and I still support their efforts.

Meet Your Government: Claudette Grant

Meet Your Government: Claudette Grant
Senior Planner, Albemarle County

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

My parents migrated to the United States from the island of Jamaica. For a variety of reasons they decided to settle in Hartford, Connecticut, which is where I was born and raised. 

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

I came to Charlottesville a little over twenty years ago to attend graduate school at UVA. Like so many other residents, I fell in love with Charlottesville and Virginia and did not leave.

What neighborhood do you live in now?

I live in the Locust Grove neighborhood in the City.

Family (spouse, kids, etc)?

I am married to Juandiego Wade, whom I met in graduate school and we have a 9 year old daughter, Gabriella.

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I went to the University of Connecticut for undergraduate school and the University of Virginia for graduate school.

What were you doing before coming to the County?

My work background is one in which I have worked with every form of government from the federal, state and local level. Prior to working for Albemarle County, I worked for the City of Charlottesville, administering the Community Development Block Grant program and as a planner. My work experience has not always been with government bodies, though. After graduating from UVA I worked for a non-profit agency in Richmond as a housing counselor.

Meet Your Government: Wayne Cilimberg

Meet Your Government:
Wayne Cilimberg
Director of Planning, Albemarle County

Where were you born (and raised, if different?)

Born and raised in Richmond.  I’ve lived in Virginia all my life.

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

Moved from Culpeper in 1989, but I had actually been commuting from there since I started with the County Department of Planning and Community Development in 1986.  Previously worked for the Rappahannock-Rapidan Planning District Commission in Culpeper.

What neighborhood do you live in now?

Locust Grove in the city.

Family?

Wife Lee, step daughter Jessie, step son Devin, sons Justin and Jared.  We’re empty nesters now except for Tilly our 17 year old dog!

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

Graduated twice from “that other school”, Virginia Tech; BA Urban Affairs in 1976 and Masters in Urban and Regional Planning in 1981.

What were you doing before coming to the County?

Before government (and grad school) I worked for a Savings and Loan in Richmond for 3 years during the 70’s.  I ended up managing a branch of Virginia First S&L with the bulk of my work being in mortgage lending.  In the very conservative lending environment of those times, someone in the modern day mortgage lending business would probably consider what we did back then to be prehistoric!

Meet Your Government: Pamela Murray

Meet Your Government: Pamela Murray
Engineering Draftsman, Neighborhood Development Services,
City of Charlottesville

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in Philadelphia, and when it was time for school my parents moved to the suburb of Gladwyne. I have an older brother and 2 younger sisters. 

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I attended Harcum College in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. At that time it was a junior college – I studied liberal arts. If I had graduated, it would have been in 1969. I stayed in the area and worked in retail stores and a few restaurants, did some traveling and then decided to move to Columbia, South Carolina in 1974. 

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

I stayed in South Carolina for 5 years and learned how to “draft” shop drawings for a subcontracting firm doing roof decks and acoustical ceilings. While in Columbia, I met some folks that lived in Charlottesville and I would come up here for various weekend parties. Virginia was much closer to my family in Pennsylvania, South Carolina was a little too hot, so, I decided to move here in 1979. 

What neighborhood do you live in now? Any family?

My husband (who I met at one of those various weekend parties!) and I got married in 1983, lived in a house on Belmont Avenue, then moved to Oxford Road. When our children were old enough for school, we moved to Earlysville.  My husband, Drew, was a contractor for a number of years. After he left that business he joined his brother in the compost/mulch business. Our son, Derek, lives in Nashville and teaches special education in an elementary school, and our daughter, Hilary, lives in Northern Virginia and works as an event planner for a business consulting firm. 

Meet Your Government: Bill Letteri

 

Meet Your Government: Bill Letteri
Assistant County Executive, Albemarle County 

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

I was born in Brooklyn, New York but moved at an early age to the northern, more rural part of upstate New York to a small town called Clinton Corners which is about 30 miles from Poughkeepsie.

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

While attending college in upstate New York, I married my high school sweetheart Nancy and, in addition to “comfort, love and honor her as long as we both shall live”, I vowed that we would move to Charlottesville so she could complete her undergraduate degree at UVA.  As seems typical of many residents of Albemarle and Charlottesville, we moved here, loved it and never left.  However, in the interest of full disclosure, we did take a brief hiatus for about two and a half years and moved to Chapel Hill where I served as Public Works Director, but the offer to return to Albemarle County was just too compelling to turn down.  

What neighborhood do you live in now?

My family and I reside in the Western part of Albemarle County near Crozet.

Family?

I am very happily married to my wonderful wife Nancy and we will be celebrating our 34th anniversary this coming August.  We are fortunate to have two beautiful children, Cora who is just now completing her first year of studies at JMU and Benjamin who is a rising 8th grader at Henley. 

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I completed my undergraduate degree at Cornell University (1980) and later completed my MBA at JMU in May of 2001. 

Meet Your Government: Donovan Branche

Donovan Branche  

Acting City Engineer, City of Charlottesville

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

I was raised in Orange, VA. 

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

I came to Charlottesville in 2008 after working in Washington, DC and Harrisonburg, VA. It's good to be back home and with my family.

What neighborhood do you live in now?

I live in Ruckersville, VA.

Family (spouse, kids, etc)?

I am married to a handsome Englishman, I have 2 children, 3 dogs, 1 cat and 1 rat. I've tried (unsuccessfully) to convince my husband that we need chickens and a goat.

Meet Your Government: Dan Eggleston

Dan Eggleston

 

Fire Rescue Chief,
Albemarle County

Where were you born (and raised, if different)?

 I was born in Richmond, Virginia and grew up in Chesterfield County.

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

 I was always drawn to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area for the many outdoor opportunities and the various attractions the area has to offer. I first found out about the Fire Rescue Chief position while attending the Senior Executive Institute at the University in 2001, so I jumped at the chance to apply. One thing led to another, and I accepted the job and moved to the area in 2002.

What neighborhood do you live in now?

I was fortunate to meet a local volunteer fire fighter and realtor, D.B. Sandridge, soon after moving to Albemarle and D.B. convinced me to move to wonderful Crozet. Actually, it was the ride out 250 west heading towards Crozet – the view sold me right away. 

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I received my undergraduate degree in Business from Averett University and graduate degree in emergency management from the University of Richmond.

Meet Your Government: Ryan Davidson

Ryan Davidson

Budget and Management Analyst
City of Charlottesville

Where were you born (and raised, if different?)

I was born in Lynchburg, VA and grew up right outside of Lynchburg in a place called Goode, VA.

When and why did you move to the Charlottesville/Albemarle area?

I moved to Charlottesville in the Spring of 2004. I was finishing up grad school, looking for an internship or job and was offered an internship with the City so I moved here from Richmond.

What neighborhood do you live in now?

I live in the County a couple of miles outside of town, not really in a neighborhood though.

Family (spouse, kids, etc)?

I have been married for almost 6 years now to my wife Robye. We have a son named Eli and a dog named Betty.

What is your alma mater and when did you graduate?

I got my Bachelors from JMU in 2000 and my Masters in Public Administration from VCU in 2004.

What were you doing before coming to the work for the county?

This is actually my first career-oriented job out of college. Prior to this job I was living in Richmond and working my way through grad school at the Home Depot. And while I was in college and even high school I worked at a country club in Lynchburg doing the grounds maintenance for the golf course.