Advisory Council
Minty Conant
Minty, a CPA and MBA, has experience nationally and internationally with managing manufacturing operations, specializing in primary team development during growth, plant consolidations, and turn-arounds. In the Northeast Kingdom, she has been Operations Manager of Lydall Thermal Acoustical and Chief Financial Officer of Engineered Thermal Systems, Inc. She is currently Chief Financial Officer of Caledonia Spirits and head of Aminta K. Conant, Consulting, and serves on the boards of Community National Bank, and the St. Johnsbury Development Fund. She lives in Barnet.
Jody Fried
Jody Fried has led Catamount Arts in St. Johnsbury since 2009. Under his leadership, Catamount has become a vibrant community arts center with partners reaching through Vermont and into New Hampshire. Fried is also the chair of the Vermont Creative Network and has served on the boards of the Northeast Kingdom Collaborative, Northeast Kingdom Community Action, the Northeast Kingdom Travel & Tourism Association, and the Burke Area Chamber of Commerce.
Adam Kane
Executive Director, Fairbanks Museum
Tom Lovett
Tom was named Headmaster of St. Johnsbury Academy in 2001. Prior to that, he served variously as Academic Dean, Assistant Academic Dean, English Department Chair, Director of theAdvanced Placement Institute, Tri-Chair of the capital campaign for the Center for the Arts, Advisor Team Leader, English Teacher, ESL Teacher, Football Coach, Baseball Coach, Public Speaking/Debate Coach, and Head Dorm Proctor.
Jeffrey Moore
Jeff is owner and president of Quest Transportation, a freight logistics company; the owner of Pellets Now, a wholesale distributor of bio-energy fuels; and the general manager and owner of Wells River Chevrolet. A native of St. Johnsbury, Jeff graduated from the Academy and attended Lyndon State College. He has a strong sense of public service and currently serves on the St. Johnsbury Select Board, the NVRH Board of Trustees, the Community National Bank Board of Directors, the St. Johnsbury-Lyndonville Industrial Park Board, and the Catamount Arts Advisory Council.
Shawn Tester
Shawn is Chief Executive Officer of Northeast Vermont Regional Hospital. Before joining NVRH in November 2018, he served as CEO of Northern Counties Health Care, a Federally Qualified Health Center with five medical and three dental practices and a Home Health & Hospice division. He previously spent nine years at Ammonoosuc Community Health Services in Littleton, New Hampshire, most of that time in the position of Chief of Operations & Information Services. Shawn holds a degree in Business Administration from Bentley College and a Master of Science Degree in Organizational Leadership. He grew up in North Kirby, graduated from Lyndon Institute in 1989, and is excited to be NVRH’s newest CEO in three decades. In his spare time, he enjoys biking, skiing, and spending time outdoors with his family. He lives in East Lyndon with his wife, Loralee, and their two sons.
Amanda Weisenfeld
Amanda has a degree in biology and a master’s in environmental education. More than 30 years ago, she and her husband, Alan, moved to the NEK, where she started her business, Under the Moon. She has been creating functional felt art ever since. All her fleeces come from Vermont farms. She is a founding member of the Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild and remains an active member of the board. She has served on the boards of the St. Johnsbury Athenaeum, the Good living Senior Center, and the Universalist Unitarian Congregation of St. Johnsbury. Amanda keeps bees, using a treatment-free approach and foundationless hives, and she is a practitioner of Kyudo (Zen archery). Her two daughters were homeschooled from start to finish: “They are my greatest joy.”
Tracy Zschau
Tracy has worked for the Vermont Land Trust since 1997, serving as statewide Conservation Director since 2014. The Vermont Land Trust is a member-supported land conservation organization that has worked with families, communities, farmers and forestland owners since 1977 to conserve nearly 2,000 parcels of land important to Vermonters. A resident of the Northeast Kingdom for almost 25 years, Tracy has also served on the boards of Vermont Coverts, the Danville Conservation Commission, the Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium, the Friends of Dog Mountain, and Passumpsic Savings Bank. Tracy and her family live in St. Johnsbury.