BOARD & STAFF
Board of Directors
President
Kevin joined the Summit Board of Directors in 2017 and assumed the role of President in 2020. Kevin is an AVP- Washington Sales and Account Services at Providence Health Plan. Prior to his current role, Kevin was the Regional Sales Director with PacificSource Health Plans. He has also served as the Director of Sales and Account Management for United Healthcare in the states of Washington, Alaska, and Montana. In this role, he was responsible for the under-100 employee market and associations and trust clients.
Kevin Corcoran
Carlene Schmelke
Carlene has been volunteering for Summit Assistance Dogs for the last 20 years. She joined the Summit Board of Directors in 2023. Carlene has been employed at IDEX Health & Science in Oak Harbor, WA for the last 15 years, currently as the Procurement Director. IDEX Health & Science, LLC is the global leader in life science fluidics, microfluidics, and optics for analytical instruments and diagnostic instruments, including DNA Sequencers. She currently leads a team of Buyers that supports engineering and manufacturing. She has been in Supply Chain for the last 30 years. Carlene has always had dogs of her own and shares her love of animals and helping others with her husband, David and their two dogs.
Stephanie Drenchen
Treasurer
Stephanie is a Principal Software Engineering Manager at Microsoft. After graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in Computer Science in 2002, she has spent over 16 years working at Microsoft on products such as System Center, Cortana, and Windows Search. She joined manufacturing startup Bright Machines in late 2018 as a Senior Director, building a team of software engineers and scientists working on building intelligent industrial robots. She returned to Microsoft in 2022 and currently leads an engineering team within Industry Clouds and Solutions. Her involvement with Summit started through the Microsoft Giving campaign, and she raised a puppy in 2011 through the Summit program. She is a proud Summit supporter and hopes that others will join her by empowering people with disabilities to greater heights.
Susan Bohn
Sue Bohn is the former Vice President of Product Management at Microsoft, where she led a global team advising Microsoft’s strategic customers. After a distinguished thirty-year career at Microsoft, spanning marketing, evangelism, and engineering roles, Sue retired in 2023. Her earlier professional experiences include working for a client/server startup in the Bay Area and several mainframe software companies. Sue holds a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota Moorhead. Beyond her tech career, Sue is a classically-trained pianist, avid reader, fine wine enthusiast, and dog lover. Her journey with Summit began through the Microsoft Giving campaign, where she was inspired by sponsoring a puppy and discovering the profound impact service dogs have on people's lives. As a proud owner of a beloved labrador, Sue, along with her husband Tom, deeply values the special bond between dogs and their owners. Sue is passionately committed to Summit’s mission of empowering people to lead independent and fulfilling lives in partnership with a service dog.
Michael Hughes
Elected to the Board of Directors in 2015, Michael is a Senior Portfolio Manager with Northern Trust. Prior to joining Northern Trust in 2019, Mr. Hughes was the Chief Investment Officer at Cornerstone Advisors Inc.. In his role of Chief Officer, Michael was directly accountable for managing and directing the investment team in traditional and non-traditional global manager research and selection, asset allocation and risk management. His involvement with Summit stretches back over a dozen years, when he referred a very good friend to Summit to get his first mobility service dog. Mike and his wife Sally live in Mill Creek with their Summit career-change Labrador, Kelly.
Meg Jones
Meg is the Regional Director of Government Relations for PacificSource Health Plans, where she serves Washington’s newest commercial nonprofit community health plan through legislative and regulatory advocacy and community engagement leadership. Meg has a wealth of leadership and legislative experience, gained over many years of service in both corporate and nonprofit sectors.
Leslie O’Brien
Leslie became involved with Summit in 2016 and joined the board in 2020. Leslie is the Director of Channel Partnerships at One Medical, where she brings exceptional leadership, problem-solving, and client retention skills focused on building the foundation for a superior client experience. She lives in Seattle with her husband and two children. She enjoys choral singing, jogging, and spending time and traveling with her family. She is proud to support Summit's tremendous and impactful work.
Kerri Villeneuve
Kerri is the Vice President of Growth for Optum Healthcare Company. She is a highly accomplished sales leader with a proven record for exceeding sales goals, building market share and increasing local market revenue. Kerri also has expert knowledge in disability training. She graduated from the University of Montana with a Bachelor of Education, Health and Human Performance and has been a board member for Pacific Northwest Insurance Council for 8 years. Kerri joined the Summit Board of Directors in 2024.
Kelly Schwarting
Kelly Schwarting is the Director of the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) account at Regence BlueShield, where she oversees the administration of the HCA Uniform Medical Plans, serving over 413,000 public and school employees and their families. With a proven track record in strategic planning, execution, and complex relationship management, Kelly brings a wealth of expertise to her role. Outside of work, Kelly is an outdoor enthusiast who enjoys hiking and riding bikes with her husband, Jim.
Jon Palmason
Jon is a graduate of the University of Puget Sound and a Seattle native who built a career in banking and finance while maintaining a lifelong dedication to music. For 25 years, he performed as a principal tenor with the Seattle Gilbert and Sullivan Society and appeared in numerous theatrical productions and as a concert and church soloist throughout the Pacific Northwest. Jon is an active community volunteer focused on access to care for seniors and people living with disabilities. He is the proud recipient of a Summit Assistance Dogs service dog, Valko, a golden retriever/lab mix who joined his family in 2025. Jon and his wife Ann, a music educator, have been married for over 50 years and have two adult children and a granddaughter.
Lauri Martin
Lauri is currently Chief of Staff for a team of nearly 2,000 engineers at Microsoft, and her background spans risk management, operational efficiency, policy compliance, and financial transformation. Lauri has been involved with Summit Assistance Dogs in various volunteer roles since 2017, including puppy raising, supporting fundraising events, and serving as a training site sponsor. She joined the Board of Directors in 2026 and appreciates how Summit’s life-changing impact reaches from trainers within Monroe Correctional Complex to people living with mobility disabilities. She and her husband Matt live in rural Redmond with their career-change dog, Chief, and enjoy traveling and watching their daughter play volleyball.
Carrie Lillie-Lugo
Carrie Lillie Lugo is an Employee Benefits Consultant with Acrisure and brings more than 30 years of experience helping large, multi-location employers design strategic benefits programs that support employee well-being. She previously served for nine years on the board of another assistance dog organization working within the Washington State Corrections system, where she saw firsthand the transformative impact these programs have on both clients and incarcerated trainers. Her interest in Summit Assistance Dogs grew from its exceptional success rate and its commitment to creating meaningful, life-changing partnerships. Carrie lives in Pierce County with her husband and their three dogs and is an active community volunteer.
Kara Weinand
Kara is an accomplished Executive Business Administrator with more than 30 years of experience supporting senior leadership across the private and public sectors. Since 2021, she has served in Microsoft’s Corporate External and Legal Affairs organization. Previously, she spent over six years at PlayNetwork as Executive Assistant to the CEO and Sales and Marketing leadership and held multiple roles at Coinstar over a ten-year period, where she helped grow the “Coins that Count” cause marketing program. Kara began volunteering with Summit Assistance Dogs in 2024 through Microsoft’s GIVE Campaign and the Dogs of Microsoft calendar and has a longstanding commitment to volunteerism, including service with Seattle Humane Society and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Staff
Sue Meinzinger
Founder & Executive Director
Sue’s love of animals started in early childhood. She trained her first dog at nine years of age and through this early experience developed a life-long interest in animal training. Sue spent many years first training horses, then later moving on to train dogs professionally. An entrepreneur at heart, she started and managed a couple of small businesses, including her own pet dog training business. When introduced to the concept of service dogs in the late 1990’s, Sue was intrigued and inspired by the thought of using her skills to make a difference in the lives of people. After graduating from The Assistance Dog Institute in Santa Rosa, where she gained an education in training assistance dogs for people living with disabilities, she founded Summit Assistance Dogs. She has served as the Executive Director of Summit Assistance Dogs since its founding in 2000 and she remains very enthusiastic and committed to her life’s calling.
Tristan Boyce
Director of Philanthropy
Tristan is originally from the Pacific Northwest and grew up exploring its forests and sailing the waters around the San Juan Islands. She holds a degree in Fine Arts from Washington State University, and loves blending creativity with logistics in everything she does. After university, she spent a year living in Germany, which sparked a lifelong passion for learning about different cultures and building lasting relationships around the world. To date, she has traveled to 46 countries across six continents.
For the past 20 years, Tristan has worked in nonprofit roles where she thrives on building strong teams, planning memorable events, and creating meaningful connections between people and the causes they care about. She is excited to bring her creativity, organization, and heart to supporting Summit and helping facilitate life-changing partnerships between people and service dogs.
Outside of work, you’ll likely find her walking with her dog Coco, kayaking, or enjoying the San Juan Islands, where her family roots run deep.
Rita Cooper
Administrative Manager and Dog Adoption Coordinator
Rita joined Summit in 2008 after relocating to the PNW from the Midwest. She brings with her a lifelong love of dogs, an understanding of how they positively impact our lives, and over 20 years of experience as an office manager with GE Commercial Finance and Deloitte and Touche. Summit is a perfect fit for her, encompassing her skills and passion to help better the lives of others. Rita and her husband share their home with three dogs (two of which are Summit released dogs) and one cat. She enjoys kayaking, hiking, playing with her dogs, and traveling.
Mark Bunje
Facilities Project Manager
Mark joined the Summit staff in 2014 as Facilities Project Manager, after volunteering for many months conducting feasibility studies during Summit’s search for a property. He retired from the Shoreline, WA Fire Department as their Fire Chief in June 2013, after serving the Shoreline community for more than 25 years. Mark’s background also includes 20 years as a general contractor and a degree in marine engineering.
Lindy Langum
Trainer
Lindy started out in the marine animal training and husbandry field after graduating from college, beginning with clicker training fish, then sea turtles and all the way to dolphins. In 2009 she moved to the Pacific Northwest and decided to stay when she rescued a dog who presented many behavioral challenges but gave her the perfect reason to learn more about canine behavior. She graduated from the Northwest School of Canine Studies in 2010 and has been training and helping people build better bonds with dogs since. Lindy started out as a volunteer teaching the Seattle area Summit foster home classes in 2016 and has now become a staff instructor and trainer at Summit Assistance Dogs.
Heather Anderson
Trainer
Heather was born and raised on Whidbey Island and began volunteering with Summit in late 2020 as a puppy raiser. She joined the Summit staff in summer 2021 as the weekend Kennel Technician and Puppy Raising Program Assistant. Later she became the Kennel Manager, and in 2025 moved into a Trainer position. Heather loved having pet dogs growing up and raised and trained her current dog, Ita, who is now beloved by all in her family. In 2022, she also adopted Gracie, a Summit release dog! Heather always had dreams of working with animals or helping people and is thrilled to be a part of the Summit team to help create life-changing service dog partnerships and continue her own canine training education.
Renee Hammer
Client Services Coordinator
Renee joined Summit Assistance Dogs in 2025. For the last 9 years, Renee was the Director of Operations for a non-profit service dog organization in California. Her work included client services, puppy raising, service dog training, and dog handling including detection and apprehension K9s. Renee is extremely happy to be back home on Whidbey and continue her passion to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Prior to working in the service dog field, Renee worked for law enforcement and was a small business owner.
Kat LaRue
Puppy Raising Program Coordinator
Kat LaRue is from Kayenta, Arizona, and grew up on the Navajo Reservation. She recently moved to Whidbey Island after living in Portland, Oregon for the past 10 years, where she spent five years working at the Oregon Humane Society. During her time working in the shelter, she facilitated hundreds of successful pet adoptions and saw the huge need for service dogs of all kinds in her community. Particularly passionate about canine behavior and body language, Kat is on a mission to use that knowledge to strengthen the bond between people of all backgrounds and their canine companions. Kat is also a published writer and spends her free time writing poetry and nonfiction, when not exploring Whidbey Island with her own dogs, Ruby and Opal.
Carlin Padgett
Community Outreach Coordinator
Carlin was born and raised in Yakima, Washington, where his family manages twenty acres of vineyard. He graduated from Western Washington University with a bachelor’s degree in Business & Sustainability, exploring the interdisciplinary relationship between environmental resources and business practices. Carlin joined Summit in 2024, spurred by his interest in disability advocacy and love of animals, including his six-year-old black Labrador, Kona. In the evenings, he enjoys reading murder mystery novels and exploring the local restaurant scene.
Gabriella Browning
Kennel Manager
Gabriella joined Summit in 2025 as the Kennel Manager. She is from Monument, Colorado where she grew up caring for animals of all kinds. She has recently studied and graduated from Animal Behavior College in Santa Clarita, California and plans to use what she’s learned to advance the care and training of Summit’s service dogs in training!
Alyssa Kelley
Kennel Technician
Alyssa is a seasoned kennel technician with a passion for nurturing the animals in her care until they are as happy as can be. She obtained a master's degree in animal behavior from the University of Exeter in 2015 and has had a wide range of jobs, including at a seal and sea turtle rehabilitation organization, an animal preserve housing just about everything from livestock to hybrid wolves, and has even participated in killer whale research! Originally from New York State, Alyssa is thrilled to have finally fulfilled her dream of moving to the west coast. She couldn't be more excited to be part of the Summit Dogs team as a canine caregiver!