The Kinni Corridor Collaborative

  Judie is a fifth generation member of one of River Falls founding families, The Fosters, so it isn’t hard to see why she loves this area so much! In fact, the Kinni is her favorite part of the area.  “The peace and serenity of being near the Kinni – it has a healing effect for me.” Judie describes herself as a serial philanthropist and loves serving on non-profit boards. She believes whole-heartedly in the mission of the KinniCC and the power of community voices making her perfect to serve as our President!

John “Duke” Welter is an avid outdoorsman and game cook. His day job is Outreach Coordinator for Trout Unlimited’s Driftless Area Restoration Effort so you can see why he is a great asset to our Board of Directors! Duke is most excited to help our organization find the funding for the projects outlined in the Kinnickinnic River Corridor Plan. If he could tell you one thing, it would be “Keep in your mind the benefits to be had from a healthy, free-flowing river – environmental, recreational, economic, and aesthetic – and together we will accomplish this vision.”

Eric has a background in Natural Resource Management with a Masters in Geography from Carthage from Western Michigan University.  Eric has experience as a Program Director with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation working with Central Region Working Lands for the last 8 years. Eric originally  moved to River Falls to join the Kinnickinnic River Land Trust as Conservation Program Manager.  He enjoys all types of outdoor recreation, especially if it involves the River.  He joined the KinniCC Board to support the river restoration through his deep knowledge of the community. 

Local business owner, Scott Eickschen, is also an avid outdoorsman, husband and fisherman. When he isn’t busy ensuring all of his guests at the Country Inn enjoy their stay in River Falls, you will likely find him enjoying the great outdoors. He loves to fish making him extremely passionate about all of the local streams, lakes and rivers. His love of fishing and the outdoors are just some of the reasons Scott is so excited and humbled to be part of our Board. He can’t wait for us to start working on our first project  “I am most excited for the day we break ground on the first major project of the corridor plan. It will be very fun and exciting to help iron out details, compile and review bids, finalize scheduling and logistics, etc."

 David has worked in IT Management for a handful of companies but is now retired. He is married to Judie Foster Babcock who is a fifth generation descendant of Judge Joel Foster. It was David's father-in-law, Bruce Foster, who helped to instill in David an abiding love for River Falls and the Kinni. He has served on the board for a number of local non-profits such as Saint Croix Valley Habitat for Humanity and River Falls Food Pantry in addition to helping Kinni River Land Trust by serving as a temporary office manager. David was already a member of the KinniCC Public Relations Committee and has assumed the role of Treasurer for us. 

Michelle is a small business owner in downtown River Falls. She loves the river and the community.  She talks to people everyday about the opportunities and issues we face.  Michelle supports the Kinni Corridor Plan as a guide for investment the community that will lead to economic development. 

Amanda has been married to her husband, Aaron, for nearly 9 years and is the mom to a feisty 2 year old girl. When she isn't busy with her family or working as an event coordinator for Marcus Theatres, Amanda enjoys watching sports, throwing in a dart league and spending time outdoors. She has been with us since we were established as an organization, serving on our Public Relations committee.What aspect of the Board of Directors is Amanda most excited for? "I am excited to help keep the community informed and educated as we progress. It is going to take all of us to make this plan a success and being transparent with our community is a big part of working together."