Welcome

Eileen Lamphere

Eileen Lamphere is a life-long Kent resident. She attended Thomas School, Kent Jr. High, and Kent Meridian High School. After graduating from Western Washington University, she spent 35 years as a Kent School District educator. Besides a classroom teacher, Eileen served as the KSD Cultural Equity Specialist, reading and math specialist, and instructional and curriculum coach. She was a Seattle University and Seattle Pacific University adjunct professor. Eileen ended her career as

an assistant principal at Kent Meridian. She continues to volunteer at KM as a co-advisor for its Civil Rights Club and volunteers as an afterschool tutor.

In addition to being a board member of GKHS since 2010, Eileen is the president of the Puyallup Valley Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League. She serves on the Pacific Northwest District board and national committees. This is an organization that she is passionate about because of her family’s wartime incarceration experience. Even though they were American citizens, her family members were imprisoned behind barbed wire for almost four years. Eileen’s vision for the Kent Museum is to begin a journey of storytelling about all the people in the greater Kent area. Diversity, in its broadest definition, is the cornerstone of the growth of the Kent community. Everyone contributes to the vibrance of Kent and their presence enhances all our lives. “Diversity is a fact. Equity is a choice. Inclusion is an action. Belonging is an outcome.” (Arthur Chan)

Michael C. Evans

Michael C Evans was born and raised in Port Angeles, Washington. In 1975, he was hired by the City of Kent as a Fire Fighter. Also in 1975, he married Barbara Hager. He rose to become the Asst. Fire Marshal. At the rank of Captain, he retired in 2005. Today, Michael serves as the Chair of the Snohomish Tribe of Indians. He contributed to the Duwamish Tribe’s performing arts group for their youth called ‘Singing Feet’. In 1995. he carved his first canoe. In 2003 with his father (now deceased), he fashioned a 34 foot canoe from wood strips overlaid with fiberglass and epoxy. He is the Father of the Blue Heron Canoe family. He studies an indigenous language of the Puget Sound, Lushootseed, and conducts language class. Presently, he performs woodworking including full sized paddles and a Welcome Figure at the Museum.

Dave Johnson

Dave Johnson grew up in the Panther Lake area, graduated from Kent -Meridian, taught in the Kent School District for several years and retired as an elementary school principal. As a community education director in several Washington school districts, he enjoyed creating lifelong education classes, supervising volunteers, community problem solving and studying the organizational development process.  Dave joined the Greater Kent Historical Society (GKHS) board of directors in 2020 and serves as board secretary and grants manager. He also serves on the Help for Honduras board of directors, the Friends of Mill Creek Canyon (Kent) advocacy group and is co-chairperson of the KM 67 Reunion Planning Committee. Connecting people with needs to people with resources is his overriding passion. 

Judy Woods

Judy Woods, a native Washingtonian, was raised in the mountain community of Darrington. She was educated at Western Washington University and the University of Washington, served with the Peace Corps in Ethiopia and taught history at Green River College for nearly thirty years.  She was on the Kent City Council for over twenty years and participated in local and regional organizations.  In retirement Judy continues to be a community volunteer, working at the food bank and serving on the Kent Downtown Partnership, Kent Grand Organ and Greater Kent Historical Society boards of directors.

Other interests include traveling, hiking, cultural presentations, reading and spending time with family and friends.

Linda Martinez

Linda Martinez is a retired librarian. Before retiring from Weyerhaeuser, she worked as the Manager of Libraries, in Records Management and Archives. Until the Covid Pandemic began, she volunteered in the libraries of the Tacoma Art Museum and Wing Luke Museum, as well as tutored at local schools. Throughout the pandemic, she volunteered at the Kent Food Bank. She and her husband have lived over 40 years on Scenic Hill in a house built by Jarvis Berlin in 1912. Her hobbies are: reading, participating in book clubs, and bicycling. In 2004, she and her husband biked unsupported across the U.S.A from Seaside, Oregon to Yorktown, Virginia, and they have biked in many countries including Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and  Costa Rica. She has been a GKHS Board member 2020-date.

Michael Johnson

Michael Johnson earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from the University of Washington, and his Master of Science degree also in Physics from the University of California, Los Angeles. For 38 years, he worked at the Boeing Company, in roles including Chief Engineer, Program Manager, Executive Series Manager, and Modeling and Simulations Manager. He retired in 2004. Since 2008, he has served as the Treasurer of the Mill Creek Neighborhood Council, and since 2019 the Treasurer of the Greater Kent Historical Society. In 2009 he successfully lobbied the City of Kent to create a transition zone between the Mill Creek Neighborhood and downtown Kent so as to not allow high rise buildings up against the Neighborhood. With spouse Sharon Bersaas, he applied for grants, researched the home history in Mill Creek, and put over 100 plaques on the homes in Mill Creek. He participated in the 2016 City of Kent

Financial Task Force. In 2014, with his spouse Sharon Bersaas, he successfully applied and received Historic District status from the Kent Landmarks Commission for a portion of the Mill Creek Neighborhood. He has three children and four grandchildren. His hobbies include golfing (current President of the Boeing X-Outs Golf League), reading mysteries, and tracking the stock market.

Sharon L. Bersaas

Sharon L. Bersaas was born in 1942 in Portland Oregon. She graduated Lincoln High School in 1961, and she graduated with a BA from Evergreen State College in 1989. Her career focused on childcare and youth education: as a pre-school teacher from 1973 to 1974, then as an employee at Friendly House Coordinator in their before and after School Day Care and Summer Day Camps, as a Day Camp Leader at Metro Parks Tacoma from 1984 to 1988, and finally as staff at Stadium High School from 1987-1996. In 1997, she married Michael Johnson and kept her Norwegian father’s name. She is first generation American on her father’s side. She has two children, three grandchildren, three stepchildren, and four step grandchildren- all adorable.

She became President of Mill Creek Neighborhood and founded in partnership with Nancy Simpson the Experience Historical Kent. In collaboration with her Mill Creek neighbors, she created a Mill Creek Neighborhood book and also the Plaque Project for 100 homes. Together with her husband, she successfully applied for grants for the museum, for Historic District designation status for Mill Creek from the Kent Landmarks Commission, and for placement of the Dvorak Baron on the on the Most Endangered Historic Properties List for The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation.

James Boorn

James Boorn has a B.S. in Applied Mathematics, an M.A. in Management, an M.S. in Information Technology, and completed a Certification in Museum Studies from the University of Washington in 2021. James had a 20-year career as a United States Air Force Instructor Pilot, Maintenance Officer, Configuration Manager. He was an academic and simulation instructional designer for Northrup-Grumman on the B-2 for 5 years. James was a software manager and project engineer for Boeing on bomber mission planning system and the KC-46 flight management system for 17 years. For the last six year, James has been an independent historical researcher and museum accessibility advocate. James has contributed to the Western Museum Associations Diversity and Inclusion resources and blog. James, along with his wife, Alida, has consulted on accessibility for small museums.

Alida Boorn, PhD

Alida Boorn PhD is Blind Independent Historian. Dr. Boorn has a BA in Sociology, a MA in American History, and a PhD in American History. She titled her PhD Dissertation: “Interpreting the Transnational Material Culture of the 19th Century North American Plains Indians: Creators, Collectors, and Collections.” She has been a member of the Western History Association for twenty years and in the last ten years actively promoting Disability Diversity, Inclusion, Equity, and Accessibility in Academia and Museum opportunities for staff and visitors with disabilities. Dr. Boorn has been married to James Deuel Boorn for fifty years. They have four children and seven grandchildren.

Jason J. Appelgate, JD LLM

Jason J. Appelgate JD LLM works as a software and cloud service sourcing manager at Microsoft. Before joining Microsoft, he practiced law as an attorney maintaining membership in the Washington State Bar Association, Slavic Bar Association of Washington, and Latina/o Bar Association of Washington. For his juris doctorate (JD) and master of law (LLM) degrees, he graduated from the Law School of University of Washington, and for his bachelor’s degree from Fordham University in New York City, with a year as a visiting student at Blackfrair’s Hall, Oxford University in the United Kingdom. From 2017 to 2023, he sat on the Ethnic Heritage Council of the Pacific Northwest board, and from 2015-2019 on the Amici board, a committee of the Fulcrum Foundation. From 2017-2019, he volunteered on the leadership team for producing the documentary film, “Passing the Torch: 100 Years of the Polish Home Association,” a history preservation project about Seattle’s Polish immigrates. Polish by heritage, his passion to preserve history is inspired by the Poles’ heroic efforts, during Russian subjugation and occupation, to preserve their people’s history.