Meet the Governing Council
Melanie Montoya Wasserman is a lifelong human rights activist and community organizer. Influenced heavily by the Zapatista movement, Melanie has focused her efforts uplifting women and immigrants in her community. She formerly served as the executive director of the San Miguel Resource Center and practiced as a psychotherapist. She is currently the housing director for the Town of Telluride, while balancing her most important role as a mother of two children who she hopes will share her passion for smashing the patriarchy.
Josselin Lifton-Zoline was raised by artist activists here in the San Juans. She works as a soprano and a teacher and is raising the next generation of artist activists from a wild corner of Wrights Mesa.
Joan May is one of the founders of the Progressive Women’s Caucus. A non-profit consultant and former county commissioner, her passion is for empowering citizens—especially those who are underrepresented — to shape the future.
Adrienne moved to Telluride from her hometown of Denver to escape the hustle and bustle of big city life. During her years in Telluride, she has worked primarily for local non-profits and as a ski instructor on the resort. Adrienne currently serves on Telluride Town Council. She spends her moments of free time volunteering as a mentor through One to One Mentoring, and as a board member for the Progressive Women’s Caucus. When she isn’t volunteering, you will find Adrienne enjoying all of the outdoor activities Telluride and the San Juans have to offer.
Mj was born and educated in Michigan. She grew up watching her mother organize the distribution of party campaign literature from the kitchen table. She worked her first Presidential campaign in grade school when she and another grade schooler did a literature drop to a city of 40,000 on their bikes. She moved to San Miguel County in 1976 and has been involved in its communities since arriving. MJ Schillaci is a fierce advocate of liberal democracy and has spent her adult life in its defense.
Amy Levek consults in planning for clients and to non-profit organizations. She has lived in Colorado and Telluride for most of her adult life, moving to Telluride in 1987 to be the Planning Director for the Town. She has since run a variety of non-profits, most recently the Trust for Community Housing, which she co- founded, and consults to governments and private clients on planning matters. She was elected to Telluride Town Council as well as serving as its mayor. Her passion includes photography, video and visual arts, for
which she has had several shows and co-produced and directed documentary films. Amy has stayed in Telluride as long as she has because of her love for the community. She continues to contribute in ways which strengthen the local community.
Ali grew up in a small liberal community in Western Massachusetts where she was fortunate to have been inspired by her aunt Natasha, a feminist force and political activist. Her admiration for her aunt sparked a yearning and a curiosity for activism that in recent years has caught fire. In the winter of 2014, Ali came to Telluride to ski and stayed for the community. During her time in Telluride she has volunteered with Telluride Adaptive Sports, played outside with Telluride Academy, and found a passion for performing with Telluride Theatre and the Telluride Dance Collective. She has worked many jobs within the community, and currently works at the elementary school as a paraprofessional.
