David Barron
President
A real estate attorney, David is a proponent of the voluntary preservation model embodied by land trusts. He was looking for volunteer opportunities, and he was surprised and pleased to find a land trust so close to his home in Montclair. Dave brings his legal expertise in negotiating real estate transactions to the Board. He has been cycling the Oakland and Berkeley hills for most of his life, and loves to ski, especially with his two children. He is also a Director and former Chair of the Board of Habitat for Humanity East Bay/Silicon Valley, and a member of the Oakland Rotary Club.
Carol Bernau
Secretary
Carol is a human resources and organizational consultant (with degrees in anthropology and organizational development) has been a homeowner near Peralta Creek for many years. Carol was instrumental in organizing neighborhood opposition to a housing development that would have threatened the health of the creek. She has also worked with the City of Oakland, and many environmental groups to preserve this area for future generations. A grassroots organizer, Carol has been an active spokesperson for Butters Canyon for many years. She enjoys daily walks in the Canyon with her husband and yellow lab. “Think globally, act locally” has become her mantra.
Arturo Mateo
Treasurer
Born in Havana, Cuba, Arturo came to the US with his family in 1960 at age six. He grew up in Miami and went to collage in Gainesville Florida where he met his wife Judy. They both graduated in 1977, drove to California, and never moved back. With an Anthropology degree, Arturo stated working in construction and got his Contractor’s license in 1984. In 1988, Arturo and Judy moved into their house on Rubin Drive overlooking Butter’s Canyon. In 2000, Arturo started working at the Alameda County Building Department as a Building Inspector and Plans Examine, and retired in 2016. He and Judy have two sons and three grandkids.
Dolores Apton
Dolores, a retired middle school math teacher, represents Butters Land Trust to the cycling community of the Bay Area—the largest user group of Butters Canyon outside the neighborhood. A cycling enthusiast for over forty years, she is an active member of Grizzly Peak Cyclists and organizes rides through the Canyon that draw cyclists from communities throughout the Bay Area. Dolores co-organizes Butters Canyon participation in Oakland EarthDay and Creek to Bay Day along with Bobbi Babineau-Lounds.
Eric Ironson
A real estate holdings expert with degrees in broadcast communications and music business management; Eric has managed multiple record stores and has been a disc jockey for the last 22 years. He has been a board member for the last three years and has been a homeowner near Peralta Creek for seven years. Love for Butters Canyon started many years ago, as a lifetime resident of Oakland. Eric was fortunate to spend most of his life in St. James Canyon with Trestle Glen Creek running through his backyard in his former Piedmont home. The garden he grew up in was designed by Thomas Church and his love for gardening and landscaping was developed at a young age-anchoring his passion for securing a green environment for generations to come. The real estate holdings manager/disc jockey can be found walking his miniature poodle Sabrina through the Canyon when he is not golfing or skiing.
Bobbi Babineau-Lounds, Devin Lounds
Devin and Bobbi moved to the Butters Canyon neighborhood in 2010. Devin, an avid cyclist, found their current house while riding his bike. Both nature lovers, they instantly fell in love with Butters Canyon. Devin works for Salesforce and has worked as a management consultant for 15 years. Bobbi has a degree in Health Education and is a stay at home mom/expert school volunteer. Devin and Bobbi have three children, Emily, Aden, and Jake.
Polly Morris
Polly served on the board since the organization was created as Butters Land Trust. She rejoined in 2020, putting her efforts into vegetation management. Polly also serves a key role as the only board member who grew up in the neighborhood. Her strongest childhood memory here is many empty lots and horse farms. There were no fences so kids played in every creek and meadow, and slid down the hills on sheets of cardboard. In the mid-1960’s things started to change, and the neighborhood slowly filled in. After college Polly developed a successful graphic design studio in Silicon Valley, but in 1998 this beautiful canyon that called her, along with her husband Trevor, back home. She has since painstakingly restored her house and property, a formerly run-down horse farm with mature oaks, redwoods, cedars and bay trees which have needed care—valuable experience for guiding the preservation of Butters Canyon.
Robert Faber
(Emeritus)
Robert is a transportation engineer with over 30 years of experience in the design of transportation facilities. He has been a homeowner in the neighborhood since 1992. Bob can often be observed walking his black lab, Charlie on Butters Drive in the Canyon. He has a special interest in preserving plants from growing up working at Faber Floral Company (Florist since 1870).
Jim Wolford
(Emeritus)
Jim is a founding member who was involved in early planning for the creation of the Land Trust. An 11-year Canyon resident, he is a computational physicist with a keen interest in alternative energy sources and California native plants.
Paul Dries
(In Memoriam)
A mechanical engineer background and a strong interest in environmental issues kept Paul tuned into renewable energy and energy conservation. This passion kept him involved and living in the neighborhood since 1982. He became involved in the effort to down zone the area in order to reduce land speculation and preserve the character and green value of the neighborhood. Through his effort, he met many in the community who were active in preserving Butters Canyon. In 2004, Paul joined the Canyon board and became Treasurer. He implemented a new accounting system with Quick Books and also brought in Gift Works to improve communications with donors and enable donation analysis. Paul enjoyed running, biking, and walking Scrufty, the family dog in Butters Canyon and Joaquin Miller Park. Paul passed away in 2015. We miss him, and always will.