Lloyd Athearn, Executive Director

Hannah Clark, Operations Manager

Hannah joined the CFI staff in 2018. Prior to that she served as the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps Peak Apprentice on the Mount Elbert project in 2017.  She has also worked on trail building projects and natural-resource management with Northwest Youth Corps in Oregon.  Professionally, Hannah has worked as an environmental analyst, natural resource steward, and lab technician for organizations and agencies in California and Oregon. She has a Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Master’s degree in environmental law and policy from Sturm College of Law at DU. Hannah brings a life-long passion for conservation education, hard work, and volunteerism to CFI.

Tom Cronin, Field Projects Manager

2022 marks Tom’s 14th consecutive season working in the realm of trails. After spending three years with the City of Boulder, Open Space and Mountain Parks he came on board with CFI in 2012. He went on to spend five seasons with CFI as a Project Manager leading projects on Holy Cross, Maroon Peak, El Diente, and Mount Eolus. In 2017, he then moved into the position of Sustainable Trails Coordinator. He analyzed over 29,000 trail features while conducting comprehensive assessments of trail conditions on thirty-three different 14ers over the course of his next two seasons. In 2019, he moved into his current role as Field Projects Manager. In this role Tom is assisting with the management and oversight of CFI’s seasonal staff and projects as well as working with USFS Fourteeners Program Manager on designing new trails. Tom immediately became enamored with trail work, specifically dry-set stonework and has pursued his passion ever since.

Email: tom@14ers.org
Phone: 303.278.7650

Ben Hanus, Field Programs Director

Brian Sargeant, Development and Communications Manager

Brian joined CFI’s core staff in 2015 after working for three years in the outdoor industry. He interned with CFI in 2013 through Patagonia’s Environmental Internship Program. As the Development and Communications Manager, Brian develops and shares engaging content through social media platforms, email newsletters, and CFI’s website. He also plays a major role in CFI’s fundraising efforts – writing grants and reports to foundations, local governments, and corporations. Brian has a bachelor’s degree in Marketing, a certficate of Internatioanl Business, and a minor in Spanish from Georgia State University in Atlanta. His passion for environmental conservation stems from his involvement in backpacking, cycling, trail running, and snowboarding.

Miriam Venman-Clay, Field Projects Manager

Miriam joined CFI in 2012 as a Project Manager working on the Maroon Bells reconstruction project. Over the past several years she has led projects on Mount Eolus and El Diente Peak, and become one of CFI’s most experienced leaders in technical rock work. In 2016, Miriam joined the permanent staff as Field Projects Coordinator. With more than a decade of experience working in the backcountry and teaching trail work, she is an integral part of the core staff – assisting with seasonal hiring, project oversight, and ensuring that CFI’s trail crew members perform to the highest standards. She loves the wilderness and feels a great urgency to help protect it through action and education. She likes working for CFI because the organization embodies her ideals and is taking action to save the sacred, endangered alpine ecosystem.

2024 Seasonal Staff

Mount Elbert – Blackcloud Crew (Left to Right): Ben, Gibson, Eve, Trey

Lower Shavano Crew (Left to Right): David, Chris, Grace, Kate, Tyler, Riley