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Panelist Biographies

Senator Tim Kaine

Senator Tim Kaine was elected to the Senate in 2012 and serves on the Armed Services; Budget; Foreign Relations; and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committees.

Tim has made boosting job opportunities for everyone a top priority. As co-chair of the bipartisan Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus, Tim focuses on expanding access to job-training programs to ensure that students of all ages are prepared with the skills they need for the jobs of the modern economy. Tim has also led successful efforts in the Senate to reduce unemployment for military families and veterans.

As a Senator from one of the states most closely connected to the military and the father of a Marine, Tim is focused on crafting smart defense strategy and reducing the risk of unnecessary war. He works to ensure that the military has the resources it needs to keep the country safe and that servicemembers and veterans receive the benefits and care they have earned. He has also been the leading voice against Presidents starting wars without a vote by Congress.

Tim believes that health care is a right, not something reserved just for those who can afford it, and has consistently pushed for reforms to expand access to quality care. This includes legislation to give Americans more options for affordable health insurance and to combat the opioid abuse epidemic.

Tim grew up working in his father’s ironworking shop in Kansas City. His parents taught him the value of hard work and showed him how small businesses and technical skills strengthen this country every day. After graduating from the University of Missouri, he started his public service career by running a technical school founded by Jesuit missionaries in Honduras. He trained teenagers to become carpenters and welders, equipping them with skills to lift up themselves and their communities.

He was first elected to office in 1994, serving as a city councilmember and then Mayor of Richmond. He became Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 2002 and was inaugurated as Virginia’s 70th Governor in 2006. He is married to Anne Holton, who served as Virginia Secretary of Education from 2014 until 2016 and as the Interim President of George Mason University from 2019 until 2020; she now teaches education policy at GMU. They both revel in the adventures of their three grown children and live in the same Northside Richmond neighborhood where they moved as newlyweds more than 30 years ago.

C. Stewart Verdery, Jr

Since founding Monument in 2006, Stewart has built the company into one of DC’s premier advocacy firms with offices in DC, Seattle and San Francisco. Monument represents world-class clients with particular expertise in the technology, energy, health care, travel and outdoors sectors. Stewart has served in high-ranking government positions in both the Executive Branch and Congress and acted as a senior advisor to leaders at some of the world’s best-known corporate brands, including major players in the outdoors and sports industries. A frequent guest on CNN and Fox News, he is regularly quoted in influential media outlets regarding politics, security and technology policy. A veteran of numerous corporate and non-profit boards, he holds an undergraduate degree from Williams College, and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. Stewart chaired the ATC’s President’s Leadership Council from 2015-2019 and remains a PLC member.

Sandra Marra

Prior to taking on the role of ATC President and CEO, Sandra “Sandi” Marra has taken on a wide range of roles in service of the Trail and the Conservancy. She has been an A.T. volunteer for over 35 years and is an Honorary Life Member of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. In addition, she is a life member of the Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Association (ALDHA), a Founding Member of the Appalachian Trail Museum, and, in 2009, was the recipient of the Appalachian Scenic Trail 25-year Service Award. She and her husband oversee three miles of the Appalachian Trail in northern Virginia and are co-managers of PATC’s Blackburn Trail Center

Sandi was on the ATC Board of Managers from 1999-2005 and played a significant role in leading the organization through its transition from Conference to Conservancy. She was a member of the first ATC Stewardship Council, which was convened in 2005. She joined the Board of Directors in 2008 and has chaired both the Membership and Development Committee and the Strategic Directions Committee. Sandi served as ATC Chair since 2013 until taking on the role of President & CEO in 2019.

For the past four years, Sandi has provided strategy and development services for nonprofits including strategic planning, board development and training, board-staff relations, and change management support to boards and executive staff.

She has experience in leading organizations in both executive staff and board roles. In 2015, she retired from her position as Chief Operating Officer of St. Coletta of Greater Washington, a $20 million nonprofit organization supporting educational and service programs for developmentally disabled children and adults. Prior to St. Coletta, Sandi worked for a variety of both nonprofit and private sector organizations providing strategic, operational and human resource management.

Sandi now lives in Harpers Ferry with her husband, just a short walk from ATC Headquarters and the Appalachian Trail itself.

Laura Belleville

Laura grew up hiking trails in the Hudson Valley area. Among her first summer jobs in this area was the opportunity to lead youth trail crews in Harriman State Park. This fun and inspiring position sealed Laura’s interest to work towards conservation of our special places and natural heritage.

Laura went on to receive her Master’s Degree in biology with a focus on tropical forest ecology. Early in her career, she gained an appreciation about innovative conservation strategies while in the Peruvian Amazon and learned about the complexities of conservation working in the Florida Keys and the Everglades. Laura returned to her northern roots in 2000. Today she is a senior conservation manager with more than 22 years of experience including field research, resource management and conservation program development.

Laura’s work has been largely focused in the nonprofit sector, including employment with the National Audubon Society and the Nature Conservancy, where she grew into a management role as the Ohio Associate State Director. Laura joined the ATC in 2005 as the Southwest and Central Virginia Regional Director, assuming the Senior Director of Conservation role in 2007 and VP of Conservation and Trail Programs in 2017. She’s proud to work for an organization that aspires to implement the community building vision of Benton MacKaye, while protecting and promoting a premier hiking destination. When she is not working for the Trail, Laura is spending time with her husband and two daughters, exploring the mountains and rivers of southwest Virginia and beyond.

John Knapp

John grew up hiking and paddling in the Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoah Valley and has been section hiking the AT since earning his Boy Scout 50-Miler patch many years ago. A graduate of Wake Forest and UVa, he retired from a career at Verizon in 2012 and then worked as State Director for U.S. Senator Tim Kaine during his first term. He also served 24 years in the Army National Guard, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. John and his family live in Richmond but spend as much time as they can at a family cottage on Virginia’s Rappahannock River.

Header image courtesy of Daniel Burleson