Meet Our Team
Our Leadership Team
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Danna McNeese
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Therese Kollerer
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Jeremy Fields, USFS
Leadership Team Bios
Danna McNeese
Danna McNeese serves on the Leadership Team of the Sisters Community Leadership Initiative (SCLI) and is a founding member of the organization, established in August 2022 through a multi-agency collaboration to address health and hygiene for houseless individuals in the Sisters Ranger District.
As a special education teacher for 40 years, Danna taught students from birth to age 21. After graduating from the University of Oregon, her career took her from Oregon to Guam, Alaskan bush schools, and back to Oregon, where she finished her career in Central Oregon.
Danna enjoys gardening, exercising, water sports, dancing, scuba diving, reading, and traveling. She recently completed her first relay event, the Portland to Coast Walking Relay Race, and loved the experience.
As a lifelong Oregonian, Danna is passionate about preserving the landscapes and forests of Sisters Country. Through SCLI, she focuses on addressing the needs of houseless individuals on Deschutes National Forest by providing trash removal and safe water containers. SCLI’s narrow focus ensures efficient, sustainable efforts that benefit the community and environment.
Therese Kollerer
Therese is a dedicated community volunteer and activist who joined the Sisters Community Leadership Initiative (SCLI) in the summer of 2023. She actively participates in all aspects of SCLI’s work, including trash collection in the Deschutes National Forest, coordinating abandoned vehicle removal, volunteer recruitment, training, and retention. She also organizes community-wide events such as forest "hot spot" cleanups and open house gatherings and manages budgeting.
Therese is a tree-lover who has served on Sisters' Urban Forestry Board since 2022. She also chairs the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) Expansion Steering Committee. The committee is evaluating a 250-acre expansion of Sisters’ UGB, balancing Oregon’s regulations with the needs and preferences of Sisters Country.
Before moving to Oregon in 2020, Therese was deeply involved in water advocacy in Monterey County, California, through Citizens for Just Water and Public Water Now. She holds a BS in Plant Science from UC Davis and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). A retired Investment Advisor and Portfolio Manager, she enjoys hiking, running, and exploring Central Oregon with her wife and their dog.
Jeremy Fields
Jeremy Fields is a 25-year veteran of the Sisters Ranger District. Throughout his career, he has worked to protect the Deschutes National Forest from resource damage, enlisting the help of community partners along the way. As a USFS Special Forest Protection Officer, Jeremy works as a liaison with SCLI and has been an active member of the Leadership Team since its inception. Jeremy helps to coordinate site clean-ups, abandoned vehicle extraction, and weekly waste management in the Deschutes National Forest with SCLI and the local community.
Our Volunteers
SCLI is made possible by our dedicated volunteers. Our leadership team coordinates a pool of about 40 individuals who come together to keep our forest healthy and provide our neighbors experiencing houselessness the opportunity to connect with local resources.
In 2024, SCLI logged over 600 hours of volunteer time — the equivalent of more than $20,000 of in-kind support.