Ms. Andress believes that collaborative thought done in the spirit of community is the key to being effective and building the necessary trust to maintain relational sustainability. This is a valuable understanding Andress has learned on her journey as a leadership advisor, working with a variety of business and non-profit organizations. Her book Kai-Zen: Breathing Life into Leadership communicates how these principles breathe life, not only into leadership, but also inspire people to work together for the well-being of all.

After moving to the Lutsen area of Cook County from Denver, Inger sensed a calling to understand how to come alongside this community and encourage collaboration. For Andress, it has been a joy to participate in local events, consult businesses and meet with a variety of leaders, listening to the heartbeat of what makes Cook County tick.

“These are exciting times, and I am glad that NSHCF has been a part of leading the way in exemplifying how to serve the community of Cook County.”

Mike Boomer lives in Grand Portage MN with his wife of 31 years Lori, “Sam”.  Mike and Lori own and operate Ryden’s Border Store & Duty Free.  This is a 3rd generation business actively involved in the Grand Portage community.  Mike and Lori have two children, Brea and Kale both growing up in Cook County attending Grand Portage schools and graduating from I.S.D. 166.  Brea and Kale went on to get college degrees and are now pursuing life dreams and challenges. 

Mike was an assistant Football coach for the Cook County Vikings for over 23 years coaching under Lyle Anderson, Mitch Dorr and Mike Prom.  He continues to have positive interactions with many of the young men he coached and holds those relationships in very high regard.  Boomer was also part of the leadership team that built the Mt Rose Community Church (Maamawiitawin) in Grand Portage.  Mike also developed a course for dads who attended Early Childhood Development classes offered by Adult Community Education called F.A.N. (Fathers Are Needed) and taught this for several years.

I have always been on the other side of non-profits (Okontoe and Coldwater) either via financial support or volunteering in some form.  I am looking forward to being more involved in nuts and bolts of the North Shore Health Care Foundation. I am also interested in helping bridge the east end of the county with Grand Marais.  We can be isolated out here, and I look forward to positive, results-orientated resolutions to issues effecting all families in our community.   

Patty and her husband, Paul, live in Grand Marais. Patty and her husband have been visiting the Grand Marais area for many years, purchasing their first home in Grand Marais in 2013. In 2018, Patty and her husband achieved their goal of moving to Cook County and becoming permanent residents. Patty grew up in southwestern Minnesota and is pleased to return to her “home state!”  She and her husband feel blessed to live in a place that offers peaceful scenery and a variety of outdoor activities during all seasons.  

Patty is professor at Rasmussen University, teaching in the Justice Studies and Paralegal online programs. She enjoys the opportunity to help students further develop their skills and knowledge for success in the legal field through serving their communities. 

Patty is honored to serve on the NSHCF Board having the opportunity to learn more about my community and to become an active member, working to improve and maintain the health or our community.  

She looks forward to helping to establish and enhance partnerships between community members, businesses, and government organizations to meet the health needs of Cook County for the future, with a focus on meeting the needs of the aging population.

Patty’s other legal experience includes private law practice and serving as an assistant Fargo City attorney, wording in the areas of prosecution and other city matters including planning and zoning, building and code enforcement, and litigation.  

In her free time, Patty enjoys traveling, gardening, and outdoor activities with her husband, Paul. She has two awesome step-daughters and large extended family who she frequently is trying to convince to relocate to Cook County. 

Following a 40+ year career as an RN in a variety of settings, Barb identifies as a community nurse most recently providing direct care, education and support to individuals and families at St Paul’s Health Care for the Homeless, the Hennepin County Adult Detention Center, and Woodland Hills in Duluth. 

Her interest in patient education led her to become a licensed parent educator with the South Washington County School district Outreach program, where she enjoyed “filling the gaps”. Barb’s responsibilities included facilitating groups, home visiting, writing curriculum for teen parents and childbirth education classes, teaching GED and ABE, developing a comprehensive program for new parents, supervising the School Age Family Education program, and collaborating with the medical, school and business communities.

A former Lutsenite and frequent visitor to Cook County, she is delighted to have been able to retire and move permanently to the Shore. With her daughter, son-in-law, and three of her seven grandchildren, she is enjoying life on the east end of the county, in Hovland. An avid reader, crafter, and back roads explorer, she looks forward to putting her energy into serving her neighbors as a North Shore Health Care Foundation Board member. 

In her work, Anna explores how the human-nature relationship creates wellbeing and wholeness. She is the author of two books, Shamanic Wisdom for Pregnancy and Parenthood, and Sacred Medicine of Bee, Butterfly, Earthworm, and Spider. Anna has worked with children, families, and individuals as a counselor and minister, and has a Doctorate of Ministry, Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family, and Bachelor’s Degree in Family Social Science.

Anna teaches and volunteers as a Master Gardener in Cook County, and you can often find her working in her pollinator garden. Indoors, Anna loves to knit, do crosswords, and tend her orchid collection. She loves connecting with nature in every season: cross-country skiing, hiking, kayaking, birdwatching, and spending time along the shores of Lake Superior. She is the mother of two awesome elementary-aged kids, and also a devoted dog-mom.

Mike Hero has been a year-round resident of Cook County since 2006. He has been a practicing Attorney for 40 years. He previously served for 24 years as a President and Trustee of Laura Baker Services Association, an organization dedicated to the care of persons with developmental disabilities, and served from 2006 to 2020 as Corporate Secretary and Director of Heywood Bancshares Inc., a national bank holding company.

Coralyn was born and raised on the east side of St. Paul, Minnesota. She and husband Greg have been their married life living in Minneapolis and the suburbs raising three children and volunteering in numerous capacities.

The Koschinskas then built their home and moved to the North Shore in 1996, where Coralyn has been involved in several non-profit organizations, including:

• West End Garden Club, Treasurer
• Schroeder Area Historical Society President during the renovation of the Cross River Heritage Center and the first several years of operation.
• We Connect, Chair of the Board. WE Connect is a community organization in the West End serving elders and families.

“Helping to further the health and well-being of citizens and visitors to Cook County through community programs is supremely important to all of us and is deserving of our best efforts to make changes that will improve the quality of life for all people. The North Shore Health Care Foundation is doing its best to help realize this goal and I am proud to be a part of this.”

Our Executive Director, Valerie, is an energetic, visionary leader with an innate ability to make things happen, bring ideas to life and bring people together. A former Director of the Office of Emergency Management & Public Information for Cook County, she served as the Emergency Manager and Communication Director for the Sheriff’s Office and county government. Valerie also chaired the Pigeon River International Emergency Management Committee which brings together all emergency services agencies including Law Enforcement, Fire, EMS, Homeland Security & Emergency Management, Public Health and Customs/Border services between Cook County, Minnesota and Thunder Bay, Ontario, and helped execute the first-ever MN/ON international cross-border emergency services mutual assistance agreement, recently signed in 2019.

Prior to coming back to her home state, she served with the City of Thunder Bay as the Supervisor of Corporate Communications and PIO for the Emergency Operations Control Group and a member of the City Manager’s leadership team for more than a decade helping to develop and implement many capital projects and community development programs for the city of 120,000. In 2003, after immigrating to Canada from Minneapolis, she co-founded and operated a private public relations and marketing firm. She is an honor graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth and La Universidad de Guadalajara Mexico, and holds a double BA in Communications & Public Relations and Spanish.