Leadership & Staff

Board of Directors

Shannon Renick

President

Andrew Hadley

Vice President

Shell Pierson

Secretary

Sharalee Pederson

Treasurer

Mary Haskell
Kathy Napoli
Lisa Naughton
Kim Raines
Fred Sandusky
Melissa Ruch Fenlon
Karen Williams
The Trailhead Children’s museum has a volunteer board of directors with expertise in a wide-range of fields including architecture, carpentry, art, social work, human services, retail, education, health, and finance. The expertise of the board is used in the vision, creation and execution of all programs and exhibits. Additionally, The Trailhead calls upon volunteers in the community to help with staffing floor hours, programs, events, administrative tasks and various other activities.

Katie Mueller

Executive Director

Katie Mueller is the Executive Director of the Trailhead. She comes to the organization with an expansive background that ranges from business, public relations, marketing, and nonprofit management, to teaching elementary school. She has a B.A. in foreign affairs from The University of Virginia and a Masters in Teaching Elementary School from Colorado College. Katie’s experience in the elementary school classroom is valuable in creating and executing programs and exhibits with educational value at The Trailhead.

Kelly Frimel

Operations & Creative Director

Kelly Frimel is the Trailhead’s operations director, resident artist, and visionary. Her experience at children’s museums began ten years ago in Seattle when she was chosen for an artist residency at the Seattle Children’s Museum. Since then, Kelly has worked at children’s museums across the country including the Miami Florida Children’s Museum. Given her prior experience, as well as her artistic abilities, Kelly has transformed the Trailhead into a favorite gathering place for families living in and visiting the Gunnison Valley community.