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Heartwood Leadership
The Heartwood Coordinating Council (aka Board of Directors) are volunteers who direct, advise, inspire, inform and do the work of Heartwood. We are representatives of our individual bioregions and communities. We are representatives of small, grassroots groups. We are community leaders and network organizers. We are activists. We bring literally hundreds of years of experience and passion to our work. We are people helping people protect the places that they love!
David Nickell
Chair, Kentucky
David Nickell is a sixth generation denizen of far western Kentucky. He farms, teaches philosophy and sociology, and tries to do as little damage as possible. He is dedicated to protecting the LBL region of Kentucky and has been active with forest watch activities.
Rae Schnapp
Treasurer, Indiana
Rae spent her childhood climbing trees and hunting fossils near the Meramec River in Missouri before moving to Indiana. She serves as the Wabash Riverkeeper and is especially passionate about the role of forests in watershed protection and carbon sequestration. Rae has led teams of scientists to document all the flora and fauna in the Combs Creek watershed of the Hoosier National Forest, where timber rattlesnakes are thriving. Rae has two amazing adult daughters, and enjoys hiking, kayaking, hula-hooping, and gardening.
Lizzy Nickell
Secretary, Web Master, Ohio
Lizzy grew up going to the Cincinnati Zoo, and has been passionate about conservation ever since. Her 3 masters have revolved around the intersection of birds and urban areas. After earning her masters degrees, she set her sights on web design in the hopes of helping conservation organizations connect to the wider world.
Lizzy enjoys reading, crafting, and traveling, along with making friends with the locals (like the goat pictured).
Corina Lang
Illinois
Although Corina Lang initially became involved in environmental activism to help protect the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois as a member of R.A.C.E, her connection with Heartwood has led her to be concerned with issues in other folks’ back yards, not just her own, such as Mountain Top Removal. Currently she is embroiled in the efforts to protect her own neck of the woods from fracking and strip mining. Life interests include dancing and guerilla theater.
Lora Kemp
John Wallace
Illinois
John is a founding member of southern Illinois’ Shawnee Forest Defense!, a group of grassroots organizers trying to protect the Shawnee National Forest and the 27 year old Shawnee Chapter of the Illinois Audubon Society. He is currently the Shawnee Audubon Chapter president and serves on the Land Protection and Stewardship Committee of IAS, the oldest, non-governmental conservation organization in Illinois. John has a BS in Plant and Soil Science from SIU and has been known to portray the writer, mountaineer and conservationist, John Muir, in living history performances.
Don Scheiber
Indiana
Don Scheiber lives in Lafayette, IN and has primarily been a peace, labor, and community activist. Retired from 28 years as labor liaison for United Way, he started Food Finders Food Bank in 1980, and became an “ environmentalist- come – lately” and served as a board member of the Hoosier Environmental Council for several years, Vice President of Tree Lafayette, and recently a member of NICHES—a multi-county nature conservancy type group.
Don was a “back-to-the-land” hippie drop-out in the 70’s and is interested in intentional communities and attempts at living sustainably and organically.
Roberta Schonemann
Indiana
Roberta Schonemann is a longtime civil libertarian activist/armchair environmentalist, writing letters-to- editors, signing petitions, attending local rallies. As editor of the Lafayette Independent (2010 – 2017), she supplied material for the 2-monthly pages devoted to environmental issues raising the alarm about global warming. Recently she enjoined an unsuccessful attempt to prevent further expansion of a waste treatment plant along Indian Creek which borders her property, 10 acres outside West Lafayette, 80% of which is left undeveloped.
Matt Peters
Coordinator, Pennsylvania
Matt Peters lives in Pittsburgh, PA and has been a member of Heartwood since 1993. He was a founding member of Pennsylvania's Allegheny Defense Project, and worked with the Buckeye Forest Council in Ohio as well. Matt is an urban homesteader, growing a garden and helping protect and restore forests in the city's Greenways. He has been serving as Heartwood's Coordinator since 2018.
Contract Employees
Marlena Cuomos
Accountant, Pennsylvania
Marlena lives in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and 4 year old son. They enjoy rambling in the woods near their home.
In Memoriam
All of these accomplishments are significant, but Andy’s greatest legacy was his heart. He was known for a rare gift: making everyone he met feel seen, valued, and adored. He drew friends from all walks of life, weaving together relationships that spanned generations, communities, and creation itself. His poems and songs celebrated unity, love, and the sacredness of the natural world. His words and music will continue to echo in the lives of those who were blessed to hear them.
Together with his wife Linda Lee, Andy created a sanctuary of love, healing, and community at the Lazy Black Bear property in Paoli. It was more than a home — it was a place where countless people, young and old, found solace in the woods, in the animals, and in the circle of community life. Many who came there to heal or simply to belong were forever shaped by the experience, carrying Andy’s influence into their own lives and communities.
Andy’s life was rooted in kindness, creativity, and service. He leaves behind his beloved wife Linda, his siblings Barbara and Anthony, his loyal companion Wagner, and a wide and loving circle of family, friends, and community members who will carry forward his spirit of love, justice, and stewardship of the Earth.
Many will treasure the memories Andy has left behind, the kind deeds he has done, and the encouraging words he has spoken — all of which helped shape our lives. Though his physical presence will be deeply missed, his heart and vision live on in the woods he fought to protect, the community he nurtured, and the countless lives he touched.
Andy Mahler, 1951-2025
Andrew “Andy” Michael Mahler, beloved husband, brother, artist, and forest protector, passed away peacefully on August 30, 2025 at his home in Paoli, Indiana. He was 74 years old.
Though his formal training was in art, Andy’s true canvas was the living world around him. He was a visionary artist, musician, poet, and builder who saw the beauty and potential in everything and everyone. From scraps of material to broken tools, from strangers to lifelong friends, Andy found purpose, creativity, and possibility, leaving behind a legacy of art, music, and community that continues to inspire.
Andy was highly regarded as a forest protector and tireless advocate for the land he loved. He started the Indiana Forest Alliance, and was a founding member of Protect Our Woods and later helped to organize and lead Heartwood, a regional grassroots forest protection network. Through heartfelt speeches and courageous leadership, Andy rallied public concern over destructive practices such as clear-cutting and burning in the Hoosier National Forest. His efforts earned him many awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hoosier Environmental Council, and he was honored as a Kentucky Colonel.
