Members of the Outdoor Writers Association of America elected Ruth Hoyt, Shawn Perich and Ken Keffer to serve on the organization’s board of directors. They will start their three-year terms June 3 at the board meeting held in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The new board members replace Becky Jones Mahlum, Vicki Mountz and Paul Vang, whose terms expire this year.
Hoyt is a Texas-based photographer known for her bird photography and professional guiding services on private Texas ranches. She has also taught photography courses for almost 30 years. She also writes, coaches contest photographers and consults with farm and ranch owners.
She joined OWAA four years ago.
Keffer, who lives in Iowa, is a naturalist and award-winning environmental educator and author. He has written seven books connecting kids to the outdoors, plus a hiking guidebook. He’s also a noted freelance writer.
He joined OWAA four years ago and has served on the education and marketing committees.
Minnesota-based Perich is the publisher of Northern Wilds magazine, which he co-founded in 2004. He worked as a full-time freelance writer for nearly 15 years and authored eight books and many magazine articles.
He has been an OWAA member for 33 years and served on the diversity committee and as an Excellence in Craft contest judge.
OWAA’s membership also approved a change to the organization’s bylaws that will make the first vice president chair of the conference program committee and assigns the second vice president to assist him or her with conference planning. ♦