A group of devoted individuals, with diverse skills and backgrounds, the Mainspring staff is proud to carry forth the legacy of conservation in the Southern Blue Ridge to ensure the natural and cultural resources and beauty of this region remain for generations to come.
Ben Laseter
Interim Executive Director
Ben has been with Mainspring since 2012 and is currently serving as the interim Executive Director. As Deputy Director, Ben lead projects that integrate cultural heritage preservation with land conservation and restoration efforts. He is Manager of Ela Dam Project, LLC, a project that is coordinating a team of partners, contractors, and agencies to restore connectivity to the Oconaluftee River in western North Carolina.
Ben represents Mainspring on the boards of the Nikwasi Initiative and the National Trail of Tears Association. He holds a Ph.D. in Forest Resources (Wildlife Ecology and Management) from the University of Georgia, an M.S. in Biology (Vertebrate Zoology) from the University of Memphis, and a B.S. in Forest Resources (Forest Science) from the University of Georgia.
He and his wife Stephanie live with their two children in southern Macon County and take every opportunity to explore the uplands and waterways in our southern Appalachians.
828-524-2711 x308
Sharon Willard Burdette
Donor Relations Manager
Sharon grew up in the Otto community of Macon County and graduated from Franklin High School.
Prior to working for Mainspring, Sharon worked with the Little Tennessee Watershed Association from 2008-2011 as their Bookkeeper/Administrative Assistant. There she was responsible for grant reports, accounts payable, and membership.
In January 2012, the Little Tennessee Watershed Association merged with the Land Trust of the Little Tennessee. Sharon continued as an Administrative Assistant and added Development Assistant to her role in 2014. As the Donor Relations Manager, she now oversees mailings and donor stewardship, all while keeping the office running efficiently.
She lives in the Holly Springs area and loves kayaking, camping, and hiking.
828-524-2711 ext.301
Skye Cahoon
Conservation Outreach Director
Skye’s primary responsibility as Mainspring’s Conservation Outreach Director is connecting people to their local landscapes. Join her for a hike, workshop, or another event to get to know the lands, waters, and cultural resources Mainspring conserves.
Skye grew up in Massachusetts and, as a kid, could often be found climbing trees, hunting for salamanders, or chasing fish at her local swimming hole. Her passion for nature grew with her, and in 2020 she earned her Zoology B.S. from the University of Maine. After graduating, Skye bounced around the country on her quest to protect the earth: tracking blackbirds through the mountains of New Hampshire, studying quail in the pine savannahs of Florida’s panhandle, monitoring songbird nests in the sagebrush scrub of Montana, and leading folks on educational adventures on the rocky coast of Maine. She was drawn to North Carolina by the diverse mountains, cascading waterfalls, and the potential to share her love for the outdoors with the communities here.
In her spare time, Skye enjoys hiking, foraging, cooking, admiring mosses and mushrooms, and doing yoga in the sunshine. On rainy days, she can be found painting, playing her ukulele (badly), and cuddling her cat, Felix.
828-524-2711 ext 302
Wendy Duvall
Finance Director
Franklin native Wendy Duvall joined the Mainspring team in June of 2023. Wendy grew up taking advantage of the natural resources in her hometown and surrounding region. A graduate of Western Carolina University, she has spent more than 25 years in the finance field, mainly in the healthcare industry. In her free time, Wendy enjoys working on puzzles, singing karaoke, and watching sports (especially her beloved Atlanta Braves).
828-524-2711 ext 312
Graham Garrett
Land Conservation Associate
Graham joined the team in 2022, serving as a Land Conservation Associate and working with all aspects of conservation – meeting with landowners, researching deeds, mapping properties, and assisting the Stewardship Program Team with annual conservation easement monitoring.
Graham studied agriculture, botany, and conservation biology at Berry College in Northwest Georgia and later taught the English language at Champasak University in Laos, Southeast Asia. After returning to the United States, he worked with the Southwestern NC Resource Conservation & Development Council of Waynesville, NC and the NC State Extension of Cherokee County.
Graham lives in Andrews, NC with his wife Anna Rose and their two sons, and he can most often be found out in the woods or reading a good book. Graham is the eighth generation of his family to live in the mountains of North Carolina, and is happy to be a small part of protecting the beautiful country he calls home.
828-524-2711
Alina Martin
Conservation Outreach Associate - West
Alina brings her passion for the natural world to her role at Mainspring, where she plans and leads engaging events that connect people with the region’s remarkable landscapes. Drawn to western North Carolina by its incredible diversity of salamanders, birds, and plants, she fell in love with the temperate rainforest and close-knit community.
A Baltimore, Maryland native, Alina grew up exploring forests and marshes with her outdoors-loving family. She earned a B.A. in English from St. Mary’s College of Maryland, where she spent as much time birding and hiking as studying literature.
Her curiosity for wildlife led her to pursue intensive training in botany and ecology, birding from Maryland to Arizona, where she surveyed Mexican Spotted Owls in the Sky Islands and Grand Canyon region. An avid eBird and iNaturalist user, Alina loves sharing her knowledge of birds and plants to inspire a deeper connection to nature.
Jason Meador
Aquatics Program Manager
As Aquatic Programs Manager, Jason is responsible for engaging youth and adults in the community in the work of Mainspring. He also serves as the Project Coordinator for stream restoration activities and the Biomonitoring Program.
Jason has been an outdoor enthusiast all of his life. He grew up hiking in the woods and swimming in lakes and streams. This background led him to pursue degrees in natural resources. Jason received his B.S. in Marine Sciences from North Carolina State University (2004). He later completed his M.S. in Forestry and Natural Resources (2008) with a concentration in fish/wildlife populations, specifically working with freshwater mussels.
Jason lives in Otto with his wife, Kristen, and children, Katie and Wyatt. He enjoys fishing, paddling, snorkel/SCUBA, hunting, mushroom collecting, and decoy carving.
828-524-2711 ext. 309
Bill McLarney
Senior Scientist and Aquatic Program Specialist
Founder of the Little TN Project
Dr. William O. McLarney holds a Ph.D. in Fisheries from the University of Michigan but considers himself an aquatic conservation biologist. He has worked in aquatic ecology in the Great Lakes region and Alaska and was a co-founder and director of aquaculture research for the New Alchemy Institute in Massachusetts.
He splits his year between Macon County, North Carolina, where he has directed a biomonitoring study of the upper Little Tennessee watershed for over 30 years, and the Talamanca region of Costa Rica for over 20 years, where he founded Asociación ANAI, one of the most successful conservation and sustainable development organizations in the tropical world.
The Biomonitoring Program at Mainspring is one of the most successful in North America. Its success led to the North Carolina Governor’s Award for Water Conservationist of the Year in 1994, the River Heroes Award for Dr. McLarney from River Network in 2004, the Roosevelt-Ashe Society Award for “Outstanding Scientist in Conservation” from WildSouth in 2009, and the Fred A. Harris Fisheries Conservation Award, awarded by the North Carolina Chapter of the American Fisheries Society in 2014. Bill also has a terrestrial home and family in the Oak Grove Community.
Kelder Monar
Stewardship Manager/GIS Specialist
Kelder wears some of Mainspring’s muddiest boots on the ground. He first joined the nonprofit part-time in 2013, assisting with easement monitoring and property stewardship, which became a full-time position in 2015. As Stewardship Manager, he oversees those responsibilities and is Mainspring’s primary GIS technician and licensed pesticide applicator. On any given work day Kelder might find himself on a remote easement boundary, in a thicket of invasive plants, or at his desk making a map.
Kelder grew up in Carrboro, North Carolina. He has earned a B.A. in Geography from the University of North Carolina and Master in Biology at Western Carolina University. Kelder originally got involved with Mainspring as an intern while studying at the UNC Institute for the Environment field site in Highlands, North Carolina. Though he once worked as a seasonal botany technician and made a couple road trips across the continent, Kelder has happily settled down in Sylva with his wife, Heather and daughter, Alice. A lifelong runner, Kelder also enjoys cooking, reading, backpacking and simply playing outside.
828-524-2711 ext 306
Molly Phillips
Communications Director
Molly serves as Mainspring’s Communications Director where she leads the integration of fundraising, marketing, and communications to strengthen the organization’s reach and impact. With a passion for storytelling and community engagement, Molly works to ensure that conservation efforts resonate with supporters, landowners, and the broader public.
She is also spearheading the restoration of the historic Siler-Jones House in Franklin, a significant preservation project for adaptive reuse that was gifted to Mainspring in 2024.
When she’s not sharing Mainspring’s story, Molly and her husband, Randy, are writing their own — renovating an 1872 farmhouse in Macon County while their two children good-naturedly endure life in a forever-construction zone.
828-524-2711 x300
Martha Ross
Stewardship Associate
828-524-2711 ext 305
Sophie Vazquez
Land Conservation Associate
Sophie’s primary role as Land Conservation Associate is to assist the Lands Program team with conservation projects in the Southern Blue Ridge. She may be found coordinating land and conservation easement acquisitions, communicating with landowners and partners, visiting and mapping properties, or helping with stewardship.
From a small homestead in Cherokee County, she was raised in the Piedmont with her sisters. Sophie earned a B.S. in Biology from Appalachian State, focusing on ecology, environmental science, animals, and GIS. After working on farms, a fellowship out west, and a couple of years as a conservation educator and wildlife technician for nonprofits in central and northern Appalachia, she thought it was time to take what she had learned about applied conservation and bring it back home. Sophie feels privileged to serve this region’s lands, waters, and communities.
She comes from a family of artists and makers and is always working on a creative project. She enjoys backpacking, scratch cooking and fermentation, and cozy days at the library.
828-524-2711 ext 310
