Meet willamette Riverkeeper’s Staff:
heather king | she/her | co-executive director and lower willamette Riverkeeper
Heather King brings over 25 years of nonprofit leadership and a passion for environmental and social justice to her role as Co-Executive Director for the Lower Willamette. Formerly the Executive Director of the Columbia Slough Watershed Council, Heather led urban conservation efforts, community engagement, and restoration projects in North Portland. Her prior experience as Deputy Director at WRK included fundraising, staff development, and education initiatives, making her well-versed in Willamette River advocacy.
Heather holds a Master’s in Social Justice Education from UMass Amherst and an MBA in Nonprofit Management and Social Policy from Brandeis University. Her commitment to environmental equity and community advocacy drives her leadership in urban conservation, restoration design, and Superfund cleanup projects.
With experience founding two nonprofits focused on community empowerment, Heather’s leadership emphasizes strategic growth, diversity, and social equity. Her vision for co-leadership is built on shared responsibility, transparency, and collaboration.
Passionate about exploring the Pacific Northwest, Heather finds joy in connecting people to nature through educational outreach, community partnerships, and strategic advocacy. Her role in the Lower Willamette focuses on urban conservation, environmental justice, and building resilient communities.
Heather leads urban conservation policy, restoration initiatives, and community engagement in the Lower Willamette, leveraging her extensive experience in urban environmental advocacy and restoration. Heather’s leadership will drive initiatives addressing Superfund cleanup, industrial development, restoration program oversight, and environmental justice. Her expertise in donor engagement and corporate sponsorship cultivation will strengthen community partnerships and expand WRK’s impact in the Lower Willamette.
Michelle Emmons | she/her | co-executive director and upper willamette Riverkeeper
Michelle Emmons is a seasoned nonprofit leader with 13 years of dedicated service to Willamette Riverkeeper and a lifetime of connection to the Willamette Valley. Following the passing of former Executive Director Bob Sallinger, Michelle stepped into the Interim Executive Director role, guiding the organization through a critical end-of-year fundraising campaign and spearheading strategic changes in WRK’s leadership structure. Under her direction, WRK is poised to expand its staffing capacity, enhance community partnerships, and drive strategic growth in the coming year.
Michelle graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and Public Relations. She brings extensive experience in regional program management, community partnership development, and legislative advocacy. She is a non-profit co-founder and former executive director of a recreational non-profit, and a member of the Oregon Trails Coalition Advisory Council and Oregon State Parks Recreation Trails Program Committee. Michelle has successfully led policy initiatives, coordinated impactful programs such as the River Guardians Program and the Great Willamette Cleanup, and cultivated strong community alliances throughout the Willamette basin. Her leadership emphasizes strategic planning, fundraising, resource development, and coalition-building to support WRK’s mission of environmental stewardship and community engagement.
A committed conservation advocate and strategic leader, Michelle’s vision for co-leadership is grounded in community empowerment, sustainable growth, and environmental equity. Her role focuses on amplifying community voices, driving legislative change, and fostering a culture of environmental responsibility and community resilience.
Michelle leads financial operations, legislative policy oversight, and community engagement in the Upper Willamette, where she has built strong relationships and spearheaded initiatives focused on clean water advocacy, habitat conservation, and community partnerships. Michelle’s focus includes strategic financial, legislative, and program oversight, operational management, communications, and water trail development.
Michelle often describes her work as “connecting people, sustainability, and the great outdoors”. She is an avid mountain biker, paddler and mushroom forager, an aspiring equestrian and fly fisher, and has lived and worked in a variety of rural and urban areas within the Willamette Valley, from the headwaters to the Superfund site. Her favorite quote is “We all live upriver.”
Vanessa Youngblood | SHE/HER | restoration Manager
Oregon has been home for Vanessa for the past 20 years and the Willamette River has always held a huge place in her heart. Vanessa lives and breathes the Willamette; whether its paddling, rockhounding, exploring its tributaries, or identifying all the plants that exist in the riparian corridors.
She has followed her passions and received a Bachelor’s in Natural Resources with a focus on Plant Ecology and a minor in Botany at Oregon State University. Vanessa has worn a multitude of hats professionally including hands-on forest fieldwork and recreation management at the McDonald & Dunn Forest, outdoor education, leading volunteer groups with invasive species pulls and native planting, wastewater treatment for the City of Harrisburg, human resources and management in multiple businesses, as well as a wealth of customer service experience.
She has an immense passion and appreciation for our native plants and understands how integral they are within our ecosystems. She recognizes that native plants are the bones of riparian restoration and watershed management and are crucial for things like food and shelter for our beavers or habitat for our salmon. Her goal is to help restore our watersheds and educate people that the Willamette River is more than just water running through, it is the vegetation, the wildlife, the urbanization, and complex communities that provide us all sustenance and life.
Lindsey Hutchison | SHE/HER | Staff Attorney
Lindsey has worked in water conservation since graduating from Smith College in 2015. After college she worked in anadromous fish habitat restoration, volunteer coordination, and environmental education before going to law school. While attending the University of Oregon School of Law, Lindsey worked with the Environmental Law Foundation, Western Environmental Law Center, and Advocates for the West. She graduated from law school in 2021 and obtained certificates in Environmental & Natural Resources Law and Ocean & Coastal Law. Before joining Willamette Riverkeeper, Lindsey worked in water policy in Utah.
Lindsey grew up in Santa Cruz, California, where she spent her time on the beach, in the woods, and along the San Lorenzo River. She spent many of her vacations in Glide, Oregon, where she first fell in love with Oregon rivers. Lindsey is passionate about conserving and restoring waterways and is excited to continue this important work with Willamette Riverkeeper.
