Board of Directors

Dan Cashman / Board Chair

Dan Cashman is an Old Town native, having spent nearly his entire life in Eastern Maine. He graduated from the University of Maine in 2000 with a degree in mass communications and spent a summer in New York City interning for MSNBC and WFAN radio. After graduating, Dan spent six years working in radio before segueing into a position as assistant press secretary for Gov. John Baldacci. Dan stayed in that role until 2009, when he left state government to start a small business in Bangor. Dan is currently the Director of Public Relations at Sutherland Weston and hosts a weekly television talk show that can be seen all over Maine.

Elizabeth Sutherland / Vice Chair

Elizabeth Sutherland, APR, is the Sutherland of Sutherland Weston Marketing Communications.  Originally from “The County,” after college Elizabeth worked for the United States Senate, the American Red Cross, and what’s now Northern Light Health in increasingly complex public relations and marketing roles before launching out on her own. She is a graduate of the Bangor Region Leadership Institute and winner of the 2016 Eames Leadership Award and the Girl Scouts of Maine 2017 Juliette Award for Leadership. She serves on several non-profit boards and in leadership roles for a variety of local and state-wide organizations and was named to the JA Business Hall of Fame in 2022. Elizabeth is also an avid reader, writer, runner, mother of two boys, and wife to a radio-talk-show host.

Jessica Ward / Secretary

Jessica Ward was born and raised in Maine but spent a lot of time visiting family in France during her childhood. Jessica has learned all there is to know about business and marketing at Husson University, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing. She is currently a Senior Account Manager at Sutherland Weston Marketing Communications.

Jessica loves spending time with her children, Sophia and James, and taking trips to Disney World, especially during their Food and Wine Festival.

Lauren Platt

Lauren has spent the last 10 years in an office setting and is an experienced administrative assistant. Lauren lives in Corinna, Maine with her husband and in his opinion, too many pets. When the weather cooperates, she enjoys hiking, camping, and tending to her plants. The rest of the time she’s most likely to be found indoors crocheting and watching too much television.

Jack Cashman

Jack Cashman’s career has put him in a number of roles, including “author.” Coming from a background of small business ownership, real estate, and insurance, Cashman was first elected to serve in the Maine House of Representatives in 1982. After five terms in office and some time away from state government, he returned to public service in 2003 in a variety of roles with the administration of Maine Governor John Baldacci. Cashman’s first book, An Irish Immigrant Story, was published in 2018 as a historical novel based on the story of his own family’s journey from Ireland to the United States during the time of the Potato Famine. Cashman has spent nearly all of his life in Maine, and currently lives in Hampden with his wife of nearly 50 years, Betty. They are the proud parents of two sons and grandparents of five granddaughters.

Derek Perkins

Derek Perkins is a life-long Mainer, growing up in Milford, Maine and is a graduate from Old Town High School. Derek graduated from the University of Maine with a degree in Elementary Education. He received his Masters in Educational Leadership from Saint Joseph’s College in Standish, Maine. Derek has been involved in education for 18 years, and currently is the Superintendent of Schools for School Union #93, which serves students in Blue Hill, Brooksville, Castine, Penobscot, and Surry. He is also involved in both youth and high school sports, serving as a football official since 2017. In his spare time, Derek enjoys golf, listening to music, boating, and spending time with his family. He resides in Hampden with his wife, Melanie, who is an ELA teacher.

Alton Buzzell

Alton is a native of Brewer, Maine, and proud “Witch” of Brewer High. Leaving Maine for the United States Army after high school and serving on multiple tours of duty to Iraq and Afghanistan, Alton returned home to Penobscot County in 2013, where he has served in several sales and marketing roles, including currently as Marketing Manager for Hollywood Casino, Hotel and Raceway in Bangor. A graduate of Northeastern University’s Masters in Sports Leadership and a current Doctoral student at Liberty University, Alton’s lifelong passion for education and literacy has helped inspire him to cultivate a similar love for literature with others!

Kerri Watson-Blaisdell

Raised in Aroostook County, Kerri left to attend the University of Maine at Machias, where she graduated with an English degree. She returned to the County for a few years before leaving again to attend the Univesity of Maine, where she graduated with a Master’s in Communication. Returning to the County, she worked for Northern Light Health in Presque Isle (formerly The Aroostook Medical Center) as a Public Relations Specialist for nearly eight years. She left the hospital for higher education to serve as Northern Maine Community College’s Associate Director of College Relations for two years. During that time, she earned her MBA from Husson University. Kerri left the community college to become the Director of Marketing & Communication at the University of Maine at Fort Kent, where she served for nearly six years. A year ago, she left UMFK to become The County Federal Credit Union’s Vice President of Marketing. She will be enrolling in the University of Maine’s Business Analytics graduate certificate program this fall. She and her husband live outside of Presque Isle with their hairy Maine Coon, goofy German Shepherd, and sassy Quarter horse. They spend far too much time forwarding ridiculous TikToks to their three grown daughters.

Jill Ward

Jill Ward grew up in Cape Elizabeth and now works and lives in Portland as Director of the Center for Youth Policy & Law and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Maine School of Law. She was also recently appointed as a senior policy advisor to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Educated at the University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown Law, Jill has always had a strong interest in civic engagement, public policy, and advocacy, especially as it supports the health and well-being of children and teens. She returned to her home state of Maine in 2007 after more than 15 years of public sector experience in Washington, D.C., including positions with the U.S. Senate, the Girl Scouts of the USA,  and the Children’s Defense Fund. Here in Maine, Jill served as co-chair of a statewide task force on juvenile justice reform from 2019-2020 and was subsequently appointed to the Maine Juvenile Justice Advisory Group where she serves as vice chair. She has extensive board and leadership experience, serving on various national and statewide non-profit boards, and is actively involved in her sons’ high school soccer and hockey booster clubs. When not working or volunteering, Jill can be found on a soccer field, at a ballpark, or in a hockey rink watching her boys, Michael and Nicholas.

Sarah Walker Caron

Sarah Walker Caron is an award-winning writer and journalist and author of nine books including The Disney Princess Tea Parties Cookbook and Classic Diners of Maine. She also writes the popular food blog Sarah’s Cucina Bella, founded in 2005 and devoted to encouraging people to use quick and easy recipes to cook at home with fresh ingredients as often as possible. In addition to writing, Sarah teaches journalism at the University of Maine and professional blogging at Husson University. 

After 22 years in news and media, Sarah transitioned to PR in 2023, taking on the role of Director of Communications for Husson University where she works to spread the word about Husson’s commitment to experiential learning and dedication to preparing students to be job-ready on day one of their careers. She is also the marketing and events manager for The Briar Patch in Downtown Bangor.

When she’s not cooking, writing, teaching or communicating, she loves to read, take long winding walks and grow too many vegetables. She lives in Bangor with her two teenagers and a way-too-smart black cat named Bippity.