Marine Exchange of Alaska

He started his career sailing Atlantic, Pacific and Alaska waters and later in marine safety and operational assignments on the West Coast and Alaska. He was assigned as Captain of the Port and Group Commander for the Los Angeles/Long Beach region and subsequently served as the Chief of Marine Safety and Environmental Protection for the Coast Guard Pacific Area. He retired from the Coast Guard in 2001 and founded the Marine Exchange of Alaska in Juneau. Ed has lived in Alaska for 25 years and is an avid kayaker, sailor, skier and hiker.

Brett served in various afloat shipboard engineering assignments. Two of those assignments were aboard the Coast Guard cutter STORIS in Kodiak and on the Coast Guard cutter ALEX HALEY homeported in Kodiak as well. He also served at the Coast Guard Marine Safety Office in Port Arthur, Texas and on the staff of the Commander, Seventeenth Coast Guard District in Juneau.

While in the Marines he was stationed in California, North Carolina, and Okinawa, Japan as a Field Radio Operator, spending a portion of his time in Japan aboard the USS Blue Ridge. After leaving the military, he moved to Fairbanks and worked for DHL Worldwide Express and recently worked with Holland America/Princess here in Juneau. Rick has been a Big Brother with the Big Brother/Big Sisters program here in Southeast Alaska, which helps children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships. He loves walking to the face of the glacier in winter and playing Guitar Hero with his kids.

Ken spent time in Oregon, Wisconsin, Texas and Washington, DC but the majority of his Coast Guard time was spent at Alaska units in Anchorage, Kenai and Juneau. Ken’s background is primarily Marine Safety and Inspection, he wrapped up his Coast Guard career as the Supervisor of the Marine Inspection Detachment in Singapore. The Marine Exchange fit perfectly into his plan to return him and his family to Alaska permanently.

After graduating from JDHS, she went to Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Computer Systems. Subsequently, she worked in Arizona and in Illinois before moving back home in 2001 to manage her family's business. With a keen interest in Accounting and Finance, she joined the Marine Exchange in the fall of 2010. Kristin enjoys photography, cooking, traveling, boating, and especially spending time with her husband and children.

After graduating from Transylvania University in Lexington, KY in 2004 with an Economics degree, Jonathan spent a few years working with a local wealth management team at UBS Financial Services. When a career based around the stock market lost its luster, he decided to pursue his passion for the outdoors by relocating to Southeast Alaska and taking a job as a rafting guide in the spring of 2007. This “temporary summer vacation” turned into a 6+ year career in the outdoor industry working in such capacities as a mountain/raft guide, wilderness therapy field instructor and tour manager. In 2013, Jonathan hung up his guide hat and relocated to Juneau and, shortly thereafter, joined the Marine Exchange team.

He served as a Communications Technician (Radioman) onboard the Icebreaker WESTWIND and Buoytender BITTERSWEET, as a Distress Communications Technician at Coast Guard Station Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, and Coast Guard Group Southwest Harbor, Maine, as a Communications Center Section Supervisor on the Commander Seventeenth Coast Guard District Staff in Juneau, Alaska, as the Communications Supervisor at Coast Guard Air Station Sitka, Alaska, as the Communications and Security Officer at Marine Safety Office Philadelphia, PA, and finally as the Communications Manager for the Seventeenth Coast Guard District in Juneau, Alaska. Bill has been a Licensed Merchant Marine Officer since 1994 and he currently holds a 100 Ton Masters License. He has been on staff at the Marine Exchange of Alaska since December of 2001.

He brings a wealth of electronics and technical experience to the Marine Exchange. Prior to joining the marine exchange in 2010, he was employed as a field engineer for a Florida based corporation which specializes in marine navigation and communications electronics. He's traveled to many destinations around the world installing, commissioning, repairing, and maintaining navigation equipment on passenger ships, cargo vessels and the occasional mega yacht. Ed met his wife Nikki in 2012 here in Juneau and has a daughter and two stepsons. He enjoys spending time with his family and getting out on the water.

As a Communication Systems Radio Operator he served his first year at Clark Air Base Philippines in support of the Strategic Air Command. In 1991 the Air Base was evacuated as part of Operation Fiery Vigil, after which he became a member of the 1st Special Operation Wing, Hurlburt Field, Florida. Over the next five years Rob provided voice and data communication between Commanders and Air Assets any time any place. Rob moved to St. Louis, Missouri in 1996 where computers and networking became his primary career focus. By 2000, he had attained industry certifications from Microsoft and Cisco. For the next fifteen years he was involved in the design and support of Local and Wide Area Networks for enterprise level corporations including AT&T, The Department of Defense Information Systems Agency, and MasterCard. Rob joins his father and brother as a resident of Juneau. He plans to spend a lot of time on the trails of Juneau and also enjoys watching and photographing marine life.

Since being hired as a college student to work summers, Anna has enjoyed many varied and creative responsibilities at MXAK. Anna earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, C.A. She holds a Master of Arts in speech-language pathology from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Anna is a proud graduate of Juneau-Douglas High School.

During his time with the Coast Guard, he patrolled Southeast Alaska aboard the Coast Guard Cutter ANACAPA, navigated the Inside Passage as a DWO on the STORIS, experienced the Bering Sea aboard the STORIS, JARVIS and CHASE, and even made a couple open ocean transits to Hawaii, the last of which landed him on the shores of Guam, Singapore and Thailand. After earning his Masters in Info Systems, he returned to Alaska as the CG District 17 Command Center Chief, overseeing the multi-missioned, 24-hour watch in Juneau. To improve maritime domain awareness, he traveled to Moscow and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia, brokering Border Service cooperation in managing the Arctic “Donut Hole”. The last 5 years of his career were focused on overseeing the CG’s Nationwide Automatic Identification System contract, developing, prototyping and deploying AIS to the Lower 48. Shawn first started working with the Marine Exchange team in 2005, and a decade later, he transitioned to full time employment.

Her interests in marine biologics and ecological soundscapes have prompted a number of research projects from studying killer whale vocal development in San Diego, to quantifying tidal power potential in New Zealand, to detailing habitat use of Southern right and Bryde’s whales in South Africa, and investigating harbor seal and vessel interactions in Tracy Arm Fjord. She grew up in a variety of coastal communities in California, Washington, and Hawaii, but has happily made Juneau her homeport for the last 13 years. She loves adventuring with her husband, kayaking, bodysurfing, snowboarding, stargazing, fine literature, and absurd movies. Jen is proud to assist in the Marine Exchange’s mission and eager to learn from its operations.

He was accepted to the Naval Academy Prep School in 1990 and graduated from the Coast Guard Academy in 1995, then took assignment as a Deck Watch Officer/Ops Officer on SWEETBRIER in Prince William Sound. Following a tour at Marine Safety Office Houston-Galveston in Port Waterways Management, Matt briefly left the Coast Guard for three years and was employed with World Kitchen in Corning, New York. Realizing that New York and civilian employment was nothing like Alaska and the Coast Guard, Matt returned to the Great State with tours in District 17’s Office of Compliance in Juneau, Incident Management/Pollution Response Brach Chief in Valdez, Ports and Waterways Coastal Security in Juneau and completed his twilight tour as the External Affairs Department Head for D17 where he retired after 24 years of Coast Guard service. Matt then spent a year and a half as the U.S. Forest Service’s On-Scene Coordinator for the Tongass and Chugach National Forests prior to being hired by MXAK. Matt and his wife Sue have three daughters: Madison, Molly and Shelby.

Upon graduating high school, she moved to California to pursue a bachelor’s degree in film production. She worked for DreamWorks Animation SKG for 4 years in Los Angeles, until mass layoffs occurred in early 2013. After this she wanted a change from the busy city life and made the move to Juneau, Alaska. It was here where she discovered her passion for salt water fishing and the maritime industry. She started out sport fishing with friends on the weekend and was instantly hooked. The following summer she began deck handing on local charter boats, and was eventually granted her Masters Captain’s license. She has worked for several charter companies in and around the Juneau area over the years. During the winter she likes traveling, spending time with friends/family, and running a Christmas tree business with her brother.

He ended up pursuing a degree in Geology from Utah State University, and thereafter sought employment in the Alaskan gold mining industry. With a love for the outdoors, the ocean, and mountains he found all he could ask for in Juneau. Taking a step back from the mining industry to make himself available to his new son he was brought into the Marine Exchange of Alaska in May of 2018. Taron is very excited to have an opportunity to grow sea legs and raise his son to be a true Alaskan.

She came to Juneau in 2001 to pursue the vast opportunities that Alaska has to offer. She fell in love with Southeast and now, can’t imagine calling anywhere else home. Amanda is a proud mother of 3 boys and loves to take them hiking, fishing, swimming, sledding and snowboarding. Amanda joined the Marine Exchange of Alaska in August 2018 and is very excited to be a part of the MXAK organization.

He grew up the eldest of three brothers and spent many years traveling and experiencing incredible and amazing cultures, Japan, France, England, Sweden, Denmark, Mexico and many places within the the US. Eventually, life brought him to Alaska. While in Alaska, he spent nearly 10 years in Barrow, now known as Utqiagvik. Here he started his professional career in Technology and worked for both the NSBSD, as well as Ilisagvik College. Utqiagvik is also where he met his wife. They moved to Juneau where he was an IS Technician for UAS and developed an even greater love and respect for Alaska. He has lived throughout much of Alaska over the last 20 odd years, and everyday there has been a new adventure, and he can't wait to see where life will take him with the Marine Exchange of Alaska!

After graduating high school Matt enlisted in the Coast Guard serving as a Health Services Technician being stationed at USCGC STORIS, Air stations Borinquen and Sitka. After the Coast Guard Matt completed a degree in Biology from the University of Alaska Southeast and began work with the State of Alaska, eventually leaving to return to the maritime industry with the Marine Exchange of Alaska. When not working Matt enjoys time with his family, Hunting, fishing, trapping, playing and officiating hockey, and all things beer.

After graduating from the University of Vermont, Nick headed west to Oregon State University where he obtained a Master’s in Biology. He has lived in Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Hawaii and worked as a biologist for various federal agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Forest Service. He holds a 100 ton U.S. Coast Guard master’s license and also worked in Southeast Alaska as a mate on The Boat Company’s small eco tourist passenger vessel MIST COVE. Nick enjoys all types of outdoor activities and the ability to travel to the unique destinations in Alaska where he installs and services the Marine Exchange’s AIS sites.

Raised in Fairbanks, Alaska, his family spent summers on the pristine waters of Prince William Sound. He left the state in 2003 to pursue a degree in Geology from Montana State University. After spending time in Montana and Utah enjoying the skiing and mountain biking, he returned to Alaska working as a mining geologist and state geologist. Feeling the call of the sea once more, his wife, dog, and he spent the last 3 years refitting and sailing an old 36 ft sailboat from California to Mexico, across to Hawaii, and ultimately to Juneau, AK. In all, a journey of some 15,000 sea miles. He now holds a USCG captains license and is excited to explore more of the waters of Southeast Alaska.

Since joining the Marine Exchange Zoe has become a permanent member of the crew of the CLEAT, the Marine Exchange's AIS Test, Maintenance and Resupply Vessel. Zoe has made all voyages in the CLEAT to many destinations in Southeast Alaska including Haines, Skagway, Eldred Rock, Cape Decision, and Point Baker. She has recently found fame on MXAK's Instagram feed. When not engaged in marine operations or social media influencing, Zoe usually can be found sleeping on the deck in the Marine Exchange offices or under the desk of the Executive Director.