Dustin Stillinger, President

Dusting joined MDCB’s board in December of 2011 and serves as the Chair of the Median Committee. A graduate of Ball State with a B.S. in Natural Resources and Environmental Management, he has worked at Minnetrista since 2008, overseeing the apple orchard and natural areas.  In April 2013 he took over the role of Horticulture Manager. He enjoys outdoor gardening, fishing, playing with his son, and just being in the awe of nature. He hopes that as a community we will choose to be good stewards and take care of our natural heritage and our environment, limiting our negative impact as best we can.

Dustin Jones, Treasurer

Dustin joined MDCB in December 2015 as Treasurer. He is a Ball State University graduate with a B.A. in accounting with 5 years of experience in public accounting and currently employed at Estep Burkey Simmons, LLC. Dustin is a native of Muncie and enjoys spending time with his wife and son.

Jason Donati

Jason lives in downtown Muncie with his fiancé Yvonne “Sasha” Roberts and their four children Deshawn, Destiny, Levi, and Legacy. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Roy C. Buley Center, the Upper White River Watershed Alliance, the Cardinal Greenway, and is President of the Urban Forestry Committee.  Jason is an AmeriCorps alumni member and moved back to Muncie after living many years in Buffalo, New York working for a non-profit with in youth services and urban farming.

Chris Daniels

Chris joined MDCB in January of 2012. He is a graduate of Ball State with a B. S. in Wildlife and Conservation Biology. Although Chris is a Muncie native, he spent much of his childhood wandering the hills of Southern Indiana. In his free time Chris enjoys biking, bird watching, and spending time in the great outdoors.

Elaine Vidal

Elaine Vidal is a horticulturalist, community organizer, and advocate for sustainable agriculture. She holds a Master of Arts in Natural Resources and Environmental Management from Ball State University, and is an accredited horticulturalist with the Indiana Nursery and Landscape Association. Her professional work history includes extensive experience in horticulture and outdoor education. She currently holds the positions of Farm Manager at Ring Family Farms, and Food Hub Coordinator for the Muncie Food Hub Partnership Project. In addition to MDCB, Elaine serves on the board of the Living Lightly Fair as Chair of the Children’s Activities Committee. She hopes to promote health, knowledge, and quality of life through sustainable food.

Unai Miguel Andres 

Unai, a native from Spain, has been a member of the Muncie community since 2015. He currently works for the Hossier Roots Food Hub. Unai holds a Master of Urban and Regional Planning and a MS in Natural Resources and Environmental Management from Ball State University. Unai loves spending time outdoors, no matter whether is running along the white river, or reading a book under a tree. Unai hopes that one day everyone will have access to beautiful natural spaces within walking distance of their home.

 Jacob Riddle

Jacob Riddle is from the tiny town of Pittsboro, Indiana. He originally began at Purdue with a full-ride scholarship with the Air Force ROTC and was going for a pre-med degree. He remembered some of his favorite childhood days were running through nature in Boy Scouts and decided to transfer to the Natural Resources program and eventually transferred to Ball State University. After internships with the National Park Services and DNR, Jacob found his calling working at the Orchid greenhouse and Minnetrista. Jacob is now the Greenhouse Manager at Wasson Nursery and loves getting to take care of plants all day and helping to educate others on plant care and choices. In his spare time, Jacob loves backpacking, camping, hiking, bonfires, swimming, canoeing, reading, playing board games, and anything else fun.

Augusta Wray, Vice President

Augusta has served on the Board since 2013. She is a Proposal Manager in Sponsored Projects at Ball State. Wray holds an MS in Information & Communication Sciences and MA in Sociology. Augusta is passionate about the environment & volunteering in the Muncie Community. She currently resides in Muncie with her fiance and six beautiful cats.

Melinda Messineo, PhD, Secretary

Melinda is Chairperson and associate professor of sociology at Ball State University. Messineo has received four teaching awards at her current institution and one from the North Central Sociological Association. She currently serves as Director of the Freshman Connections Program, an award winning living and learning community program targeting first year students. This program works with MDCB each year on the White River Cleanup as part of its community service and sustainability objectives. Melinda is a California native and loves running, riding and roller-blading on the trails of our community.

Todd Blevins

Todd currently serves as Assistant Town Manager for the Town of Yorktown. He received his Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from Ball State University in May 2016. A Kentucky native, Todd and his wife Morgan moved to Muncie in 2014 and now consider it their home. Todd and Morgan are proud parents to an extraordinary beagle named Lola. Todd is also an avid golfer, having played since he was 4 years old. Todd hopes to one day make a difference in the world by working in environmental change and protecting animals.

Derek Tulowitzky

Derek is a graduate of Ball State University where he majored in Sports History with a focus in Black Baseball. He is currently the Web, Social Media, and Adult Outreach Specialist for Muncie Public Library. Derek’s civic work is varied but sits at the intersection of history, community, and technology. Along with Muncie Delaware Clean and Beautiful, Derek serves on the board of the Delaware County Historical Society. Nationally, he volunteers with Museum Computer Network and American Alliance of Museums Education Communications. Derek runs the appropriate amount of social media accounts, and prefers his bars to be on the historic register.

Laurynn Thieme

Laurynn has been a member of the Muncie community since 2011. She graduated in 2016 with her Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (BLA) and a BS in Natural Resources and Environmental Management from Ball State University. Her background is in horticulture and design. Recently she made the decision to go back to school in hopes of receiving dual masters in Geography and Natural Resources. Laurynn’s career goals include conservation and land stewardship, as well as restoration ecology. She enjoys hiking and loves spending time with her boyfriend and puppies.

Emily Shanyfelt

With a passion for volunteering, Emily recently joined MDCB. She is the Administrative Secretary for the Muncie Sanitary District. Emily is also a Wish Granter for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, granting the wishes of children with life altering medical conditions. She moved to Muncie when she was 19 to obtain her degree in Business Administration, and currently still resides in town with two of her high school friends. In her free time she loves being outdoors, painting, and reading.