Board of Trustees

Gary Blodgett, Chairperson

Gary Blodgett is a new board member as of 2022. He comes with a long history of involvement in education. He was a classroom teacher in Springfield, Vermont for thirty years. He taught in the elementary schools and at the middle school. He served as the school principal while teaching for over a decade, which gave him an unique perspective. With faculty and community involvement, Gary helped develop a multi-age school that incorporated many different teaching and learning opportunities for the students at that school. Gary served on the school board in Ludlow, and has been involved with the recreation committee. Gary has been involved in youth and high school sports for most of his life. He has developed and coached gymnastics and soccer programs. He is also a high school soccer official. After retiring from teaching and coaching, he and his family ran a successful small country store in Ludlow while serving as the Southern Vermont Soccer Officials Assignor and trainer. He is excited to be involved in this innovative school experience.

Suzy Buckley, Vice Chair

Suzy graduated from Castleton University in 1991 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in Early Childhood Education. After graduating she worked at various preschools and child care centers before acquiring a job at Ludlow Elementary School. She worked as a Title I Literacy Teacher at Ludlow for 15 years, during which time she earned a Master’s Degree in Education from the College of Saint Joseph. In 2014 she became a Literacy Specialist at Saxtons River Elementary School where she worked for 3 years. In 2018, she took a job at Black River Middle School/High School working as a paraeducator. Suzy has 2 children attending Black River High School and enjoys spending time supporting her children in their endeavors in academics and extracurricular activities. She is also very involved in the Ludlow Elementary School Thespian Club and volunteers for a variety of school and community events.

Julie Abraham, Treasurer

Julie completed her BS in Accounting at the University of Vermont and is a seasoned financial executive with over 30 years of experience in large public companies. She has also been a Board Member in various public, private, and non-profit entities. She and her husband, George, have had a second home in Ludlow for 20 years. Along with their daughters, they have been a part of the Okemo Mountain and Okemo Mountain School Community for over 15 years. As of August 2018, Julie and her husband are now full-time permanent Ludlow residents. BRISC is excited to welcome Julie to the board as her expertise is the perfect complement to their continued fundraising efforts.

Marissa Selleck, Secretary

Marissa is a BRHS alumna. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a Minor in Sociology at The University of New Hampshire. She spent 3 years as a legal assistant right after college. She also worked as a residential specialist at Woodstock Therapeutic Community Residence and Hilltop Recovery Residence. Her passion for community and education led her to work as the co-leader of Vermont Youth Conservation Corps in 2014. At that time she also began to teach as a substitute teacher for the Two Rivers Supervisory Union. For the past 4 years she has worked as a teacher at Okemo Mountain School grades 7-12 including classes for Reading/Writing & English Language Arts, History & Social Studies, Psychology, Criminal Justice, and Contemporary Issues. She also assists in a lot of hands on projects through her work with Garvey & Garvey. Marissa spends her spare time advocating for the community and involved in sports. She volunteers to coach teams and plays an important part in making the town a better place for all children. She is dedicated to making sure Ludlow has a school that serves grades 7-12.

STEPHEN MESSINA, BOARD MEMBER

Stephen has a BS in Accounting from the University of Rhode Island and a Master of Business Administration from St. Leo University. Stephen spent 15 years with Progressive Insurance in a variety of roles as the carrier grew from obscurity to a Fortune 100 Company. For the past ten years he has been with a family-owned entity in Florida, where he has served as VP of Claims, Division President, and currently serves as the Chief Claims Officer and SVP of Insurance Operations.                         

           
A couple of years ago Stephen purchased a condo on Okemo and has been splitting time between Tampa, FL and Ludlow. Whether it be skiing, mountain biking, hiking, water sports, or riding his motorcycle through the mountains, he enjoys the outdoors and the beauty of Vermont. Stephen brings his legal and finance expertise to the MWD team and looks forward to carrying on its storied legacy of matching families with their dreams!

Patrick Pullinen, Board Member

Patrick Pullinen, a retired educator, is also a Ludlow “native”. He attended Black River High School. He then attended Castleton University, and graduated with honors with a degree in Physical Education and health. While at Castleton, he played soccer and was named an All-American. During his 38 year career as an educator, he served as a Physical Education teacher, coach and athletic director. He started his career as a teacher and coach at Wallace O’Neill Day School, an independent school in Pinehurst, North Carolina. He then went on to teach at Park Street School, and coached Varsity Boys at Springfield High School for 17 years.

Patrick returned to his alma mater, Black River High School, to teach and coach, for 18 years. His teams won 4 state championships and 7 league titles. He was named Vermont Coach of the Year and Marble Valley League Coach of the Year 3 years. During this time he also served as Athletic Director at Black River High School. He has had extensive training in Project Adventure in Hamilton Massachusetts, and helped develop an Adventure Program and Ropes Course for Black River High School. He was a member of the Vermont Athletic Director’s Association and served on the Snow Board Committee

Mr. Pullinen served as a school board member in Ludlow for over 10 years. Seeing the need for recreational programs for Ludlow residents, he helped develop the Ludlow Recreation Committee/Program and served as a founding member of the Ludlow Recreation Board. He also helped found the Mountain Soccer Club in Weston, which provided elite playing experience for area soccer players. Through his soccer contacts, he was approached to act as a liaison and host for Trinity College’s Soccer Peace Program. This program formed a team uniting Catholic and Protestant youth soccer players from Dublin, Ireland who played exhibition games throughout the United States.

With his long history of service to the Ludlow Community, Mr. Pullinen is bringing his experience and passion for education to the Board of Black River Independent School.