Melissa Bianconi 
City of Bellingham

Melissa Bianconi has worked in the field of Parks and Recreation for over 20 years, most recently as the Recreation Manager for the City of Bellingham Parks and Recreation Department. Bianconi holds two Recreation Management degrees from Ithaca College, and SUNY-Cortland. Before moving to Bellingham, she served as the Recreation Director in the town of Dryden, NY for seven years. She also went back to her undergraduate alma-mater of Ithaca College to teach courses in recreational human resource management, and recreational facility design. Her current professional focus is providing equitable public services through community recreation programs and facilities.

Lynn Sterbenz 
City of Bellingham 

Lynn Sterbenz is the Emergency Manager for the City of Bellingham. Lynn has worked in local government emergency management in the Puget Sound area for 12 years. She holds a Certificate in Emergency Management, a master’s in Homeland Security, is a Certified Emergency Manager and a Master Exercise Practitioner certified by FEMA. Her passion is empowering grassroots initiatives for disaster preparedness and resilience in neighborhoods and communities. She is also devoted to researching and understanding what motivates people (or doesn’t) to prepare for disasters. Lynn attributes her interest in emergency management to being raised in Alaska—where she and her family experienced thousands of earthquakes annually, multiple volcanic eruptions, dozens of severe winter storms and extended power outages, and lived off the grid at their summer cabin—and the rural way of life that necessitates being prepared for anything.