BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Rich Green

President

A local business owner since 1991 with degrees in physical anthropology and historical geology from Northwestern University, Rich Green fell in love with history as a young boy fascinated by the boxes of bones in his community museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Rich is a professional electronic system integrator, serves as adjunct faculty at Moraine Park Technical College, is a frequent speaker on future technologies, and is an officer of the Palo Alto Historical Association (PAHA).

“The Palo Alto Museum is important. It will be an essential destination for anyone interested in learning how this amazing city and Stanford University have impacted the world. The city will rejoice as it discovers this new downtown treasure.”

Pat Sanders

Vice President

Patricia Sanders and her husband Tom have been Barron Park residents since 1967. Pat is a third-generation Californian and a third-generation graduate of the University of California system. A career educator, she taught in the Palo Alto Unified School District. An active community volunteer, she worked on Palo Alto’s celebration of our Centennial and 125^th Anniversary. She was a vice president of Sister Cities International and a cofounder of the Palo Alto Foundation for Education (now Partners in Education). She has serves as a board member of the Kiwanis Club, Woman’s Club, Garden Club, and the YWCA of the Mid-Peninsula Donor-Advised Fund.

“The Palo Alto Museum will be a civic jewel that illuminates a unique past, recognizes today’s peoples, and informs the future. It will invite visitors to learn, think, question, play, and dream.”

Lanie Wheeler

Treasurer

A native of Cambridge, Massachusetts, Lanie Wheeler moved to California in 1963. She and David have lived in their historic Greenmeadow Eichler home since 1966. In 2003, Lanie was named Tall Tree Outstanding Citizen for her exceptional contributions to many volunteer and nonprofit organizations. A longtime CFO of Palo Alto Community Child Care, she remains an ardent volunteer with such organizations as the Kiwanis Club, Palo Alto Housing, and the Palo Alto Community Fund. With service to the City on the Planning Commission, City Council, and as Mayor, Lanie has developed a deep understanding of and love for our Palo Alto community.

“I see PAM as a place where people of my generation can come to reminisce, younger adults can learn how to play a part in our special community, and children can be inspired by stories of people who have lived and worked here to realize their own dreams of achieving great things.”

Monica Yeung Arima

Monica Yeung Arima was born in Hong Kong and graduated from UC Berkeley. She worked for IBM and is a longtime Palo Alto realtor. Monica and her husband Adrian, a Stanford alumnus and a third generation Japanese American, live in Professorville. Monica has participated in many community activities, including Paly’s Kiwanis Key Club, the Palo Alto Chinese Parents Club, Leadership Palo Alto 2018 and city council and school board campaigns. She managed a successful exhibition for the Stanford Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project that traveled around the country and supported Stanford’s multiethnic education program training school teachers. In 2016 Santa Clara County commended her service on the Palo Alto Stanford Citizen Corps Council.

“I want to encourage others to support the Palo Alto Museum and build a solid support base. The Museum will tell the great story of Palo Alto and Stanford University. It will serve as a community hub.”

Megan Swezey Fogarty

Megan Swezey Fogarty serves as Stanford’s inaugural senior associate vice president for community engagement leading efforts to drive more purposeful engagement between Stanford and local communities. Previously, Megan served as deputy executive director at Stanford’s Haas Center for Public Service. She also served as nonprofits liaison for State Assemblyman Joe Simitian and for a decade hosted Senator Simitian’s government access television show, Capitol Focus.

Megan has worked for over 35 years in nonprofit program development and management, primarily with organizations focused on involving young people in civic engagement. Other professional experience includes City of Palo Alto teen coordinator, Youth Community Service founder, Haas Center for Public Service assistant director, and Youth Service California executive director.

Megan was recognized in 2008 with the Palo Alto Tall Tree Award for Outstanding Citizen/Volunteer. In 2014, she was recognized by the California Governor’s Office as a Service Trailblazer for AmeriCorps’ first 20 years. She lives in Palo Alto with her husband, Mike, and has three grown children: Matt, Molly, and Michaela.

Karen Holman

Karen Holman has been active in the community for many years, including a long record of public service and environmental stewardship. Over the past 20 years Karen has served as Mayor, City Councilmember, and Planning Commissioner. Before being elected to the board of Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District in 2018, Karen co-chaired its 2013-14 Community Advisory Committee that created Midpen’s updated Vision Plan. Karen launched the idea of a local history museum and is one of the founders of the Palo Alto History Museum.

Born and raised in Missouri, Karen has lived in Palo Alto since 1975. Karen had a long career in graphic design before pursuing work in the conservation and historic preservation field, including serving as executive director of the Palo Alto History Museum. She holds a B.A. in graphic arts from the University of Arkansas.

“Knowing our history, especially local history, provides individuals and groups of people with a sense of place and inspiration for what is possible.”

John King

Born in Chicago and raised near Sacramento, John King received his BA in Economics from Stanford. With over three decades of experience in Silicon Valley and the Peninsula, John is a broker and co-owner of Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto and served as president and owner of Alhouse-King Realty, Inc. for 16 years. Active in professional organizations, John has also supported several community nonprofits as a board member or officer, among them the Kiwanis Club of Palo Alto, Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, Barron Park Association, Neighbors Abroad, and the Palo Alto Historical Association (PAHA). John’s history of family connections with Stanford and Palo Alto influenced his commitment to helping establish the Museum.

“PAM will share the city’s unique history with new generations of innovators who can witness personally the inspiring story of the Palo Alto community.” 

Doug Kreitz

A resident of Palo Alto since 1994, Doug Kreitz has a BS degree in Organizational Behavior from the University of San Francisco and an MBA from St. Mary’s College of California. Doug retired from Stanford (SLAC) in 2010 after holding a variety of senior management positions for over 40 years at various U.S. DOE national laboratories. After retirement, Doug followed his lifelong passion for photography and video production, volunteering and teaching classes at the MidPen Media Center. Doug uses his extensive media experience and talents in support of the Museum’s mission.

“This Museum will be the first place everyone will want to visit to learn the personal stories of the people who made Palo Alto great. It will provide an unprecedented look at what made Palo Alto and the Silicon Valley such a phenomenon.”

Hal Mickelson

Born in Southern California, Hal Mickelson came to Palo Alto in 1967 to enroll at Stanford University. He received his AB from Stanford in 1971 and his JD from Harvard in 1974. Hal became a supporter of the Palo Alto Museum in 2018 at the urging of longtime friends who know he is fascinated by the city’s history. From 1979 through 2012, he was an attorney on the legal staff of Hewlett-Packard, so he deeply appreciates the stories of the businesses that helped build our community and create Silicon Valley. Active in the community, Hal is a past president of Rotary.

“People from all over the world want to know what made Palo Alto happen, why this one small town has had so much influence on technology and business. We ought to provide the answers to those questions.”

Nelson Ng

Recording Secretary

A UC Berkeley computer science graduate, Nelson Ng worked over three decades in Silicon Valley to build global software for users worldwide. In 1996 he moved to Palo Alto with his wife Kimberley Wong, whose deep family roots—her grandfather cofounded Palo Alto’s first licensed Chinese restaurant—inspired Nelson’s quest to learn about the rich, diverse history of the city. Witnessing recent changes, he engaged in community affairs to preserve the city’s quality of life. For the past five years, Nelson has taught Tai Chi every Sunday morning at Rinconada Library.

“I envision PAM as a center of innovation to enable our community and people across the globe to experience how Palo Alto continues to change the world.”

John Northway

Palo Alto native John Northway, architect and cofounder of Stoecker & Northway, studied under Birge Clark at Stanford and worked for his firm in the 1970s. Since 1978, John’s company has provided varied architectural services—including residential, commercial, educational, and institutional projects—with a focus on technologies, products, and systems that preserve the environment, reduce energy consumption, and enhance user comfort. In 1988, John won the Tall Tree Award for Outstanding Professional. As a boy, John participated in the Children’s Theatre; in the 1990s, his company designed two expansions of the original Birge Clark theatre. Currently John serves the Museum as a member of the construction committee.

“The museum will celebrate and illuminate the dedication and intelligence of those who founded the City and will be dedicated to the brilliant minds that started and sustained the technical revolution.”

Steve Staiger

Native Californian Steve Staiger was raised in Marin County. With an AB degree from UC Davis and a Masters of Library Science from UC Berkeley, Steve relocated to the Peninsula in 1973. From 1977 until he retired in the early 2000s, he served as a reference librarian for the City of Palo Alto. Beginning in 1984, he doubled as historian for the Palo Alto Historical Association (PAHA), which manages the city-owned Guy Miller Archives. He continues to welcome researchers and visitors to the Archives. From day one, Steve has fostered the idea of creating a local history museum in the Roth Building.

“My vision is that PAM can be more than a place to house artifacts and tell stories. It can become the town center, where all elements of the community are welcome to visit, hang out, and perhaps learn something about their community’s past, present and future.”

Robert Villarreal

Born in Santa Clara California and a Palo Alto resident for 30 years, Robert brings over 35 years of international sales and marketing experience to the board. Upon graduation from
San Diego State with a degree in Business Administration, Robert began his professional career at ROLM Corporation where he progressed into the world of global enterprise sales. From there he leveraged his skills to help both established and start up companies NetApp, Data Domain, EMC, Tintri, Nutanix and Minio expand their business models into the global enterprise market. Robert and his passion for Palo Alto and the positive impact it has made to world we all live in today, makes him a great fit for moving the Museum vision forward. 

Bardy Wallace

Corresponding Secretary

Bardy Wallace rejoined the board in July 2021, having spent three earlier terms as board secretary. She grew up in Palo Alto during the post-World War II period of accelerated population and job growth that foreshadowed the physical and economic outlines of today’s city. With a history degree from Stanford, she worked later with young children and taught child development classes to their parents. Formerly a PAHA board member, she values our historical archives and notes appreciatively that musicians and artists have long joined engineers, educators, researchers, and imaginative investors in fueling Palo Alto’s vibrant spirit.

“The Museum will point to the future by spotlighting the diversity of people whose forward-looking energy has distinguished Palo Alto since its earliest days.”