DENVER—Denver Botanic Gardens announced today that Dawn P. Bookhardt, Richard K. “Dick” Clark, Michael Matthews and Keith Montoya have been elected to the Board of Trustees as term trustees. Lauri Dannemiller and Peter J. Kirsch have been appointed to the Board as mayoral trustees. Additionally, Jean Derr and Jeanette Pryor will serve as ex-officio trustees in relationship to their roles in The Associates of Denver Botanic Gardens and the Denver Botanic Gardens Guild, respectively.

Dawn P. Bookhardt is a founding partner in the law firm of Bookhardt & O’Toole, which specializes in complex municipal bond financing and transactions. Two of Bookhardt’s noteworthy achievements include the representation of Forest City in the development of the former Stapleton Airport site and the representation of U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray and UBS PaineWeber as underwriters for the Denver Convention Center Hotel. She is also working on the $1 billion redevelopment project at Union Station in downtown Denver. Bookhardt is the founder and owner of Odd Tale Books, a retail book store. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the National Leadership Award from the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Business Advisory Council and the Woman of Distinction Award from the National Council of Negro Women, Inc. Bookhardt is a graduate of Oakwood College in Huntsville, AL, and the University of Denver Law School.

Richard K. “Dick” Clark is senior partner in the law firm of Rothgerber Johnson & Lyons. He has more than 30 years of experience as an international business lawyer and as a trial lawyer, emphasizing international business, complex litigation and corporate disputes. Clark offers legal advice to public and private companies, both domestic and foreign. He has received numerous awards including the Distinguished Service Award as legal counsel to the Colorado Association of REALTORS®, the Colorado Super Lawyers for International Business award presented by Law & Politics Magazine, and the Pioneer Award from the Japan America Society of Colorado (JASC) and World Trade Center in 2009. Since 2007, Clark has served as general counsel to The Joshua School, a school for children with autism. He is also a member of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation Board of Governors. In 2011, Governor John Hickenlooper appointed Clark as ambassador from Colorado to Japan's Trade and Tourism Ambassador Program. Clark is originally from South Dakota. He and his wife reside in Greenwood Village, Colorado. They have three daughters and sons-in- law, and six grandchildren.

Lauri Dannemiller is the manager of the Parks and Recreation Department for the City and County of Denver. She brings more than 20 years of public sector executive experience to Parks and Recreation, with emphasis on public policy, legislative process and community planning. Prior to managing Denver Parks and Recreation, Danmeiller served as executive director of Denver City Council. She was also planning analyst and then manager and legislative liason in community development with the City of Englewood. Previously, she spent time as the administrator for Poncha Springs, Colorado. Dannemiller began her career in recreation in 1985 as the assistant director of recreational sports at Washington University in St. Louis. This led to recreation coordinator for the city of Lakewood. She received a Master of Science in public administration from the University of Colorado at Denver and in recreation administration from Eastern Kentucky University. Dannemiller leads a healthy lifestyle staying active as an avid runner. She enjoys skiing, golf and travel. She is also a spokesperson for the American Heart Association.

Jean Derr’s involvement in the Gardens began 15 years ago as a volunteer in the Sensory Garden, a therapeutic garden which appeals to all five senses. Her background as a registered nurse and her passion for using the Gardens as therapy for people with disabilities led her to join the Sensory Garden task force. Derr’s efforts helped double the amount of tours offered to people with disabilities, and helped the Gardens to secure a $10,000 grant for the Sensory Garden. For the past 11 years, the Denver native has been a member of The Associates of Denver Botanic Gardens. Derr volunteers in the Gardens’ Winter Green program, which brings horticultural activities to the homes of persons with disabilities. She was the volunteer representative at the ground-breaking ceremony for the Bonfils-Stanton Visitor Center, represents the Gardens at special events, and is trained as a Gardens’ tour guide. Derr has a Bachelor of Science in nursing and worked with Centura Health for 18 years. She and her husband of 55 years, Walt, have two daughters and two grandchildren.

Peter J. Kirsch is a partner in the law firm of Kaplan Kirsch and Rockwell. Kirsch’s clients range from municipalities and local governments to private industry and public interest groups. For more than 20 years, much of his practice concentrated on airport development, and he regularly advises airports on federal law and on airport financial and operational issues. Kirsch serves or has served on numerous charitable and nonprofit boards including the Museum of Contemporary Art – Denver, Civil Rights Research Council and River Network, a national river conservation advocacy organization. He received his Bachelor of Arts, with highest honors, from Oberlin College, remaining active with the school for more than 25 years as president of the alumni association, a member of the alumni council and as an alumni admissions representative, culminating in service on the board of trustees. Kirsch received his Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago and was the judicial law clerk for Judge Alfred T. Goodwin of the U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit. Kirsch lives with his wife and three sons in Denver.

Jeanette Pryor started volunteering with Denver Botanic Gardens in 2002 as a children's guide in the rainforest program in the Education Department. She has continued her work with children in various Gardens’ programs that include Name That Tree, Sprouts, and Moore on Monday. After joining the Denver Botanic Gardens Guild in 2007, Pryor became involved in many of the Guild’s activities. Her involvement culminated in her being voted president of the Guild for 2012. For more than 20 years, Pryor says she has especially enjoyed being a volunteer with the Arapahoe Santa Claus Shop. For the last year and a half, another one of her joys has been working as a special exhibits volunteer at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Jeanette and her husband, Linn Wilson, who met while in the Microbiology Department at the University of Maryland, College Park, have been self employed for the last 30 years out of the Denver area as sales reps for scientific equipment companies. Her other hobbies include gardening, especially with iris and roses, and textile crafts.

Michael Matthews is Wells Fargo’s market president for the Denver metro area, including Boulder, Broomfield, Lafayette, Longmont and Louisville. He manages a team of more than 200 small-business bankers in the region. Matthews has more than 31 years of financial services experience and is a 22-year Wells Fargo veteran. He was previously the bank's regional president for Northern Colorado. Matthews has also worked as community banking president and area manager for Wells Fargo's suburban business banking team in the Denver metro area. Before that, he served as community banking president for Pueblo and Gunnison, and as senior vice president and manager for business banking in Colorado Springs. Matthews serves on the Colorado Economic Development Commission, the University of Colorado President's Leadership Institute board, Boulder Community Foundation, the Boulder Economic Council and the Avista Adventist Hospital board.

Keith Montoya has worked for most of his professional life in some of the most prestigious and accomplished law firms, including Patton Boggs and Kamlet Reichert. This first-hand experience, his background and relationships with many of Denver's top lawyers, combined with his experience at managing personnel and situations led him into politics. Montoya was the deputy campaign manager and finance director for the election efforts of Colorado Attorney General Ken Salazar. Following this successful campaign, Montoya decided to launch his own operation, D1 Solutions. In 2005, he was named one of the "Top 40 under 40" by the Denver Business Journal. In 2006, Governor Bill Ritter appointed Montoya to his Technology Transition Committee. The following year, Mayor John Hickenlooper appointed him to the influential Denver County Judicial Nomination Commission. In addition to his key appointments, Montoya is committed to his community. He serves on the board of directors of the Denver Children's Museum and is the chairperson of the Business Development Committee for the Denver Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.