Board of Directors

Charles Allen is the President & CEO of Lakeside Chautauqua. A seasoned nonprofit professional, Allen has been leading Lakeside for over four years as Chief Operating Officer, then President & Chief Executive Officer.

Gwen Swigart Nichols from Westerville, OH, is President and CEO of Nichols & Company, CPAs. The firm coaches growing businesses and families through tax and accounting challenges from compliance to strategic tax planning. Gwen has held active roles in the Westerville Chamber of Commerce, Church of the Messiah United Methodist, Westerville Rotary Club, AAUW, Sigma Alpha Tau Alumnae Chapter, Calusa Club Cooperative Treasurer (Naples, FL). Raised in New Philadelphia, Ohio, Gwen fell in love with Lakeside on her first visit in 1986 as a member of Youth Musicale, a music ministry of the East Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church. She is a 1993 graduate of Otterbein College where she met her husband Brian and quickly identified a shared love of Lakeside. As a child, Brian visited regularly with his family including his grandfather, a United Methodist minister. Their dream to purchase a cottage was realized in 2011. Their children, Carson and Mabry, have savored summers living and working in Lakeside. Their first cottage is now a rental shared with many families during the summer months and home base at Lakeside is in what was once a bicycle shop. The entire family enjoys the Lakeside atmosphere and sharing worship, fellowship, and recreation with frequent guests.

Doug Adams joined the Board in 2024.  He and his wife Nancy were introduced to Lakeside over ten years ago by their then college-aged son who attended events as part of a Christian leadership summer program.  After renting for a number of years they purchased a cottage in 2021 and have become involved in various activities of the Lakeside Historical Society along with advisory groups for renovating older Lakeside facilities.

Doug practices a Biblical servant leadership style and has previously served on several Church, School and Missionary non-profit boards.  He is also currently President of his Homeowners Association in Florida.

Professionally, Doug owns a small consulting firm specializing in market analysis, strategic planning and evaluating test markets for industry marketing programs and companies.  He is a graduate of Emory University with a B.A. in Economics and an M.B.A. in Finance.  Doug and Nancy met through InterVarsity while at Emory.  Together with their three children and spouses along eight grandchildren, all look forward to time together at Lakeside each summer.

Gregory T. Bricker, CPA/PFS, CFP®, AIF® is a financial professional, entrepreneur, and former mayor dedicated to helping individuals and businesses achieve financial success. As the owner of Bricker Financial Planning, Greg offers expert guidance in investment management, tax planning, and retirement planning. With a fiduciary commitment, he prioritizes client interests while creating cost-effective, passive investment portfolios.

From 2020 to 2023, Greg served as the Mayor of East Liverpool, OH, securing over $50 million in grants for infrastructure improvements and spearheading economic development initiatives that revitalized the city. His leadership attracted new businesses, restored vacant properties, and enhanced community programs.

A lifelong Lakesider, Greg introduced his wife to the community before they purchased their cottage in 2017. Originally from East Liverpool, OH, Greg and his family moved to Lakeside full-time in 2024, where he opened a second office in Marblehead. He enjoys sharing Lakeside with his two young children, ages 4 and 1, and can often be found on the pickleball courts.

Greg holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Youngstown State University and remains actively involved in community organizations, including serving as President of the Ohio Valley YMCA Board, board member of The Counseling Center, board member of Kent State University East Liverpool Campus, and a board member of East Liverpool City Hospital.

Rev. Rachel B. Miller joined the board in 2021 and currently serves as secretary. She is an ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church and is appointed to Wespath Benefits and Investments in Glenview, Illinois, where she works in client relations and outreach. Previously, Rachel served for 15 years as Vice President of Business Development and Commercial Lending at the United Methodist Financial Credit Union. 

Rachel has represented the West Ohio Conference as an elected delegate to both the United Methodist General and Jurisdictional Conferences and has served as the delegation’s secretary. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education from the University of Kentucky, as well as a Master of Arts from Asbury Theological Seminary. 

Rachel’s husband, Dennis, is the Senior Pastor of Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church in Tipp City, Ohio. They have returned to Lakeside each summer since the early 1990s, were both ordained in historic Hoover Auditorium, and purchased their cottage in 2025. Rachel loves walking Ohio’s Most Beautiful Mile, boating, water skiing, baking, and working in her yard. 

Jack Allen is a graduate of Ashland University and the Ohio State University College of Law. Professionally, Jack was a partner in the firm of Mitchell, Allen Catalano and Boda, with offices in Columbus and Mansfield, Ohio. After 33 years in private practice, Jack accepted an appointment as a U.S. Administrative Law Judge with the Social Security Administration in 2008. Jack served in that position in Columbus initially. In 2012, He was appointed Deputy Chief Administrative Law Judge for SSA, serving in Falls Church, VA. There, he worked on national disability policy issues for SSA and with the Chief Judge, provided oversight for hearing offices across the country. After retirement from his judicial position, Jack and Pam returned to Lakeside and became full time residents in 2018. Jack and his wife, Pam have been Lakeside property owners since 1985. Their two daughters grew up enjoying many Lakeside summers and they have now shared their love of lakeside with Jack and Pam’s five grandchildren.

Brad Anderson owns a cottage at 435 Peach Avenue. He is married to Gwen Anderson and has three children. He is a sales and marketing professional from Pepper Pike, Ohio, with deep knowledge in brand management and consumer behavior. Brad is a former U.S. Peace Corps volunteer – Lithuania and also a former United Nations Volunteer- Kazakhstan. Brad believes that Lakeside succeeds when everyone feels included, valued, and connected to the community. It is not simply a “resort” or a “homeowners’ association,” but a living, breathing nonprofit organization, one of the most complex of its kind, with a mission that blends faith, culture, education, and recreation.

Steven Brunot is a lifelong resident of northeast Ohio. He started coming to Lakeside in the late 1980s, when his girlfriend’s parents, Neil and Judy Glaser, bought a small cottage on Laurel. Fast forward nearly 40 years, and he and his wife now own his late in-laws’ house at Jasmine and Sixth. His two daughters (Rachel and Sarah), now in their 20s, grew up spending much of their summers at the house.

Steve recently retired after a career in government finance. He spent the past 15 years working for the Summit County Engineer’s office as director of administration, overseeing budgeting, human resources and information technology. He previously worked for the cities of Tallmadge, Macedonia and Avon Lake in Northeast Ohio.

He and his wife live in Shaker Heights. His wife, Susan Glaser, is the travel editor for The Cleveland Plain Dealer.

In retirement, Steve looks forward to enjoying his favorite Lakeside activity, sitting along the lake with a morning coffee and donut listening to the serene sound of the lakeshore.

Richard L Boettner III has been a part of the Lakeside community for 57 years. A resident of Columbus, Ohio, Rich serves as the Chief Technology Officer for Hilliard City Schools, where he has provided strategic vision and leadership for over two decades. Beyond his professional career, Rich brings more than 30 years of experience in youth camping and retreat programming. He is dedicated to aligning Lakeside’s strategic growth with its founding mission by viewing youth camping and retreat ministries as a crucial avenue for expanding the Kingdom of God and deepening our impact. Rich is married to Susan Boettner, and together they share a love for Lakeside with their 2 adult boys Jeremy and Noah, daughter-in-law Autumn, and 2 amazing grandchildren who are 7th Generation Lakesiders.

Michael Eggers is a 25-year Lakesider and now a cottage owner. It does not take long to fall in love with Lakeside. Michael and his wife, Laura, purchased their cottage after selling their McDonald’s restaurant business, which they owned and operated together for 15 years. Owning a cottage had long been a shared dream, reflected in the name of the cottage, “LaLa’s Dream.”

After graduating from Augusta State University, Michael entered the United States Army as an active-duty Armor Officer (Tanks), serving three years on active duty and an additional 25 years in the inactive reserves. Following active-duty service, Michael became the General Manager of a private Christian school, The Chapel Schools, for two years.  He later joined McDonald’s Corporation as the Director of Operations. In that position, oversight included 490 restaurants generating over $1 billion in annual sales, requiring deep expertise in consulting with and managing large, multi-unit organizations. He later transitioned to becoming a McDonald’s Owner-Operator with four locations.

In addition to business leadership, Michael has extensive nonprofit and governance experience. Work with The Ronald McDonald House Charities of Atlanta spanned eight years, representing more than 100 Owner-Operators as Chair and Vice Chair of the Owner-Operator Regional Leadership Council. Responsibilities included leading communication efforts and supporting two capital campaigns that raised millions of dollars to build two new RMHC houses in the Atlanta area, as well as increasing ongoing operational funding. Continued involvement included serving as Chair of the Board of Directors for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Lowcountry, supporting South Carolina and Georgia, and later contributing as a consultant to the CEO at the national level.

Corey Clay joins the Board after having first been brought to Lakeside in 1990 at the age of 5.  His grandparents discovered Lakeside as attendees of Annual Conference.  Unknown to Corey at the time, his future wife Liz (Wilcox) was also a regular summertime visitor to Lakeside when her family accompanied her father, a now-retired UMC minister, to Annual Conference.  Liz and Corey are now fortunate to share Lakeside each summer with their children Charlie (age 7) and Eleanor (age 2), along with generations of extended family.  Watching Charlie and Eleanor enjoy the same timeless fun – shuffleboard, playgrounds, sunsets on the dock, donuts and ice cream – that Liz and Corey enjoyed as kids brings them great happiness.  When not daydreaming of Lakeside sunsets, Corey is Associate General Counsel for The MetroHealth System in Cleveland and resides in Lakewood, Ohio.

Bret Johnson is a recently retired elementary school teacher. He has been enjoying Lakeside since 1985, when his Church family came for an Ordination service at Hoover. Bret and his family have been privileged to own a cottage in Lakeside for 25 years. Bret graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University with a degree in Sociology and Religion. He earned a Masters degree in Education from John Carroll University. Bret is involved in the Lakeside community, having served on the board of The Friends of Hotel Lakeside, Lakeside Heritage Society, Lakeside Wooden Boat Society, as well as a supporting role with the Lakeside Women’s Club. Bret’s Lakeside summer employment has included working as Recreation Director, Vesper’s Coordinator, and Supervisor of Teen Programming. He is an active member of Hope United Methodist Church. Bret serves in several community organizations, including PTA President of a local elementary school, member of the Bedford Arts Council, and as a trustee on the Bedford City Schools Foundation Board. Bret and his wife Becky have one daughter, Gracie, who is a sophomore at Ohio Wesleyan and works at the Rhein Center. Their favorite memories as a family are times spent together in Lakeside.

MaryAnn Kelmer has been a Lakeside cottage owner for 24 years and a year-round resident of Lakeside since 2016.  A successful small business owner, MaryAnn founded Kelmer Transcription Service in 1989 for the medical and legal communities.   In the early 2000s she started an innovative business called Fabric Rescue in which she taught classes, gave lectures, and sold her own line of fabrics and quilt patterns to quilters all over the Midwest. Currently she is the co-owner of Sweet & Savory Cottage Bakers, a small-batch artisan bakery that serves the Lakeside Farmers Market in-season and delivers fresh baked goods directly to customers’ homes all over the Marblehead Peninsula in the off-season. At Lakeside, while assisting the Rhein Center director, MaryAnn observed the serious need to improve the way students registered for classes.  She researched, proposed, gained approval for, and implemented an on-line registration system after becoming director herself 2014.  The system was widely accepted from the beginning and is still being used today. MaryAnn is the President of Lakeside Property Owners Association and has also served on that board as Director and Vice President.  She volunteers for the Lakeside Heritage Society and is actively engaged in the care of her 100-year-old father.  She and her husband Rich have one adult daughter, Grace, who lives in Michigan.

Larry Kisabeth graduated from Heidelberg College in 1974 with a BS in Mathematics and Physical Education.  He attained his MA in Educational Administration from Bowling Green State University in 1987 with additional coursework at the University of Findlay. He formally retired from public education, for the first time, in August of 2009.  He began his educational career at Carey High School in August of 1974, teaching mathematics for ten years.  He then came to Tiffin City Schools where he taught mathematics for another six years. In the fall of 1990, Larry became a guidance counselor at Columbian, serving in that position for twelve years.  In August of 2002, Larry was named the principal of Columbian High School and served in that position until his retirement in 2009. Since retirement, Larry has served two stints as an interim principal and a year as an interim Athletic Director at Columbian High School. He also served as an interim Dean of Students at the Tiffin Middle School.   He served as an interim principal at Fremont Ross and as an interim assistant high school principal at Findlay High School.  Mr. Kisabeth served five years as an adjunct professor at Heidelberg University teaching “Mathematics for Elementary Educators”. Kisabeth just completed 50 years of coaching athletes, 35 years with high school athletes.  He has been the varsity coach of Boys’ Basketball, Girls Basketball, Boys’ Baseball, Girls Softball, and Boys’ Track.  He was an assistant men’s basketball coach at Heidelberg College from 2006-08.  In 2008 Heidelberg’s men won the first basketball championship in the school’s history. Over the years Larry has served on many boards with Family Counseling in Tiffin, The Tiffin-Seneca United Way, the Allen Eiry Senior Citizen Center, the Lakeside Property Owners Association, and several committees at Trinity United Church of Christ in Tiffin. Larry and his wife, Debbie, recently celebrated their 48^th wedding anniversary.  They have three grown children and four grandchildren. Larry and Debbie are third generation Lakeside cottage owners.  Larry has been coming to the Lakeside family cottage every year since 1960.

Don Longwell is a long-time Lakesider and owns a cottage on Second Street.  He is The Lakeside Chautauqua Foundation Board Chair. He began his legal career as a tax consultant at Price Waterhouse, specializing in individual, corporate, partnership, estate and international taxation, where he also earned his CPA certification. Don later transitioned into Estate and Trust Planning, inspired by his personal experience helping his family with asset protection and Medicare planning.

Scott Low joined the board in 2022. He loves Lakeside and has vacationed in Lakeside all but one year of his life. He met his wife, Kay (Althouse), in 1985 in Lakeside where she worked with children and youth recreation during her college summers. He proposed to her on the dock in April 1988. As an avid cyclist, Scott has ridden in both “Lakeside 120” rides (120 miles from Delaware to Lakeside). Winters include downhill and cross-country skiing. He’s also a big OSU Buckeyes fan. Kay (Althouse) is a teacher at the LeBron James I Promise School in Akron. They have three grown and married children. Scott has been in full-time ministry since 1994, and pastor at Tallmadge United Methodist Church since 2016, after having served in Solon, Cambridge, and Wooster. He holds degrees from Methodist Theological School in Ohio (MDiv.) and Ohio Northern University (BSBA).

Betsy Mitchell owns a cottage at 156 Oak Avenue with her brother. She has been coming to Lakeside for 55 years. Betsy resides in Pasadena, California, and has served as Director of Athletics for multiple colleges, most recently the California Institute of Technology. A United States Olympic gold and silver medalist in swimming, Betsy has coached collegiate swimming, rowing and softball. Betsy is an author of More than Medals: Lessons from an Olympian. Betsy brings her experience as an educational leader in balancing, listening and managing stakeholder experiences.

Kay Panovec joined the Board of Directors in January 2023. As the Director of Communications for the West Ohio Conference of The United Methodist Church, she is a photographer, multimedia storyteller, strategist, and creative spirit. She has also served as Chief Relationship Officer and Executive Director of New Media and Production for UMCOM, the global communications office of The United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

Throughout her career, Kay has led teams in producing videos, documentaries, and podcasts, as well as managing crisis communications. Her team has shaped award-winning websites, created interactive digital publications, and produced international and regional events including 14 United Methodist Annual Conferences held at Lakeside.

She is a proud graduate of the University of Mount Union.

No matter the season, Kay loves spending time at Lakeside. She hasn’t missed a summer in Lakeside since she was 17 years old. Her family shares her love of “Ohio’s most beautiful mile.” Whether strolling the scenic grounds, enjoying Hoover Auditorium’s performances, engaging in a friendly game of shuffleboard, or simply unwinding, she soaks up every moment of relaxation and inspiration.

Jim Shelley owns a home in Island View. He is married to Nancy, and resides in Bellevue, Ohio. A former owner of Janotta & Herner, Jim brings decades of construction management experience to the Board. Jim serves Lakeside on the Streets & Drainage Task Force. Jim is ready to apply his project management and business operations skills to Lakeside’s facilities that need maintenance and improvement. Jim values Lakeside’s focus on family life and finds the ways Lakeside impacts families most important.

Rev. Richard Thewlis joins the board in August 2024 as the Lakeside United Methodist Church Representative.