Governance

Summary of Process for Openness + Public Participation

Copley Health Systems is a private non-profit organization, organized and existing under the laws of the State of Vermont. We believe in holding ourselves accountable to the community we serve and our governance structure reflects those values.

We achieve openness, inclusiveness, and public participation in our strategic planning and decision-making through the Copley Health Systems, Inc. Ambassadors and the Copley Hospital Board of Trustees.

Ambassadors guide the governance of the hospital by approving proposed bylaw changes and electing trustees representative of the community to govern the hospital.

Copley strives for membership representative of the community with a range of skills and talents pertinent to the governing of a community non-profit health care resource. Ambassadors are asked to serve a three-year term and are expected to attend the annual meeting in January and any special meetings of the membership. People interested in serving as an Ambassador must be 18 years or older and live part or full time in Copley’s service area or be employed in Copley’s service area. In the case of physicians or other health care professionals, they must also be credentialed by Copley Hospital and be a member of the medical staff. A written application for membership must be submitted by November 1. The application is also available by contacting the Executive Assistant to the President of Copley at 802.888.8291. Ambassadors are nominated by the Copley Health Systems Board of Trustees and elected by the Ambassadors.

The hospital is governed by bylaws and a volunteer Board of Trustees. Each trustee is a member and lives or works in Copley Hospital’s service area. Each Trustee provides professional expertise pertinent to the governing of a community non-profit organization. We strive for trustees to be representative of the communities we serve. Trustees serve as volunteers; they are not paid for their service on the board. The full board of trustees meets monthly (except August) to discuss and make policy decisions.

Copley staff members also participate in ongoing committee and board meetings, events, and activities of local organizations to give and receive input on community health needs. Representatives from social service agencies and community organizations also serve on Copley Hospital committees.

Copley also offers community members a variety of volunteer opportunities. For more information or to volunteer your time, please call our Volunteer Coordinator at 802.888.8302.

To Learn More About Opportunities for Public Participation

Contact the Executive Assistant to the President at 802.888.8291 or write to:

Copley Hospital
Attn: Community Relations
528 Washington Highway
Morrisville, VT 05661

To Contact the Board of Trustees

Contact the Executive Assistant to the President at 802.888.8291 or write to:

Copley Hospital
Attn: Board of Trustees
528 Washington Highway
Morrisville, VT 05661

 

To Receive a Copy of Our Annual Report

A pdf is available in Newsletters & Reports, by contacting Copley’s Development and Marketing Office at 802.888.8301 or writing to:

Copley Hospital
Attn: Development and Marketing
528 Washington Highway
Morrisville, VT 05661

Our Leadership Team

The Senior Team of Copley Health System (CHSI) oversees all of the CHSI entities, including Copley Hospital, The Woodlands at Stowe, Copley Terrace and the Health Center Building.

Joseph Woodin

President & CEO, Copley Health Systems

Wayne Stockbridge

Chief Administration Officer

Jeff Hebert

Chief Financial Officer

Donald Dupuis, MD

Chief Medical Officer

Samantha Allaire, RN, MSN, CKC

Interim Chief Nursing Officer

 

Curtis Kerbs

Chief Information Officer

Emily M. McKenna

Executive Director Development, Marketing & Community Relations

Lee Bryan

Director, Quality, Risk & Informatics

Jill LaRock

Executive Director of Clinical Ancillary Services

Karen Cavender, MPPA, BSN, RN, CNOR

Executive Director of PeriOperative and Emergency Services

Carol Ferrante

Director of Physician Practices

Our Board of Trustees

The hospital is governed by bylaws and a volunteer Board of Trustees.

Each trustee is a corporate member and lives or works in Copley Hospital’s service area. Each Trustee provides professional expertise pertinent to the governing of a community non-profit organization.

Nan Carle Beauregard, PhD, Morrisville

Nan joined Copley’s Board of Trustees in 2023. Throughout her career she has worked nationally and internationally in support of people using service in health and social care. Her focus has been on inclusive and creative approaches to changing systems. Well known for inspiring innovative leadership and transformative practice, she dances with her feet on the ground through her activities in community engagement and can often be found with her camera in hand capturing images of possibility in the word around her. Nan resides in Morrisville.

Bob Bleimeister, Stowe

Bob Bleimeister is the owner of REB Consulting, LLC and has more than 20 years of experience designing and executing successful Human Resources transformation programs. His current work includes being an advisor to Deloitte’s Government Sector Consulting business and he advises several startup companies developing new HR service platforms. Bleimeister is a frequent speaker on HR issues at DoD and Intelligence Community forums. He is a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel and received his MBA in management from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from the US Military Academy, West Point. Bleimeister resides in Stowe with his wife and has two sons.

Anne Watson Bongiorno, RN, Stowe

Anne holds a Master of Science specializing in Population Based Health Care in Nursing, a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing, and is a Board Certified Advanced Nurse Specialist in Public Health Nursing as well as Certified Nurse Educator.  She is a local college professor in public health and nursing, and teaches at the State University of New York and Simmons College, Boston.  Presently she serves on the Ethics Committees at Meadowbrook Healthcare and Champlain Valley Physician’s Hospital University Vermont Medical Center. Anne resides in Stowe with her husband Phil. She joined the Copley Hospital Board of Trustees in 2020.

Diane Cote, Elmore

Diane joined the board in January 2021. She is the Secretary of Blow & Cote, a family-owned business located in Morrisville. For 19 years she served as a foundation member of Lamoille County 4-H. She is active in the community and in addition to volunteering for Copley Hospital Auxiliary, she has served as a Copley Ambassador since 2019. Diane has experience in management, bookkeeping, and small business operations. She enjoys her horses and interacting with others.

Kathy Demars, RN, Morrisville

Kathy Demars is the Executive Director of Lamoille Home Health & Hospice, a role she has held since 2010 having served with the organization since 1992. She is a Registered Nurse, having graduated from the University of Vermont. She currently serves as the chair of the Visiting Nurses Association Health Systems of Vermont. Kathy is a member of the Children’s Integrated Services steering committee and Providers in Partnership of Lamoille County, and the Executive Committee of Health Care organizations working with the local Blueprint for Health. In addition to her health care experience, she served on several local school boards and is a volunteer delivery person for Meals on Wheels. Another hat she proudly wears is that as chair of the annual LACiNg Up For Cancer, a fundraiser for Lamoille Area Cancer Network. She joined the Copley Hospital Board of Trustees in 2015.

Michael Feulner, Morrisville

Michael was born and raised in Vermont. He graduated from Castelton State College. An employee of the Vermont Department of Children and Families for 33 years before retiring. Michael currently serves as board member for Lamoille County Mental Health Services (LCMHS) and fills the role of Board Liaison between LCMHS and Copley.

Alden Launer, Greensboro

Alden joined the Copley family in May of 2001 as the Chaplain. Alden retired in June of 2021 after dedicating 20 years to Copley. After his experience at Copley, he became attuned to and appreciative of the challenges and needs of small, critical access hospitals in Vermont. During Alden’s ministry he focused strongly on the involvement and need for support and care for staff. In these settings he achieved and maintained his certification as a Board-Certified Chaplain of the Association of Professional Chaplains. Alden and his wife Patty reside in Greensboro and have two grown children.

Dan Noyes, Wolcott

Dan Noyes is the Director of RSVP of Central Vermont and the Northeast Kingdom and is currently serving in the Vermont House of Representatives; representing the towns of Belvidere, Johnson, Hyde Park, and Wolcott (Lamoille-2) in the Legislature. Noyes is active in the community and has received several awards for his community service. He was appointed by the Governor in 2015 to the Vermont Commission on National Community Service with SerVermont. Since 2014, he has served as Board Chair and past President of Vermont Automobile Enthusiasts. Dan was the Wolcott Planning Commission Chair from 2012-2015. He joined Copley’s Board of Trustees in 2018.

Travis Knapp, CRNA, Morrisville

Travis is a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist and is the Medical Staff President.

Cameron (Cam) Page, Stowe

Cam is a long-time resident of Lamoille County. She and her late husband Russel Page (ER physician) have two grown children. She currently resides in Stowe. Her community experience includes 18 years on the Stowe School Board, 13 of which she was Chair. 

Cam received her Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art/English and her Associates Degree in Nursing from the University of Vermont.  Her professional experience includes staff nurse at a number of hospitals in Seattle, Washington as well as at Copley Hospital. From 1980-1985 she directed Copley Hospital’s Nursing In-service Department. In the early 1990’s, while serving as Grant Director for a Federal Health Care Finances Administration Transition Grant and Robert Wood Johnson Grant through the Vermont Rural Health Consortium, she planned and implemented a statewide system for sharing nurses among Vermont Hospitals and Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center.

From 1998-2004 she co-owned and operated Stowe’s Secret Garden, a wedding and event flower design business.

Deborah Pomeroy, Ed.D., Jeffersonville

Deborah’s background is in teaching, specifically English and Science. Her professional experience includes both International and US. Her work in international consulting (in Egypt) has included the coordination of U.S. technical support to the Ministry of Education via the USAID Education Development Project, of which she continues to serve in this role. Prior to that, she served as Director of STEM Integrated Curriculum Development from 2012-2017. Deborah also served as Consultant Science Curriculum for the USAID Education Development Project in Bosnia Hirzagovena. Deborah currently serves as Director of STEM Curriculum for the 21st Century Partnership for STEM Education and has served as Associate Professor Emerita since 2006 at Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania.

Deborah knows the value of community hospitals and has great respect and admiration for Copley and its staff.

Kristen Sharpless, Stowe

Kristen became Stowe Land Trust’s Executive Director in 2018 after a four-year tenure as the land trust’s conservation program manager and upon graduating from the Snelling Center’s Vermont Leadership Institute. She leads Stowe Land Trust’s land protection work and oversees a talented team to achieve strategic financial, land stewardship and community conservation results.
Kristen is a graduate of the University of Vermont’s Field Naturalist Program and has worked as a consulting ecologist and volunteer specializing in assisting municipalities with community-based town forest planning.
She lives in Stowe with her husband and daughter and is likely to be seen stopping to listen to the birds, taking a walk at Kirchner Woods, or buying dark chocolate at Laughing Moon.

Pamela (Pam) Stanyon, Morrisville

Pam successfully launched new food and beverage platforms as a scientist and leader in the global food industry for over 30 years.  She contributed to the bottom and top line of consumer goods companies such as Keurig (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters), Kellogg’s and Kraft from product concept to commercialization.   Later, Pam served as Chief Operations Officer for The Vermont Maple Sugar Company (dba Butternut Mountain Farm) and now consults in the Food & Beverage Industry via her company Stanyon Food Solutions LLC.

Over the years, Pam followed her north star, engaging her love of learning and coaching others so they in turn could lead their teams to success.  Pam passionately believes that all problems – big and small – can be solved through planning, science, and innovation with our communities.    Pam and her husband Mario Moresco reside in Morrisville with their animal menagerie, gardens, and mountain views.

Carl Szlachetka, Hyde Park

Carl retired to Vermont after spending much of his career at Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company where he was the Vice President of Corporate Real Estate and Facilities Operations. He has volunteered with a number of community organizations including the Lamoille North School District, Vermont School Board Association, Green Mountain Access Television and the Lamoille Restorative Center. Carl holds a degree in accounting from the University of Connecticut. He joined Copley’s Board of Trustees in 2015. He and his wife Diane reside in Hyde Park.

Christopher Towne, Morrisville

Chris was elected to the Board in September 2019 to fill a vacant position. In 2020 he was elected to fill his first three-year term. Chris grew up in Morrisville and has a Masters in Healthcare Administration from Champlain College. He is currently the Director of Primary Care at Northern Counties Healthcare Inc. in St. Johnsbury. Chris lives is Morristown and is a member of the Lamoille Home Health & Hospice Board.

Joseph Woodin, Copley President and CEO, Morrisville

Joe is the CEO and President of Copley Health Systems. He joined team Copley in October 2019. Joe has a distinguished career in hospital leadership and administration, most recently serving as president and CEO of South Peninsula Hospital in Homer, Alaska. Homer is approximately a four-hour drive south of Anchorage and is an independent Critical Access Hospital serving a rural community.

To those who know Vermont’s healthcare systems, Joe is a familiar name thanks to his 17-year tenure at Gifford Health Care and Gifford Medical Center in Randolph, Vermont, where he served as president and CEO for 16 of those years. During his time with Gifford, he helped increase gross revenue by approximately 600 percent, created a Federally Qualified Health Center to oversee the hospital and its affiliates, spearheaded the acquisition of seven clinical sites in neighboring communities, and introduced several new service lines that allowed Gifford to better address the healthcare needs of its community.