Protecting Barnegat Bay & Restoring its Ecosystem

Britta has been actively involved with the protection and restoration of Barnegat Bay since her childhood.  She grew up playing on the Bay everyday at Forsberg’s Boat Yard, her family’s business in Point Pleasant. At 18, she was named Ocean County’s “Environmentalist of the Year,” for her passion and commitment. She later served in local government on the Lavallette Borough Council from 2003 to 2009, affecting many environmental programs and policies. She currently drives Save Barnegat Bay’s advocacy efforts by working alongside locally elected officials, county government, state legislators and federal representatives. Britta’s current position as well as her personal experience of being an advocate from her youth will help to inspire and directly inform the public on important Barnegat Bay issues.

After studying at M.A.T.E.S. and Stony Brook University graduating with a degree in marine science, Graceanne’s passion for educating individuals about the Barnegat Bay began as an intern at the Sedge Island Natural Resource Education Center. Since, she served AmeriCorps as the Barnegat Bay Watershed Ambassador. Graceanne had worked in multiple facets throughout the watershed doing scientific research and environmental education before joining the Save Barnegat Bay community. For the past three years, Graceanne has worked at Save Barnegat Bay conducting public programs to help ignite passion and conservation of the watershed and bay. Graceanne enjoys free time volunteering, traveling, performing underwater, and playing on the Barnegat Bay scuba diving, boating, and paddling.

Gerry has enjoyed working for Save Barnegat Bay since January 2010 when the office was located in Lavallette.  During the past four years, she has been a part of our team, enthusiastically facing and meeting the challenges of a growing non-profit organization. She currently is the Administrative Assistant/Bookkeeper, responsible for processing donations made to Save Barnegat Bay. Our supporters have reached over 2100! As a past resident of Ocean Beach, she has a love for both the ocean and the bay. Gerry now resides in Toms River with her husband John.

Avery is a graduate of the University of Vermont, where she studied Environmental Science with concentrations in Environmental Policy, Community & International Development, and Art. She began her time at Save Barnegat Bay in the summer of 2020 as an advocacy intern and is now part of the staff full-time. Avery has always felt a strong connection to water; she swam competitively for 14 years and grew up spending summers on Long Beach Island. Before coming to SBB, she interned with nonprofit groups, worked as a research assistant investigating coral reef ecosystems, and served as a summer naturalist at her local nature center. An avid writer, Avery also served as the Editor in Chief of her school’s environmental publication. She is passionate about social and environmental justice and is committed to furthering the organization’s grassroots mission at the Jersey Shore.

Brittany McLaughlin recently graduated from Ocean County College and Stockton University with an A.A.S. in Environmental Science and a B.A. in Sustainability. She has spent her whole life in the Barnegat Bay Watershed and has been a passionate environmental advocate for as long as she can remember. Brittany started her work in environmental activism working with local non-profit environmental groups and was also an Advocacy Intern at Save Barnegat Bay for two semesters. Through her work, she learned that she can combine her passion for environmental work with her newfound passion for education, which is why she is so excited to start her professional career as the Jellyfish Education Coordinator. For the next three years, Brittany will be working with our partners on our Jellyfish Hazard Management and Education Campaign focusing on bay nettle reduction and education in Lagoon Communities throughout Barnegat Bay.

Willie deCamp has been president of Save Barnegat Bay since March of 1986. He enjoys sailing, kayaking, and walking in the woods. Willie’s passion for protecting the Barnegat Bay ecosystem stems from his family’s longtime love of the sport of sailing and of hiking natural areas. Willie grew up summering at the shore and currently lives year-round in Mantoloking. He was educated in Rhode Island.

Bio coming soon.

Andrew Bess is a Managing Director at TrueNorth Capital Partners. He has worked on a broad array of strategic advisory and corporate finance transactions over the past 20 years, and has a particular interest in Smart Cities and urban mobility transactions. He previously established Palmer Capital Advisors, a FINRA-registered broker-dealer, on behalf of a New York-based private equity firm. Prior to Palmer, he was a founder and managing director at Daroth Capital Advisors, a boutique investment bank. Andrew previously worked as an investment banker with both Wasserstein Perella & Co. and Ernst & Young. He holds a BA from Colby College and an MBA from Columbia University. Andy has spent his life visiting the shore with his family and is passionate about helping Save Barnegat Bay grow.

Karen Argenti has a background in administration, municipal governance, politics, environment, and community participation. She has a Masters of Public Administration from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and BA from Lehman College. In New York City, she was employed by Council President Carol Bellamy’s Office of the Ombudsman, the Bronx Democratic County Committee, a New York State Senator, and a New York City Council Member. She consulted on political and environmental campaigns, including as consultant for the Gaia Institute, building Green Roofs and Enhanced Tree Pits. Karen resides in Manchester Township which is a part of the Toms River and greater Barnegat Bay Watershed. She brings her organizing and educational experience to help Save Barnegat Bay write grants to start up another NEMO program.

When not working, Ed is an avid sailor, skier, and fisherman, vacationing in Florida and Vermont. He is also an active member of Mantoloking Yacht Club and Manasquan River Golf Club. In addition, he also gives his time as a volunteer and board member of Save Barnegat Bay (NJ), a volunteer for the Mt. Washington Observatory (NH), and a consultant to the Mantoloking Environmental Commission. Ed is also a member of the Point Pleasant Beach Rotary, and the Bay Head Business Association.

Joe Rizzo is an avid shellfish fisherman and lover of Barnegat Bay. A full-time bayman, Joe has worked on Barnegat Bay since childhood, harvesting clams, tending crab and eel pots, guiding waterfowl hunts and chasing down local sportfish like summer flounder, weakfish, bluefish, and striped bass. He is also a long-serving member of the New Jersey Marine Fisheries Council. Joe is based in the southern part of the county and Watershed, calling Mayetta home.

Sherry Urner has been a proud Board member of Save Barnegat Bay  since 2004 after retiring and moving to Bay Head full time. She has served as Secretary, Vice President and Nominating Chair – never Treasurer! Sherry has been sailing with her husband on the Bay for 50+ years and is passionate about protecting this body of water from degradation and pollution. As a nurse, she is committed to promoting  clean waters for healthy recreation. She is an environmentalist and supports the advocacy positions of SBB.

Robert J. Cericola was born in Point Pleasant Beach and raised in Lavallette. He has always had an affinity for the ocean, bay and rivers that surround our area. A master sailor and accomplished outdoorsman, RJ has owned and operated his business, F/V Backwash, since 1988. He also owns and operates Backwash Environmental which participates in clean-ups of waterways, here and up and down the east coast. RJ has worked with Rutgers, the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ, and several non-profits to preserve and protect our waterways and is dedicated to environmental clean-up and conservation. RJ is an owner of the Fishermen’s Dock Co-Operative in Point Pleasant Beach and is proud to be on the Board of Directors of Save Barnegat Bay. 

Mary Judge retired from the Barnegat Bay Partnership (one of the country’s 28 National Estuary Programs) in 2017.  She is the long-time chair of her town’s Environmental Committee and a co-leader of the Jersey Shore Native Plant Society, which she helped form to provide post-Hurricane-Sandy homeowners resources to restore their landscaping in a more Bay-friendly manner.  She was born and raised in Madison, New Jersey, graduated from the University of Denver with a degree in English Literature, and enjoyed exploring the western part of the country for 20+ years before returning to New Jersey and putting down roots in Island Heights.

Maria Ritter is an accomplished designer and entrepreneur whose professional journey has included roles across the full range of the corporate, commercial creative world of product design in New York City; many of her classic tabletop lines remain bestsellers. She has worked in small start-ups and large global corporations, and has led her own businesses (both as sole proprietor and with partners). After decades living in New York City and travelling extensively internationally to oversee the production of her designs, Maria left NYC 12 years ago and returned to the Jersey Shore, where she grew up as a child.  Her commitment to the watershed and wetlands that feed our ocean community has led her to roles in advocacy and fundraising, and she is passionate about protecting and enhancing the quality of life for all who live here.  Maria currently serves as the Secretary of the SBB Board.

An avid outdoorsman, captain, and journalist, Karl is an International Representative of the International Game Fish Association, Committee Chair of IGFA North American Council Rules and Recognition, Co-Chair of the Legendary Captains & Crew Award Committee of IGFA, serves as a Board Member of Save Barnegat Bay, member The Billfish Foundation and the Barnegat Bayman’s Museum Tuckerton Seaport. When not writing or consulting, Anderson is a yacht broker for Merritt’s Boat & Engine Works-builders of the finest custom sportfish yachts available today. He also captains and manages several custom sportfishing yachts to some of the world’s finest sportfishing destinations with thousands of billfish and tuna releases to his credit.

Ed joined the Save Barnegat Bay board in 2020.  A lifelong resident of the shore area, Ed developed a love of sailing and other watersports on Barnegat Bay from a very early age.  That love of the water led to a degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from Webb Institute and a distinguished career in the Marine and Aerospace industries, most recently as Technical Director at Safran Aerosystems Evacuation (formerly Air Cruisers Company) in Wall NJ, from which Ed retired in 2019.  Ed is a past Commodore of both the Seaside Park Yacht Club and the Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association, experiences all of which blend very well with his passion for environmental preservation and Save Barnegat Bay’s mission.  Ed and his wife Beverley currently live on a small farm in New Egypt (Plumsted Twp) at the western edge of the Barnegat Bay watershed, with summers spent on their boat which they keep in Seaside Park.