About the Staff and Board
Vineyard Power Cooperative incorporated in November of 2009. Listed below is the current staff and board of Vineyard Power.
Board Member elections are held every August. Three (3) board members are elected each year and serve a three (3) year term. If you would like to nominate yourself, or another member of Vineyard Power, please send a brief bio to info@vineyardpower.com.
THE VINEYARD POWER STAFF
Richard Andre, President of Vineyard Power, is responsible for the cooperative’s strategic development, which includes its partnership with Vineyard Wind, and its overall management. The current areas of focus include permitting the nation’s first offshore wind farm, developing solar & battery storage projects that will enhance energy resiliency on the island, and developing a well trained island based offshore wind workforce. Prior to his appointment, Richard was a founding board director of Vineyard Power and had a 25 year career in the energy sector with executive positions in New York, London, Cleveland and Amsterdam. Additionally, Richard has professional experience in business management, sales, supply chain management, project finance, and strategic development. Richard received a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from Penn State University and a Corporate Finance degree from the London Business School. He serves on the West Tisbury Energy Committee and the Vineyard Sustainable Energy Committee. Richard lives in West Tisbury with his wife Ina and son Nicolas.
Erik Peckar, General Manager of Vineyard Power, joined the company in 2010. As our manager, Erik organizes and executes day-to-day operations. Erik is primarily involved with company outreach while aiding Vineyard Wind through the permitting process to become the first offshore wind farm in Massachusetts. He has worked extensively on Community Empowerment, a piece of proposed legislation in Massachusetts designed to enable communities through a democratic process to expand local renewable energy development. Erik graduated from Penn State University and holds a BSc degree in Science, with a focus in renewable energy. Prior to his work with Vineyard Power, Erik spent time traveling all seven continents. He currently serves as the West Tisbury representative for the Cape Light Compact and is a member of the Martha’s Vineyard Commission Climate Task Force.
Nicoleta Trandafir, Office Administrator of Vineyard Power, came to Vineyard Power in 2018. She is responsible for coordinating office activities and operations and managing the receivable and payable accounts. Nicoleta graduated from the University of Economics in Romania and holds a degree in Accounting. Prior to Vineyard Power, Nicoleta kept the books for multiple local businesses and worked in the service industry. Nicoleta is very excited to move into the renewable energy sector. She moved to Martha’s Vineyard in 2007 and is proud to call the island her home. Nicoleta also works as a professional freelance makeup artist and enjoys using her talent to enrich the lives of her customers. She lives in Tisbury with her husband Bogdan and son Darius.
Luke Lefeber, Renewable Development Analyst for Vineyard Power, supports the company’s pursuits in community-based solar & battery storage projects. His position entails project identification and assessment, financial analysis, and management of commercially operational projects. As a former intern and consultant for Vineyard Power, Luke looks to continue his work with the Martha’s Vineyard Commission’s Climate Action Task Force modeling fossil fuel usage on-island in efforts to aid the achievement of a 100% renewable future for our community. Luke graduated from Vassar College in 2021 with a BA in Mathematics and a minor in Political Science. He lives in Aquinnah – in a home that has been part of the family for over 60 years – and is thrilled to be working on the island.
VINEYARD POWER BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Mike Jacobs, Chair of Vineyard Power and previously a member of the Advisory Committee, is the lead on Electricity Markets and Regulatory efforts in the Climate and Energy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), headquartered in Cambridge. Prior to coming to UCS, Mr. Jacobs worked as the markets and policy director at a number of renewable energy and energy storage companies, and the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). Before his time at AWEA, Mr. Jacobs was a liaison from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to FERC. Mr. Jacobs began his career in energy efficient installation work under contract to Boston Edison, and served on the staff of the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities. Mr. Jacobs earned a B.A. in the College of Social Studies at Wesleyan University and an M.S. in Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. He has served on the boards of Wind on the Wires, the Wind Coalition, Interwest Energy Alliance, and the Northern Maine Independent System Administrator.
Ron Dagostino, Director of Vineyard Power, Treasurer of IWI, and previously a member of the Advisory Committee, is a Software Engineer at Confluent and has held various software development and technical architecture roles in the financial services industry and Silicon Valley since 1991. Ron holds an MBA from Northeastern University and a BS in Physics from MIT. Ron lives in West Tisbury.
Gary Harcourt, Director of Vineyard Power, is the founder and manager of Great Rock Windpower based on Martha’s Vineyard. Great Rock was founded with the mission of promoting small wind power through the installation of safe, reliable and cost-effective small wind energy systems. Having been involved in over 100 successful small wind installations ranging in size from 2.5 to 250 kW both at home and abroad he has carried out this mission with great success. He worked as an installation and maintenance trainer and commissioning engineer where he traveled across North America and Europe to assist new installers and turbine owners. As a trained turbine climber and trained rescue instructor, Gary has trained and certified dozens of turbine technicians and engineers. In 2010 Gary served on the NABEC small wind exam committee as part of a team to create the first ever, small wind installer certification exam. Most recently with the removal of tax credits for small wind in the U.S., Gary has turned his efforts to maintaining his local fleet of turbines and supporting others around the world remotely as a consultant. In addition to managing Great Rock Windpower, Gary is the president and manager of Against the Grain, a high-end custom woodworking and cabinet shop in Oak Bluffs.
Julius Lowe, Director of Vineyard Power, is a HVAC technician with over ten years of experience designing and installing high efficiency heating and cooling systems on Martha’s Vineyard. He is a member of the Zoning Board for West Tisbury, and holds degrees in Political Science and Communications from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Sustainability and a transition to renewable resources are issues he has engaged with both personally and professionally and he hopes to continue working to make the Island community and local energy economy more robust and independent.
Jack Wadleigh, Director of Vineyard Power, is an Associate at the Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA), where he supports CEBA’s engagement on organized wholesale market expansion and design. Jack spent a year leading the execution of CEBA’s clean technologies initiative, which empower CEBA’s members to commercialize new technologies. Prior to joining CEBA, Jack analyzed regulatory barriers and permitting processes for energy infrastructure projects at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Jack grew up on Martha’s Vineyard and began his career in the renewable energy industry as an intern for the Vineyard Power Cooperative. Jack is a member of the Washington D.C. bar. Jack earned a B.S. in Business Administration & Environmental Studies from St. Michaels College, and a Juris Doctorate and M.S. in Energy Regulation and Law from Vermont Law School.
Dana Heffner, Director of Vineyard Power, holds a BS in Business Administration from the University of Akron. Dana has 18 years of prior experience at a large Ohio based electric utility in a wide range of business functions including sales and marketing, workforce planning, supply chain management, business analytics, and public relations. Before relocating to Martha’s Vineyard, she held the role of External Affairs Manager serving three counties within her service territory. Her sole responsibility was to develop and maintain relationships with local elected officials, key business and civic leaders as well as commercial and industrial customers on behalf of the utility. Dana currently serves as the General Manager of Courtney LLC located in Edgartown and is responsible for the management and oversight of the company’s real estate and retail operations. She is a year-round resident living in Edgartown.
Ann Berwick, Director of Vineyard Power, served as the Chair of the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) under Governor Deval Patrick from June, 2010 until January 2015. She was also the president of the New England States Committee on Electricity from 2012 to 2015. Prior to being appointed chair of the DPU, Ann was the Commonwealth's Undersecretary for Energy and also Acting Chair of the Energy Facility Siting Board. Ann served as Chief of the Environmental Protection Division in the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office from 1991 to 1996, where she exercised joint oversight of the Massachusetts Environmental Strike Force. Ann has been a legal services attorney, and a partner in the litigation department at the Boston law firm Goulston & Storrs. Ann holds a B.A. from Radcliffe College and a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School. She has four grown children, lives in Newton with her husband and owns a seasonal residence in Chilmark. Ann has been visiting the Vineyard since 1974.
Bill Lake, Director of Vineyard Power. He is currently Consulting Counsel at Wiley Rein LLC (a Washington DC law firm). He was previously the Chief of the Media Bureau at the Federal Communications Commission and the Counselor to the Administrator at the EPA advising on the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. Bill Lake was also Law Clerk to US Supreme Court Justice John M. Harlan from 1969-1970. He is a member of the Washington, DC and California bars. Bill holds a Bachelor of Laws from Stanford Law School and his BA in economics from Yale University. He serves as the Chair of the Aquinnah Climate and Energy Committee and President of the Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative.
Rob Hannemann, Director of Vineyard Power, is active in local government and serves as the Chair of the Chilmark Finance Advisory Committee, and chairs both the Chilmark Energy Committee and the all-Island Vineyard Sustainable Energy Committee (VSEC). Previously he served as the Director of the Tufts Gordon Institute, responsible for the Engineering Management and Entrepreneurial Leadership programs, and has taught energy systems courses as Professor of the Practice in the Tufts Mechanical Engineering department and chaired that department from 2010 through 2013. Dr. Hannemann earned his BS degree (with distinction) from the Illinois Institute of Technology and advanced degrees in Mechanical Engineering from New York University (MS '72) and MIT (Sc.D.'75). Prior to joining Tufts he co-founded an energy-efficient electronics cooling firm, Thermal Form & Function, Inc. Previously, he was a senior executive at Corning, Inc., Lasertron, Inc. and Digital Equipment Corporation. Early in his career, he was on the faculty at the University of Maryland at College Park and a Member of Technical Staff at Bell Laboratories. Dr. Hannemann is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and he lives in Chilmark with his wife Margaret Hannemann.