Bisbee Bikeways

A nonprofit advocating for better biking and walking in the Bisbee area

Board Members Bisbee Bikeways

Meggen Connolley- Project Manager/ Board Member

Meggen is a native of Bisbee and one of the founding members of Ecotopia, the 501c3 nonprofit that Bisbee Bikeways operates under. Bisbee Bikeways began when Meggen decided to bike around town with her then two-year-old in tow. She quickly realized that one small error by a nearby driver could end their lives, and became determined to create safe pathways for the residents, (especially the youth), of Bisbee.

Meggen quickly evolved into the Project Manager of Bisbee Bikeways, and through continuous advocacy work and research, connected multiple stakeholders including the City of Bisbee, Cochise County, ADOT, Freeport McMoRan, and members of the public.

Stephanie Peavey- Vice President

Stephanie is originally from Maine and moved to Arizona in 2006. She has an MS degree in Resource Economics and an MS in Exercise Physiology. Stephanie has a long history of working to develop major multi-use trails in both Maine and Arizona. She was a member of the Downeast Sunrise Trail Coalition in which she helped in the building of the Downeast Sunrise Trail in Maine, a 100 mile multi-use unpaved trail built on an inactive rail. She volunteered hundreds of hours working on 2 passages of the Arizona Trail and she participated in four trail building projects in Arizona with Wilderness Volunteers. She also served for 3 years on the Maine Governor’s Council on Physical fitness and health which was a think tank for developing projects that promote healthy, active lifestyles for Maine citizens. In addition to her volunteer work, Stephanie owns and operates a personal training business and specializes in working with deconditioned clients and those with chronic health iss

Gregg Garfin- President

Gregg is an Associate Professor and Associate Extension Specialist, School of Natural Resources and the Environment, the University of Arizona. Gregg has worked for the last 20 years to bridge the science-society interface through dialogues between scientists and decision makers and collaborative climate and environment research projects. His research focuses on adaptation to a changing climate, climate variability, and drought. Geographic interests include semi-arid regions, transboundary regions, and monsoon climates. He is co-lead author for the Southwest chapter in the Fourth National Climate Assessment. He is co-editor of Climate in Context: Science and Society Partnering for Adaptation, a 2016 book on the development and practice of use-inspired science and the co-production of science and policy, through NOAA's RISA program. His recent projects include development of a partnership to address the public health risks of extreme heat in the U.S.-Mexico border region, an assessment of National Park Service cultural resource vulnerability to climate extremes, and an investigation of best practices for assessing the costs of floods in North America.

Tim Whipple- Treasurer

Tim is a financial savant with an abundant mindset and a contagious generosity. He earned enough credits in college to have graduated with multiple degrees in such diverse subjects as Arabic and chemical engineering. As First Purpose’s chief financial strategist, Tim thrives on solving complex financial situations for clients by devising strategies that require a holistic approach and blur the lines between financial disciplines. For renewal, Tim enjoys cycling and playing racquetball. With his wife and five children, Tim also enjoys doing service vacations to orphanages in Mexico and Bethlehem with A Child’s Hope Foundation.

Eric J. Meyer- Board Member

Eric is a Project Coordinator in the College of Education at the University of Arizona. Eric has a talent for running and teaching science, and instilling a love of exploration in his students. He is a track and cross country coach and is always ready to lend a helping hand with neighbors and strangers.

Carolyn Harris- Secretary

A native Arizonan, Carolyn grew up among the Citrus orchards of East Mesa. She enjoyed the freedom of irrigation canal maintenance roads to bike around in the 70’s. She was educated in Los Angeles (Occidental College) and then remained in the Los Angeles area teaching in bilingual Spanish elementary schools. A naturalist at heart, Ms. Harris began teaching high school science in Bisbee in 1997. One of her hobbies was Mt. biking/hiking the AZ Trail. She also commuted by bike from both Old Bisbee and Naco to Bisbee High School. Her late husband, Vicente Abril was killed in the Mule Pass Tunnel cycling in 2020. She then retired from teaching.

More recently Carolyn can be found visiting family in some interesting places around the nation. When in town, she is busy with various book clubs and women’s organizations. Having contributed to Bisbee’s official designation as Wildlife Habitat, Carolyn Harris now desires to be part of positive change in our City via Bisbee Bikeways. Make safe passage, and they will come…..….

Advisory Team

Melanie Greene

Melanie Greene is the principal for M.Greene Planning & Resource Development, a consulting firm serving Arizona, California, and Alaska. As a professional grant writer and project developer, Ms. Greene's clients include non-profits, tribes, and rural municipalities and private businesses.

Her 30-plus years of experience include professional interests in Resource Development, Strategic and Project Planning, Non-Profit Management, Board Development, Organizational Capacity Building, Public Transit, Education, Affordable Housing, and Community Organizing.

In addition to her consulting work, Ms Greene volunteers for non-profit organizations in Bisbee Arizona where she has lived for the last 15 years.

Kenneth Steel

Kenneth Steel is the Healthy Communities Programs Manager at Pinnacle Prevention and the co-chair for the Arizona Alliance for Livable Communities. He stands behind a data and community-driven approach to developing solutions and values the impact of meaningful, multisector partnerships. Kenneth has worked on food systems and active living policy in Arizona since 2013 and has a special passion for how the natural and built environments of communities help to facilitate better physical and mental health. In 2019, Kenneth was recognized as one of the “40 under 40 in Public Health” across the country by the de Beaumont Foundation.