Who We Are
Birgitte Simmons joined the WCVA in November 2009 as Administrative and Sales Assistant. She provides support to the CEO and sales staff, including coordination of committee meetings, materials and volunteers.
A native of Aloha, Ore., Birgitte (pronounced Bur-GEET-uh) and her family lived in the Netherlands for a year-and-a-half, and Birgitte attended Brigham Young University in Utah and Brigham Young University-Hawaii in Oahu, from which she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in hospitality and tourism management. Prior to joining the WCVA, she worked for the Portland Rose Festival Foundation.
In her free time she enjoys hiking, body surfing, photography, cooking and traveling.
Allison George is WCVA’s Stakeholder Manager, and heads the WCVA “Westside Spotlight” monthly mixers. A native of Southern Oregon, and aspiring actress, Allison has lived in the Portland metro area for 10 years. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre Arts from Carroll College in Helena, MT. Allison also played women’s basketball at Carroll College, and was inducted into the college’s sports hall of fame in 2006.
Angie Suchy Marsh is WCVA’s Communications Associate. She is responsible for furthering WCVA’s online and print marketing efforts, including social media, website content, the visitor guide and both consumer and industry eNewsletters.
Angie has worked as a web editor, communications associate and publications specialist for nonprofit organizations, including Multnomah Athletic Club, Mt. Hood Community College and the environmental organization Metafore. She is the author of multiple award-winning essays and publications. Angie has a B.A. from the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication, and is certified in sustainability through Oregon Natural Step.
A Portland native, Angie can often be found pulling her younger daughter in a bike trailer around the area, searching for adventure.
Sylke Neal-Finnegan, APR is WCVA’s Director of Marketing & Communications. A native of Las Vegas, Sylke escaped the land of neon for greener pastures, and has proudly called Washington County “home” since 2007.
Although she feels like an Oregonian – her often unconventional personality is a better fit for the Pacific Northwest – and she embraces the cool, rainy days, she looks forward to the changing seasons, especially when spring is in bloom and tulips and daffodils color the green landscape.
When not shopping or catching a movie, Sylke often spends her weekends scoping out the area in search of new experiences. Being relatively new to Oregon, nearly everything is a new experience, so there’s a lot to discover. So far, her goal is to visit every shop, winery and restaurant listed on the WCVA website, and to find new and undiscovered places to explore. This should keep her busy for the next few years…..