Board of Trustees

Officers

Richard Heyl de Ortiz

Richard is a native of New Paltz and, after time away for college and earlier career opportunities, moved back to New Paltz in 1999 with his husband Anthony Ortiz to build their family and deepen their roots in the Hudson Valley. In addition to his service on Board of Trustees, Richard is a member of the Board of Directors of the Child Welfare League of America.

Richard continues his 30+ year career in nonprofits promoting and supporting a greater understanding of equity, inclusion, social justice and community building in his present position as Executive Director of the Hudson Valley LGBTQ+ Community Center. He is the founding Executive Director of the Adoptive and Foster Family Coalition of New York and Philadelphia’s William Way LGBT Community Center.

Richard has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Strategic Design and Management from Parsons School of Design, which is in New York City. He and his husband are the parents of one child, John Paul, who, like Richard, attended and graduated from the New Paltz Central School District.

In his service to the Library, Richard follows the example of his grandmother, Carole Heyl, who was an Elting board member when Richard was a child, and who continues to support the Library.

June Wheeler

June Wheeler has been the Dance teacher at Monticello High School since 2022, having taught high school English and college freshman writing courses for several years after earning her MAT at SUNY-New Paltz in 2012. She is a cum laude graduate of Barnard College, and her first career was as a dancer with the Mark Morris Dance Group, touring the world from their base in Brussels, Belgium and then from Brooklyn, NY. Highlights included performing in the Kennedy Center Honors broadcast for Mikhail Baryshnikov and appearing in a dance film, "Falling Down Stairs," with the cellist Yo-Yo Ma; she continued to make guest appearances with MMDG through 2018. June moved to New Paltz with her husband Bill Wheeler Murray in 2003 to raise their family–twins Emi and Kira, born that year, and Henry, born in 2006–and, partly inspired by the volunteer service of her husband (a New Paltz firefighter) and others in her family, she was pleased to join the Elting Board in 2018.

Hilary Cloos

Hilary Cloos has been a farrier in the Hudson Valley since 1997. She and her husband Jeff Feinsod moved to New Paltz in 2014 and love living at the foot of the Shawangunks. Serving on the Board of Trustees has been an amazing learning experience for her, and Hilary hopes to keep giving back to the Elting Memorial Library and the greater New Paltz community. When she's not at Board meetings or under a horse, Hilary is an avid cyclist and tennis player.

Stephen Bergstein

Stephen Bergstein is a civil rights lawyer who lives and practices in New Paltz, where he settled in 1993. He joined the Board of Trustees in 2018 and is serving his third three-year term. He chairs the Policy Committee, is the Board Secretary, and serves on the Executive Committee. One of his cases reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which issued a landmark gay/transgender rights ruling in 2020. His love of books and free speech landed him on the Board of Trustees, and his enthusiasm for the annual Library Fair is the reason he owns hundreds of books. In his spare time, he works through his book collection, rides his bike along the trails in Ulster County, plays with his standard poodle, and performs at open mics in the Hudson Valley.

Christine Wesserling, Treasurer

Christine Wesserling is a lifelong resident of New Paltz, born and raised, returning as an adult in 2019 to work as the Business Operations Manager in the Office of the VP for Technology and Human Resources at Vassar College. After being an avid volunteer at the annual Library Fair and working in the book shed collecting donated books, she was asked to join the board and serve as Treasurer. Christine chairs the finance committee, and serves on the facilities committee, and the capital campaign committee. She is ecstatic to support the mission of the Library by providing a space where everyone is welcome to pursue lifelong learning. Outside of work and volunteering, she enjoys playing golf, pickleball, baking, and listening to NPR.

Trustees

Tricia Bowen

Tricia Bowen is an IT professional with 25 years of experience. A longtime resident of New Paltz, she joined the Board of Trustees two years ago and has been an active contributor to the Library Fair, as well as the Policy and Development Committees. Her strong belief in public service and volunteerism as essential pillars of a healthy society inspired her decision to serve on the Board. Outside of her professional and civic commitments, Tricia enjoys sharing home-cooked meals with family and friends, hiking local trails, swimming, and reading science fiction.

Jennifer Wright Cook

Jennifer Wright Cook, she/her, is a non-profit worker bee and former dance/theater performer. As a recent resident of New Paltz, and a lifelong lover of all things libraries, she was pleased to join the Board of Trustees this summer 2025. She volunteered at the Library Fair and recently joined the Fundraising Committee. Jennifer just finished reading a stunning book by Viet Thanh Nguyen, "A Man of Two Faces"! She has 1 kiddo in New Paltz Middle School, a partner and sweet pup named Harry. She is also an active volunteer for reproductive justice, indigenous solidarity, and the arts. She is an alto in the SUNY New Paltz Community Chorale and is on the Equity Committee at the Middle School and is a community member for the School Audit Committee.

Ron Fields

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Claudia Goldstein

Claudia Goldstein is Professor and Chair of the Department of Art at William Paterson University in Wayne, NJ, where she has worked for 23 years. A resident of New Paltz since 2008, she was pleased to join the Board of Trustees three years ago and has contributed to the library via the Development Committee and as co-chair of books for the 2025 Fair. Her love of research and teaching, and her particular love of libraries, informed her decision to join the Board. Claudia reads constantly for both work and pleasure, with a particular interest in graphic novels (which she also teaches). She lives in New Paltz with her husband, two children, and two very bossy cats.

Misha Harnick

Laurie Hlvaty

Anina Ma

Anina Ma is currently a junior in New Paltz High School. As a resident of New Paltz, she was pleased to join the Board of Trustees last year and has contributed to the library as a member of the Teen Advisory Group. Anina enjoys reading mystery books and listening to music.

Octavia Nicholas

Octavia began her tenure as a library trustee in 2024. As a trustee, Octavia has gained a newfound appreciation for the hard work and commitment of the employees, volunteers, and patrons who are vital to the success of the library.

Thomas Rocco, PHD

Before moving to New Paltz 17 years ago, Tom Rocco lived a charmed American academic life. After his PhD in philosophy, he became a professor at one of the state universities in Wisconsin. Although very happy there, after just 7 years, he took a position as program director at the College of New Rochelle, New York, then, college dean in Buffalo, NY, Institute president in Seattle, college president in New Hampshire, and founding provost of a new university in Athens, Greece. Throughout his career, Dr. Rocco was very involved with and deeply appreciative of the importance of libraries. He continues to love Elting Library and to value his involvement with the learning environment Elting creates in our Town and Village.

Linda Welles

Dr. Linda Welles has served in a variety of roles as an educator from preschool through doctoral studies. She was principal of a multicultural, socioeconomically diverse elementary school in Port Washington, New York, for seventeen years. Her strong commitment to creating parent-friendly school communities led her to create an institute for parents that brought diverse groups together to promote mutual understanding. Her extensive travel, including visits to schools in several countries, has deepened her commitment to multicultural education.

Since moving to New Paltz 18 years ago she has served on the Village Planning Board, the school district diversity committee, One Book One NewPaltz, and the steering committee of Ulster County Activists. She joined the Elting Memorial Library Board of Trustees fifteen years ago and served as president from 2016 to 2018. Her commitment to education and building community led her to become involved in the library, initiating a youth group, intergenerational cultural events, and Music in the Garden. As the grandmother of 3 and mother of 2 daughters, she is fortunate to have her family close by in New Paltz. Spending time with family, reading with her book club and studying Italian are her favorite ways to spend time.