Meet the Board
The Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners is a 15-member community advisory board, serving three-year terms. The composition of the Board is:
- Eight members appointed by the Mayor and confirmed by City Council; including four at-large members, three members from other City Boards/Commissions, and one member from the Get Engaged Program
- Seven members representing each of the Seattle City Council districts appointed by the City Council
The Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners continuously recruits members to fill vacant seats. If you would like to fill out an application, this link will direct you to the City of Seattle Boards and Commissions page: https://www.seattle.gov/boards-and-commissions
Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners - Operating Procedures (rev. 11/24)

Steve Lerer
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Steve Lerer moved to the Bryant/Ravenna neighborhood in 2018 from Merced, California. He and his wife grew up in New Jersey where they met while attending college, and have been on a journey to Seattle where they hope to settle for the long term. Together they have three very active children who spend tons of time in the parks and pools across the city. Steve is also an avid triathlete and a member of the Seattle Triathlon Club. You can see him regularly running and biking the Burke-Gilman trail and swimming across Green Lake in the summers.
Steve received his B.A. in Psychology and Criminal Justice from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and went on to receive an M.A in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University. In August 2021, he finished his Ph.D. in Education and Human Resources at Colorado State University. His dissertation was entitled “Exploring the Perceptions of First-Generation College Students with Strengths Based Development Experiences”.
Steve works for Kaiser Permanente as a Lead Consultant on the National Leadership Development team. In his work, he designs, delivers, and manages multiple leadership development programs across the organization. He also serves as a coach for leaders, where he leverages his deep commitment to a strengths-based development philosophy.

John Flinn
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John lives on Capitol Hill with his husband and son, and their cattle dog Wally, whose favorite activity is chasing the squirrels and rabbits in Volunteer Park. John serves as chair of the Volunteer Park Trust, a volunteer-led community group formed to help preserve and enhance the historic park and its Olmsted-designed landscape and features. He can frequently be found in the park, swimming laps at Medgar Evers pool, or shopping the farmer's market at Cal Anderson Park. Now retired, John spent his professional career as a content strategist, editor, and product manager at Amazon, MSNBC.com, and Microsoft.

Elise Chisholm Clare
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As a longtime Seattleite who loves being active outdoors, Elise is proud to serve as a Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioner representing District 4. She and her family consider the Ravenna-Cowen Park corridor an extension of their backyard, and they regularly visit other parks, playfiends, swimming pools, and trail networks throughout NE Seattle and the broader City. Elise is committed to supporting efforts that will make our public spaces safer and more vibrant, and she believes this is achievable through open dialogue, an integrated approach, and a focus on measurable impact.
Elise brings relevant strategy, planning, and stakeholder engagement experience to the table as a marketing and communications leader with a passion for tech innovation and environmental sustainability. She’s currently the Head of Marketing at Collaboration.Ai, a software and services startup aimed at unleashing the full potential of human connections to solve the world’s hardest problems. Previously in her career, she held management roles at Starbucks, Uber, and Edelman.
Born and raised in southern Idaho, Elise earned a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Marquette University and Master’s in Communication Leadership from the University of Washington. She enjoys hiking, biking, skiing, drinking great coffee, dining at new restaurants, and exploring Seattle’s neighborhoods with family and friends.

Stafford Mays
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Stafford worked at Microsoft for 20+ years. His responsibilities included managing PR efforts for Microsoft's Global Diversity & Inclusion Team. He was also responsible for External PR & Media and Online Print. In addition, he focused on External Relationships with Civil Rights and Human Service Organizations, as well as K-12 and Minority Colleges & Universities. Mays worked to create and implement programs that provided equal access to technology to underserved communities. These efforts delivered Microsoft technology infrastructure, teacher preparedness, training and access for minority students.
Prior to joining Microsoft, Mays earned a scholarship and played football for the University of Washington. Stafford was drafted as a defensive lineman for the St. Louis Cardinals/Minnesota Vikings (1980-89).
Stafford served on local boards of several non-profits and speaks to various K-12 schools about academics and technology. He is currently on the boards of Odea High School and Upower.org.