Board of Directors
Laura Knopp
Board Chair
Laura Knopp is an experienced attorney currently employed as in-house counsel advising a telecommunications company. Before transitioning in-house, she worked as a civil litigator, public defender for the State of Colorado, and a judicial law clerk. She joined EOLCOR’s Board of Directors in 2024.
Rob Nimmo
Vice Chair
Rob Nimmo is an experienced senior financial executive with a background in international banking and finance services companies. He has served on the Boards and Audit/Finance Committees of a number of not-for-profit organizations, including Compassion and Choices. Rob is semi-retired and still active as an investor and management consultant.
Leila Snow
Treasurer
Leila Snow holds an MBA with interests in finance and flat, egalitarian management structures. She retired from 15 years in a leadership position at Oregon Research Institute and has extensive experience in the financial management of grants. Leila also served in management at the Eugene Police Department. She is passionate about choice and equity and has volunteered with Egan Warming Centers, NOLA Ready support vaccination clinics in underserved communities, and other large-scale public safety and health operations. She became an end-of-life doula in 2017 and began volunteering with EOCLOR in 2019.
Cherlyne Short Majors, PhD, MA, MLA
Secretary
Cherlyne’s experience in behavioral health spans 35 years in a variety of settings, including the treatment of substance use disorder and mental illness in children and adults, as well as the creation and executive-level direction of programs designed to provide such treatment. Dr. Majors is a founder of The Women’s CEO Global Alliance in Behavioral Health and is committed to encouraging and supporting existing and emerging women leaders through coaching and mentoring. Having been an EOLCOR volunteer since its inception, she was also an EOLCOR Team Leader for three years.
Becky Bent, MD
Director
Dr. Bent is a retired neonatologist who has extensive experience working with critically ill patients in the family setting. She began volunteering with EOLCOR in 2018. Dr. Bent has given DWDA outreach presentations to medical groups, hospices, and nursing students. She regularly attends EOLCOR regional volunteer team meetings and provides consultation regarding Medical Aid in Dying (MAiD) to Oregon physicians.
Nick Gideonse, MD
Director
Dr. Nick Gideonse is Associate Professor of Family Medicine at Oregon Health and Science University where he practices broad-spectrum primary care. He has served as Medical Director for a large community health center, a skilled nursing facility, and hospice. Dr. Gideonse is deeply involved in medical student and resident education, including end-of-life choices, as he works regularly with terminally ill patients and EOLCOR volunteers. He has testified nationally and internationally in support of end of life choices.
Tim Hicks
Director
Tim is a conflict management professional providing mediation, facilitation, training, coaching, and consulting to individuals and organizations in the private and public arenas. After 14 years in private practice, he led the Master’s degree program in Conflict and Dispute Resolution at the University of Oregon. He is the author of, Last Stop Before Tomorrow (iUniverse, 2015) which offers a perspective on climate change and our struggle to respond and Embodied Conflict: The Neural Basis of Conflict and Communication (Routledge, 2018). He has also co-authored The Process of Business/Environmental Collaborations: Partnering for Sustainability (Quorum Books, May 2000), a text on collaborative partnerships to resolve environmental disputes between corporations and environmental organizations.
Ethan Dunham
Director
Ethan has a lifetime of non-profit experience. As the son of a pastor and school teacher, helping others and fundraising was a part of everyday life. As an adult, Ethan founded four different companies. Along the way he continued to work with non-profits, both as a volunteer and consultant. His last company, Upward Technology, was the first B-Corporation in its industry in the US and was awarded the honor largely based on its culture of giving back to the community. Today Ethan currently serves on several non-profit boards and volunteers for several others.
Robert Troutman
Director
Robert is a professional member of the American Society of Interior Designers and currently serves as a trustee of the Portland Art Museum, where he chairs the Collections Committee and is also a docent. He is a board member of the Pacific Youth Choir, and he has also served as the president for the Oregon Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers. Robert studied architecture at the University of Oregon and studied design in Berlin and Paris. He also holds a BA in history from the University of Oregon and a Juris Doctorate from Northwestern School of Law.