Meet Our New Board Members!
June 11, 2019 – During Five Rivers’ Annual Gathering at the McLane Center/NH Audubon, we welcomed three new board members. From left to right in the photo, they are Mike Hvizda, Katy Ward, and Liz Short. We are excited to have them join us!
Mike Hvizda, Concord
Mike has had a deep love for his natural surrounding from a young age. A New Hampshire native passionate about hiking, mountain biking, surfing and skiing, Mike is driven by building meaningful relationships and connecting people with opportunity. While owning and operating a farm in Boscawen, NH, he saw an opportunity to fill a gap in the real estate industry. As he built a positive reputation in the Greater Concord area, he found himself involved in many conversations regarding land use and conservation. These conversations led to the launch of the “Land Access Info Session” which brings land owners and land seekers together to learn from professionals about everything from leasing land for agricultural production to conservation opportunities. In fact this session continues to run regularly and has been adopted by Land for Good.
Always prioritizing people over profits, Mike’s vision is to pave the way for the future of real estate—one in which honesty, integrity, and sustainability are paramount. After devoting more than a decade to growing and managing a local ice‐cream truck business, he began his real estate career in 2012 — and within two years, he was producing within the top 5% of his market center of over 300 agents. Over the last two and a half years he has lead Keller Williams Realty in Andover, MA as the CEO of the franchise. In 2019 he returns to the ever growing Hvizda Team in Concord, NH and looks forward to working with his team to serve both buyers and sellers in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. A bold leader and skilled negotiator, Mike shows by example that a fierce entrepreneurial spirit can be backed up by a strong sense of ethics.
Katy Ward, Henniker
Katy is President and Principal Engineer at Aries Engineering, LLC, an environmental consulting company located in Concord. She lives in Henniker where she and her husband raise their two children. Katy and her family enjoy biking, skiing, camping, and other outdoor activities, including hiking at Chase Brook, a Five Rivers‐conserved property in Henniker. Katy believes in the importance of conserving land for future generations to enjoy.
Liz Short, Concord
Liz is honored to be considered for the role as Board member and is looking forward to working (and hiking or trail running!) alongside other Five Rivers ambassadors.
Liz is the Business Finance Program Director at the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund, a nonprofit organization that turns investments into loans and education to create opportunity and transform lives across New Hampshire. Her team provides capital and technical assistance to small businesses, community services (like child care centers and nonprofits), and affordable housing developers.
Liz spent 12 years in the organic dairy industry at Stonyfield, including roles in milk sourcing, green building, and employee engagement in environmental initiatives. Liz received a MBA and MS in Natural Resources from the University of Michigan’s Erb Institute in 2005 and a BA in Biology from Cornell in 1998.
Early in her career Liz found rewarding work with The Nature Conservancy’s national conservation science division. She is excited to get back into land conservation and make deeper connections locally. Liz lives in Concord with her husband Joe and two daughters, Maddie (age 10) and Lily (age 7). If you were to ask her youngest daughter what is the best part about serving on the Five Rivers Board, Lily would say “so that we can go on hikes and make fairy houses!”
