Alabama Mushroom Society |
MEET OUT LEADERSHIP
Board Members
These are our elected officials who guide AMS and make larger decisions. Typically these are administrative roles.
- President: Alisha Millican
- Vice President: Jil Sea
- Treasurer: Spencer Lowry
- Secretary: Becca Mahoney
Meet Our Board
President, Alisha Millican
Board Member, Foray Leader Alisha grew up hiking and exploring the woods of NE Ohio before moving south running from the snow. She has always had an interest in wild edibles, gardening and everything outdoors. In 2017 she received her Master Gardener certification which furthered her interest in collecting wild edibles. After discovering the Alabama Mushroom Society, she has delved more specifically into fungi identification and is constantly broadening her knowledge of Alabama mushrooms. She hopes by encouraging interest in and educating people about mushrooms, she can help promote good stewardship of our wild places and our earth. She also sits on the Executive Board of the North American Mycological Association, has the pleasure of serving on NAMA's Vouchering Committee and Nominating Committee and is a volunteer coordinator with the Fungal Diversity Survey. Alisha lives in Cullman County, Alabama with her husband and two young kids. When she isn't hunting for or studying mushrooms, she enjoys backpacking, practicing primitive skills, and gardening. | Vice President, Jil Sea
Board Member, maybe one day a Foray Leader Birmingham, Al is Jil's chosen home-base and traveling world-wide with her husband is a favorite outlet. They have a house full of cats. She has embraced a plant-based lifestyle for over 30 years, a lover of animals. Jil is new to the world of mushrooms, but views them as beautiful and mysterious. They have the potential to heal or harm, requiring discretion to safely use. She is eager to learn! Some might describe Jil as a professional student, but hey there are worst things. She has earned degrees in musical theatre, art, Occupational Therapy, Massage Therapy, and pre-med. She's now a 5th-year PhD student at UAB studying Health Behavior. After working as an Occupational Therapist for over 20 years, she realized she wanted to expand her skills to raise the bar on holistic health. She wants to provide support and leadership wherever it is best needed to reinforce the mission and vision of AMS. She is motivated to connect to AMS members to learn about what they want from their membership and their ideas. | Secretary, Rebecca Mahoney
Rebecca (Becca) Mahoney is a lifetime Alabama resident. She has the joy of being a wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother. She grew up hunting, fishing, wild harvesting and growing her own food and medicine. She owns a small cleaning business and a small working farm with her husband Mark. | Treasurer, Spencer Lowery
Spencer grew up in Central Alabama surrounded by a forest; the woods are his home. He has always had an interest in the natural sciences since a child but started to specialize in mycology in 2017. His goal is to teach the younger generations and get them involved. Mycophobia is indoctrinated, and he would like to end the cycle by educating others. AMS offers a platform to do this type of work. Fungi are useful, whether that be culinary, medically, or environmentally. Spencer just wants to show people this without it being convoluted with pop science, pseudo-medicine or mycophobia. Spencer is currently working on developing taxonomy skills to be able to give individuals proper information. |
FORAY LEADERS
Foray leaders do exactly that, lead forays, forages, or hikes. Foray leaders may not be experts, but can provide the guidance and enthusiasm to find fungi and get ID nailed down using a variety of resources.
These are the folks that are running forays for Alabama Mushroom Society. Our foray leaders will always conduct themselves in a professional manner, while educating and making every one feel welcome.
Baldwin County Kat Williams: a lifelong nature enthusiast whose love for the outdoors has led her around the globe to hike, forage, and explore. She is a published writer and poet who often finds inspiration in the forest and nestled in the crooks of decaying trees. Her adventures led her to pursue her budding interests in fungi and botany. She looks forward to making new friends and hunting mushrooms together every month at the Baldwin County Foray!
Alisha Millican: President of the Alabama Mushroom Society and active on the Board of NAMA, Alisha loves leading forays in Cullman County. She is especially fond of teaching kids about mushrooms and answering their 501 questions regarding all things fungi. Read her full bio above. Tallapoosa County Becca Mahoney: I am the secretary for Alabama Mushroom Society and one of the foray leaders. I grew up here in central Alabama. Hunting, foraging and fishing with my parents was as normal to me as shopping at the grocery store. Cooking has always been a passion of mine. Being able to add wild harvested mushrooms to our table has been a joy. The almost daily discovery of new fungi keeps me excited about learning. I love meeting the people that come to our Tallapoosa county forays. Sharing experiences and learning with them is truly a pleasure. Jefferson County Spencer Lowery: I am the treasurer of the Alabama Mushroom Society and the Foray Leader for Jefferson County. Having grown up in Blount County, I have moved back to the area after living for a time away and am reinvigorated to teach about the fungi that occur in our area. I am especially interested in teaching young people and fostering their interest in mycology.
Jesse Azobek: From the moment Jesse took his first bite of bread made from acorns he foraged in his own backyard, he was hooked! Since then, there are not many moments you won't find him outside in woods and fields looking for wild food and herbs. He loves teaching as much as foraging itself! Jesse runs the online educational foraging platform Feral Foraging, which you can find on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. We are excited to get to collaborate with Feral Foraging for some classes and forays throughout the year.
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Other Notable Individuals
Founder, Anthoni Goodman
Anthoni Goodman founded this organization to foster interest in our diverse fungi and to build an educational and social club for all of us mycophiles! He attended Northern Arizona University where he earned his masters in Clinical Psychology and where he was fortunate enough to become a member of a very active Mushroom Society in Arizona. He moved to Birmingham for his PhD work in Neuroscience, where he missed that very particular type of social club and decided to make one for the great state of Alabama! His interest in fungi is primarily based on a general study of their morphology, distribution, ecological niche, and of course value as an addition to his dinner plate. He hopes this page and society bring, visitors and members alike, the resources and social support they need to dive head first into this fascinating hobby! He has, to our great loss, moved north to Pennsylvania, but continues to support AMS by contributing to projects and offering his advise and guidance. | Founding Member, Tim Pfitzer
Foray leader and guru of all things wild food, Tim Pfitzer played a pivotal role in establishing the Alabama Mushroom Society. He plays a major role in us putting on our annual Morel Foray and our annual Chanterelle Foray. He has a passion for wild foods since he was very young and loves to share that passion with anyone who has a desire to learn. |
