Board of Directors

• Scott Bogle
• Felicia Sperry
• Natalie Grimm
• Patrick Parisi
• Debbie Arenberg
• Chris Berg
• Jennifer Smith
• Jennifer Zaidlicz
  Margo Angelopoulos
  Eben Lewis

Board Member Biographies

Scott Bogle – President, Parent Representative
Scott grew up in Durham and discovered rowing as a high school freshman in 1982 at Durham Boat Club, which had a competitive junior team at the time coached by Jim and Colleen Dreher. In rowing he found a sport that fit his disposition and strengths. He had played youth soccer and baseball but never really connected with either. He found he loved being on the water, he loved racing, he loved the sense of shared endeavor with teammates, and seeing the direct connection between level of effort and results. He went on to row at Brown University from 1986-1990, and did a stretch of masters racing from 2005-2010. In his professional life he is a Transportation Planner with the Rockingham Planning Commission where he works with Seacoast communities to develop their bicycle and pedestrian networks and improve access to public transportation and services for older adults and people with disabilities. He has served on numerous nonprofit boards, and currently lives in Durham with his wife Heidi, daughter Hannah and son Peter. He joined the GBR Board in 2023 after his daughter Hannah discovered rowing; and currently serves as President with a goal of sustaining and growing GBR so others can benefit from rowing as he has.

Felicia Sperry – Financial Aid Chair, Freedom Rows, Coach
Felicia was first introduced to the sport at Bucknell University while she was playing rugby at Bucknell and she joined the program in it’s early years. At Bucknell, she rowed and coached as a grad student and later rowed a season of Masters at GBR.  In addition to her 5 or so years experience of rowing and coaching experience,as well as her ten plus years coaching youth soccer, Felicia brings vast experience with non-profits and fundraising to her service on the Board:  she ran the PTO’s at Mast Way Elementary School and ORMS; she started and developed the OR Hockey Boosters; and she served as parent coordinator for OR Otters swim team where she also officiated.  With over 30 years experience as a school psychologist, she brings a deep understanding and commitment to the social and emotional development of local youth, as well as a commitment to fostering growth mindset and a sense of community for GBR.  She is a collaborative, problem-solver and supports a systems perspective in club operations and decision-making. Of her interest in the sport and her decision to serve on the Board, Felicia says, “I fell in love with the sport of rowing when I was in college..I love it…only thing I ever got up at 4am for!! I loved the team component, the challenge of getting everyone to work together and move together and when it happened…you worked to keep it going!  I am so glad that I found out about GBR so I could share this sport with my kids and get a chance to row again as a masters.” 

Natalie Grimm – Secretary, Masters Athlete, Coach
Natalie Grimm started rowing with GBR as a masters rower in 2018 after graduating from the University of Maine. At the University of Maine Natalie was a founding member and co-president of the UMaine Crew team. The school in prior years had a small recreational rowing club. During her time at UMaine the team grew into one of the most active sports clubs on campus, attending six regattas a year, and winning sports club of the year in her senior year. Natalie was able to contribute as a rower, a coach, and club officer, helping oversee all aspects of the team. Over her tenure the team grew its fleet from one 4+ rowing shell to five 4+ rowing shells. After graduation in 2018 Natalie moved to the seacoast area. Over the last four years she has been rowing on the masters competitive team and logbook sculling. In the fall of 2021 Natalie put her coaching hat back on and work with the GBR junior team as an assistant coach. I really enjoyed seeing the love for the sport in all of the junior rowers and especially helping the novice rowers develop good skills as they were introduced to a new sport. For her day job, Natalie works as a marine canvas fabricator in the area and make custom boat canvas. In addition to rowing she enjoys skiing, hiking, crocheting, and chasing after her dog.          

Margo Angelopoulos – Masters Athlete, Boathouse Committee
When Margo walked across the quad as a 6′-2″ freshman on move-in day at Yale, the crew team pounced. Unfortunately, Margo was already spoken for — she was a recruited athlete throwing shot put, discus, and hammer for the Track & Field team — but the rowing seed was planted. Upon graduation, signing up for a learn to row program based in her home state of Connecticut was task number one. A year later Margo was medaling at Masters’ Nationals with the New Haven Rowing Club’s competitive team. In 2010, Margo relocated to Philadelphia for graduate school where she became embedded with the vibrant rowing community on Boathouse Row. Margo served on the board of the Fairmount Rowing Association, where she grew the historically male club’s women’s program, captaining the club’s first ever women’s sweep boats entered in the Head of the Charles Regatta and the San Diego Crew Classic. Margo served as director of the Quaker City Masters Regatta, a small master’s-only sprint regatta known for its fun racing and its after party, from 2014-2019. Margo also served on the board of directors of the Head of the Schuylkill Regatta for 6 years, where she specialized in on-the-water logistics. Margo brought her experience of the operations of multiple rowing organizations and events to Great Bay Rowing in 2021 when she began rowing with the competitive master’s team. As an architect, Margo is supporting the Boathouse Committee in the planning and design of GBR’s future home. 

Chris Berg – Parent Representative
Chris has been a resident of Seacoast NH since 2000, when he migrated to attend graduate school at the University of New Hampshire. In 2019, his youngest son joined the GBR’s Middle School program, igniting a passion for competitive rowing that continues to this day. Professionally, Chris serves as a Senior Project Manager at a local civil/environmental engineering firm. He is an active member of the New Hampshire Water Works Association Board of Directors and has held various leadership roles within the Dover Scouts BSA Pack and Troop. Additionally, Chris has contributed as an assistant coach for the Dover High School Ski Team and has served as a volunteer for several youth-oriented clubs. In 2024, he joined the Board as interim director, bringing his experience as a parent of a junior rower, construction and technical expertise to support GBR in achieving its mission.

Eben Lewis – Masters Athlete
Bio to come

Debbie Arenberg – Masters Athlete
Debbie was introduced to rowing when she was 8 years old by her family mentor Arthur Martin, inventor of the recreational Alden Rowing Shells, located in Kittery Point. She has been an open water racer for many years and has won the 2x event rowing to the Isles of Shoals several times. After college Debbie worked for Alden for over 25 years and then went on to develop the recreational and adaptive rowing market for WinTech Racing for 5 years. Eventually her expertise in adaptive equipment led her to a position with USRowing where she worked to develop adaptive rowing on a national level and oversaw over 34 veteran Freedom Rows programs through a VA grant for over ten years. She continues to work for USRowing as the Classification Coordinator overseeing Para sport classification for rowers with disabilities in the US. Both of her children rowed at GBR and she competes on the GBR Masters Team as well. Debbie brings over 35 years of experience working with all rowers and is dedicated to find a way to adapt equipment to rowers of all shapes and sizes. She loves to work on boats and can often be found working on equipment in her free time.

Jennifer Smith – Parent Representative
Jennifer Smith grew up swimming competitively until college, when the Lafayette College crew team decided to send an invitation to all incoming swimmers suggesting they give rowing a try. It was love at first blister. She rowed all four years of college and after graduation with Alexandria Community Rowing, in Virginia. Eventually life and work got in the way of rowing, but Jen always loved the sport and assumed she would find her way back to it when the stars aligned. And align they did when her son’s sudden growth spurt coincided with her family’s move to the Seacoast area. One Learn to Row later and two out of three of Jen’s kids joined GBR. (She’s working on the third one!) Watching her kids develop confidence, skill and a sense of purpose as they blossom as teammates and athletes has profoundly deepened Jen’s love of and appreciation for rowing. She is grateful for the opportunity to serve on the Board and to help ensure the continued success and sustainability of GBR for generations to come. Jen works as a lawyer for the City of Portsmouth and is licensed in New York and New Hampshire. She hopes to follow in the footsteps of those Board members who got back out on the water when the last kid left the nest.

Jennifer Zaidlicz-Everett – Parent Representative
Jen brings a valuable perspective to GBR’s Board of Directors as a secondary school teacher, a parent of a current GBR athlete, and a former collegiate rower. With a background in college rowing at UNH (‘96), she possesses firsthand knowledge of the sport’s physical and mental demands. Jen is excited to use this experience to help develop athletes and support their growth both on and off the water. As an educator, Jen has honed strong communication skills and developed the ability to work with diverse groups. She has taught at both the high school and middle school levels, coached various competitive sports, and dedicated much of her life to fostering the development and well-being of young people. Jen is particularly passionate about the positive impact rowing has on personal development and community building. As a parent, Jen understands the challenges and priorities that families face. She brings a unique perspective that helps ensure the club’s policies and activities are considerate of both athletes and parents, fostering inclusivity and cooperation. Jen’s ability to collaborate, manage diverse
needs, and contribute to the board’s vision ensures a balanced approach that supports the long-term success and growth of GBR as well as the development of the next generation of rowers.