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MEET THE DIRECTORS

Manfred (Fred) Freese, President

Manfred and his wife Barbara operate a small 5 acre vineyard that they planted in 2000 on a steep hillside on the east bench overlooking Lake Osoyoos. After retiring in 1996 from a 30 year career in government and industry R&D and management, Manfred decided to return to his early interests in farming and wine. He joined the BCGA in 2001 and became a director in 2003. Besides growing grapes, Manfred enjoys studying the various technical aspects of modern viticulture and customizing some of the vineyard instrumentation and equipment designs. In the off-season Manfred & Barbara like to go skiing and curling. They also enjoy traveling and performing various volunteer activities in the community.

Ed Thibault, Director & Chairman of Finance Committee

Ed & his wife, Linda purchased a 10 acre property in Summerland & converted a 5 acre peach orchard to a vineyard in 2000/01. Ed is retired from a 30 year career with IBM where he held a variety of positions that provided him with an excellent business background that included finance, marketing and management. Ed was happy to take on the task as chairman of the BCGA Finance Committee. Ed is on the Board of the BC Wine Institute and the Board of the BC Wine Grape Council.

Ed Schiller, Director & Chairman of the Membership Committee

Ed has a small vineyard in East Kelowna & sells mostly to individual wine makers. Ed has been a long time member of the organization and is now in his fourth term as a Board member. He is currently the Chairman of the Membership committee which fits well with his enthusiasm for touring the BC grape & wine regions & meeting with growers in their vineyards & wineries. Ed is a consulting geologist. He also claims to be the best dancer in town!

Renee Martin

Renee Martin and her husband Ken Maclean bought their 5 acre property in Kaleden, having been seduced by the spectacular view. They planted their vineyard in 2006 and have been enjoying sipping their wine ever since. Renee is Professor Emeritus in Medical Genetics at the University of Calgary and Adjunct Professor at Florida International University but she spends most of her time hiking, skiing and toiling in the vineyard. Renee was elected to the Board in 2009.

Michael Bartier

Michael Bartier is a consulting winemaker based in Penticton, BC. He has been involved in the BC Wine Industry for over 20 years with winemaking positions at Vincor, Road 13 Vineyards, and Township 7 Vineyards and Winery. He is currently Head Winemaker at Okanagan Crush Pad Winery in Summerland, working with several client wineries and vineyards.

Kathy Mercier

Kathy and her husband Gene own 7 acres south of Oliver on Road 16. They planted 3 acres of Merlot in 1997 and 3 acres of Chardonnay in 1999.

Roger Hol

Roger Hol developed a passion for farming after his parents decided to purchase his grandparents farm in Richmond to continue their family heritage in agriculture. He and his family purchased a second farm in Cawston in 1981, where they cleared rocks and sage brush, installed irrigation, leveled the fields, picked more rock, and finally they managed a total of 75 acres of irrigated hay land. In 1996, Mr. Hol sold his Vancouver-based business to farm full time and to become the progressive operator of a 75 acre farm used to grow hay. When he started searching for an alternative higher value crop and decided to evolve the farm into a viable, sustainable vineyard. Shortly thereafter, in 1997, Andres Wines approached Mr. Hol to grow grapes for them. Note that Andres Wines planted the first grapes in BC in the Similkameen Valley in 1961 before they planted grapes in the Okanagan Valley. In 1998, Mr. Hol and his team planted the first 25 acres of grapes and planted the remaining 50 acres in 1999. In 2008, Mr. Hol sold Rocky Ridge Vineyards, and bought a new farm further south in the Similkameen Valley and he has now planted it to wine grapes. Mr. Hol believes deeply that farming is more than just economics. His focus is on preserving natural resources, sustaining the eco system, and achieving a sustainable lifestyle. Mr. Hol's ultimate goal is to build a successful agricultural tourism business based on his vineyard.

Tim Martiniuk

After graduating from Queen's University, Tim returned from Ontario to the family vineyard, where he has spent nearly every summer since the age of 7. Proud to be helping build the family business, Tim, depending on the day, can be found inside wine tanks, on the crush pad, behind the tasting bar, or at his computer designing labels and websites. He currently oversees Stoneboat's marketing and wine shop operations, though he is generally considered by everyone at Stoneboat to be the resident jack of all trades.