Friends of Red Rock Canyon (Friends) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, founded in 1984, whose mission is to promote the preservation and enhancement of Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area through volunteerism, philanthropy and education.
Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (Red Rock Canyon NCA) spans almost 200,000 acres and is home to:
Located only 17 miles from the Las Vegas strip, Red Rock Canyon welcomes over two million visitors each year, enough to rank within the top 20 most visited national parks. Providing a safe and enjoyable experience to so many visitors, while also protecting the Red Rock Canyon NCA and its inhabitants requires significant resources.
Friends of Red Rock Canyon provides both volunteers and financial support to preserve and enhance Red Rock Canyon NCA. We also collaborate with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to develop and deliver programs and events to educate visitors and enhance the visitor experience at RRCNA.
Since its inception, Friends of Red Rock Canyon:
Friends maintains a nine-member volunteer board of directors; officers are elected for two-year terms, in alternating years to ensure continuity.
Friends maintains a nine-member volunteer board of directors; officers are elected for two-year terms, in alternating years to ensure continuity.
President
After retiring from a 32-year career with General Motors, followed by 13 years as a metrologist and regional sales manager, Tom found his true passion in conservation. Since 2013, he has dedicated over 5,000 volunteer hours to Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, serving in roles from visitor education to trail maintenance and cultural resource preservation.
As a longtime board member and twice elected President of Friends of Red Rock Canyon, Tom is committed to protecting this incredible landscape so that future generations can experience its beauty just as we do today.
Tom’s message to you: Your support helps fund critical conservation efforts, educational programs, and preservation initiatives. Please join us in safeguarding Red Rock Canyon—every donation makes a lasting impact!
Vice President
Dr. Gregory Darrow, a seasoned family medicine professional, holds an M.D. from Indiana University School of Medicine and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). With a long career dedicated to healthcare, he has held key leadership roles such as President of the New Mexico Academy of Family Physicians and Director Emeritus at the Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians. His expertise includes starting and directing a family medicine residency program, shaping healthcare policy and clinical practice, and has included significant contributions in both academic and community settings.
Dr. Darrow has served as a medical director at various health centers and has taught as an Associate Clinical Professor at multiple medical schools, including Indiana University, University of Wisconsin, and University of New Mexico. He has published numerous articles in respected journals like Medical Economics, Postgraduate Medicine Journal, and the Wisconsin Medical Journal, and contributed to national media outlets such as NPR.
Beyond his professional accomplishments, Dr. Darrow is passionate about outdoor activities like recumbent bicycling, hiking, and landscape photography. He has been an active volunteer with Friends since 2015 and has served 8 years on the Board. Dr. Darrow believes strongly that to be able to serve is a blessing not to be taken for granted, and he is devoted to the mission of the Friends of Red Rock Canyon and to continuing to be a forceful advocate for our treasured public lands.
Treasurer
After executive positions in privately held and publicly traded companies and a major non-profit association, Patricia Potter returned to higher education, capping her career as president of California’s second largest private non-profit institution.
She began volunteering at Red Rock in 2015, drawn to the beauty of Red Rock and impressed by the stewardship Friends provides there on daily basis. Often called the “backyard of Las Vegas,” the almost 200,000-acre national conservation area is a local and a national treasure, so it was her honor to join the board. As the nation’s oldest volunteer group in service to America’s public lands, Friends is venerated among conservation lands groups.
She has over three decades of experience in higher education and more than 20 years of non-profit and for-profit board experience. She currently serves on the boards of three institutions and is the first vice chair of The Community Solution (TCS) Education System board, where she is a member of the executive, finance & audit, and academic committees.
Patricia is a former board member of LEAD San Diego and the International Education Research Foundation, and a San Diego TWIN award recipient. Some of her community service included the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce Education Roundtable, Economic Development Council Workforce Partnership Committee, and Women Together.
Patricia earned a Fellowship in Historical Editing from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. She holds an MBA and is a Leadership America & Leadership California graduate. She has won numerous design awards including a regional Emmy, is a certified Nevada Master Gardener, a serious advocate for public lands, and an avid golfer.
Secretary
Ed Price is a geologist who has lived and worked in Las Vegas for more than thirty-five years. He earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in geology at the University of Georgia and his Ph.D. in geology at Washington State University. He brought his industry experience from environmental projects in Alaska, Colorado, Nevada, China, and Georgia to the classroom as an Associate Professor at Nevada State College. Prior to his retirement, he had taught twenty-five different environmental science courses including geology, hydrology, soils, and meteorology.
Ed is founder of Trail Access Project, a small nonprofit whose mission is to help people with physical disabilities enjoy the outdoors. Ed has a mobility disability himself due to having had polio as a child. Now that he frequently requires a manual wheelchair, he has quickly learned how much less meaningful a public lands experience is for a person with a disability because of restrictions of access. Meaningful experiences away from the parking lots are particularly difficult in the challenging terrain of Red Rock Canyon.
Through the multi-organization partnerships of Friends, Trail Access Project, and the BLM, Ed is working to increase access to nature and adaptive recreational opportunities at Red Rock Canyon. A success in this area is the recent installation of new gates at three hiking trailheads to allow specialized, rugged mobility devices on the trails. These will provide access to remote places at Red Rock Canyon that individuals with disabilities may have never been able to experience in their lives.
Finance & Audit Chair
Bill Li earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an M.S. in Computer Science from Purdue University, along with an M.S. in Telecommunications Management from Washington University in St. Louis. Over the course of his career, he has held leadership roles at AT&T as Technical Director, Peabody Energy as Senior Manager, and SAP as Director and Principal Consultant.
In addition to his professional achievements, Bill has been actively involved in volunteering. In St. Louis, he served as a board member and treasurer for Chinese Cultural and Education Services, as well as treasurer for the Chinese Language School. He also contributed as an ambassador at the St. Louis Zoo, greeter at the St. Louis Aquarium, educator at the St. Louis Science Museum, and an income tax preparer for AARP Tax-Aide.
Since moving to Las Vegas in 2020, Bill has continued his volunteer work at AARP Tax-Aide and became a greeter at the Mob Museum. He also became a Friends member, volunteer and board member.
As an avid hiker with a deep appreciation for nature, he is passionate about preserving the diverse trails of Red Rock Canyon. Serving as a board member provides him with numerous opportunities to contribute to its conservation efforts. He is dedicated to improving trail conditions, enhancing the overall visitor experience, and ensuring the canyon’s beauty and ecological significance are protected for future generations to enjoy. Bill’s involvement allows him to advocate for sustainable practices and promote awareness about the importance of preserving this natural treasure.
Director
Terri Janison has spent most of her life either volunteering or working in the nonprofit sector. A champion for children and an avid outdoor person, she has spent her entire adult life supporting her community.
Terri is the former Executive Director of Friends of Red Rock Canyon and served as President & CEO of a Las Vegas autism foundation and VP Community & Government Relations of the United Way of Southern Nevada. Prior to that she served on Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval’s Executive team and was elected to the Clark County School Board of Trustees, the fifth largest school district in the country serving over 300,000 students annually and overseeing a 2-billion-dollar budget.
Terri currently serves on the board for Mountain View Hospital, the Nevada Press Foundation and the national board of Leave No Trace. She is a volunteer at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.
She and her husband, Kevin, have lived in Las Vegas over 30 years, raising two amazing children
Director
Matt is a Senior Vice President, Investments and PIM Portfolio Manager at Wells Fargo and has over 20 years of experience in financial services. He holds Masters Degrees in both Taxation and Advanced Financial Planning from Golden Gate University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing Management from Youngstown State University.
For over two decades, Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area has been his sanctuary for outdoor adventures—rock climbing, hiking, and mountain biking. When he moved here from Ohio 20 years ago, he quickly fell in love with its breathtaking landscapes and endless opportunities for exploration. Now, as a parent of two young children, he is deeply committed to ensuring they, too, can experience this natural wonder in its pristine state.
Being part of the Friends of Red Rock Canyon board aligns with his passion for preserving this unique environment. Friends’ mission to support the Bureau of Land Management in maintaining and conserving Red Rock Canyon through volunteer efforts and educational initiatives resonates with his desire to give back to a place that has given him so much joy. Through his board role and actively participating in conservation projects, he hopes to help safeguard the canyon’s beauty and accessibility for future generations, including his own children
Director
Christine Smith is the Director of Community Initiatives and Outreach at Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada. Christine was the founding associate dean at the William S. Boyd School at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. After nearly 25 years at the Boyd School of Law, she recently retired from her position as the Associate Dean of Public Service, Compliance, and Administration.
Prior to moving to Las Vegas, Christine was the Assistant Dean of Student Services at the Arizona State University College of Law where she worked from 1976 to 1997.
Always involved in community service activities, Christine has been honored for her work and is the recipient of the Association of American Law Schools Father Drinan Award for Distinguished Service; the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Community Achievement Award, and the William S. Boyd School of Law Public Interest Law Association Silversmith Award. Upon her retirement from the William S. Boyd School of Law and in recognition of her long-time contributions and support of the school’s service mission, the Law School named the school’s community service and public
interest fellowship programs in her honor.
Christine is a graduate of the William P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. She earned a M.S. with Distinction in Educational Leadership at Northern Arizona University.
Friends of Red Rock Canyon is committed to the highest levels of professionalism and transparency and aims to be an excellent steward of donor funds. Friends retains an external book-keeping firm to oversee our day-to-day finances and an external CPA to prepare our annual 990. Our Board of Directors Finance & Audit Committee performs an annual internal audit of our finances.
We respect our donors’ privacy and will never share or sell any donor information. Please let us know if you would like for your donation to remain anonymous.
Below are our latest 990 filings.
Please contact us with any questions regarding our organization.
President
After retiring from a 32-year career with General Motors, followed by 13 years as a metrologist and regional sales manager, Tom found his true passion in conservation. Since 2013, he has dedicated over 5,000 volunteer hours to Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, serving in roles from visitor education to trail maintenance and cultural resource preservation.
As a longtime board member and twice elected President of Friends of Red Rock Canyon, Tom is committed to protecting this incredible landscape so that future generations can experience its beauty just as we do today.
Tom’s message to you: Your support helps fund critical conservation efforts, educational programs, and preservation initiatives. Please join us in safeguarding Red Rock Canyon—every donation makes a lasting impact!
VP, Governance & Nominating Chair
Dr. Gregory Darrow, a seasoned family medicine professional, holds an M.D. from Indiana University School of Medicine and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). With a long career dedicated to healthcare, he has held key leadership roles such as President of the New Mexico Academy of Family Physicians and Director Emeritus at the Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians. His expertise includes starting and directing a family medicine residency program, shaping healthcare policy and clinical practice, and has included significant contributions in both academic and community settings.
Dr. Darrow has served as a medical director at various health centers and has taught as an Associate Clinical Professor at multiple medical schools, including Indiana University, University of Wisconsin, and University of New Mexico. He has published numerous articles in respected journals like Medical Economics, Postgraduate Medicine Journal, and the Wisconsin Medical Journal, and contributed to national media outlets such as NPR.
Beyond his professional accomplishments, Dr. Darrow is passionate about outdoor activities like recumbent bicycling, hiking, and landscape photography. He has been an active volunteer with Friends since 2015 and has served 8 years on the Board. Dr. Darrow believes strongly that to be able to serve is a blessing not to be taken for granted, and he is devoted to the mission of the Friends of Red Rock Canyon and to continuing to be a forceful advocate for our treasured public lands.
Treasurer
After executive positions in privately held and publicly traded companies and a major non-profit association, Patricia Potter returned to higher education, capping her career as president of California’s second largest private non-profit institution.
She began volunteering at Red Rock in 2015, drawn to the beauty of Red Rock and impressed by the stewardship Friends provides there on daily basis. Often called the “backyard of Las Vegas,” the almost 198,000 acre-plus national conservation area is a local and a national treasure, so it was her honor to join the board. As the nation’s oldest volunteer group in service to America’s public lands, Friends is venerated among conservation lands groups.
She has over three decades of experience in higher education and more than 20 years of non-profit and for-profit board experience. She currently serves on the boards of three institutions and is the first vice chair of The Community Solution (TCS) Education System board, where she is a member of the executive, finance & audit, and academic committees.
Patricia is a former board member of LEAD San Diego and the International Education Research Foundation, and a San Diego TWIN award recipient. Some of her community service included the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce Education Roundtable, Economic Development Council Workforce Partnership Committee, and Women Together.
Potter earned a Fellowship in Historical Editing from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. She holds an MBA and is a Leadership America & Leadership California graduate. She has won numerous design awards including a regional Emmy, is a certified Nevada Master Gardener, a serious advocate for public lands, and an avid golfer.
Secretary
Ed Price is a geologist who has lived and worked in Las Vegas for more than thirty-five years. He earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in geology at the University of Georgia and his Ph.D. in geology at Washington State University. He brought his industry experience from environmental projects in Alaska, Colorado, Nevada, China, and Georgia to the classroom as an Associate Professor at Nevada State College. Prior to his retirement, he had taught twenty-five different environmental science courses including geology, hydrology, soils, and meteorology.
Ed is founder of Trail Access Project, a small nonprofit whose mission is to help people with physical disabilities enjoy the outdoors. Ed has a mobility disability himself due to having had polio as a child. Now that he frequently requires a manual wheelchair, he has quickly learned how much less meaningful a public lands experience is for a person with a disability because of restrictions of access. Meaningful experiences away from the parking lots are particularly difficult in the challenging terrain of Red Rock Canyon.
Through the multi-organization partnerships of Friends, Trail Access Project, and the BLM, Ed is working to increase access to nature and adaptive recreational opportunities at Red Rock Canyon. A success in this area is the recent installation of new gates at three hiking trailheads to allow specialized, rugged mobility devices on the trails. These will provide access to remote places at Red Rock Canyon that individuals with disabilities may have never been able to experience in their lives.
Finance & Audit Chair
Bill Li earned a BS in Electrical Engineering and an MS in Computer Science from Purdue University, along with an MS in Telecommunications Management from Washington University in St. Louis. Over the course of his career, he has held leadership roles at AT&T as Technical Director, Peabody Energy as Senior Manager, and SAP as Director and Principal Consultant.
In addition to his professional achievements, Bill has been actively involved in volunteering. In St. Louis, he served as a board member and treasurer for Chinese Cultural and Education Services, as well as treasurer for the Chinese Language School. He also contributed as an ambassador at the St. Louis Zoo, greeter at the St. Louis Aquarium, educator at the St. Louis Science Museum, and an income tax preparer for AARP Tax-Aide.
Since moving to Las Vegas in 2020, Bill has continued his volunteer work at AARP Tax-Aide and became a greeter at the Mob Museum. He also became a Friends member, volunteer and board member.
As an avid hiker with a deep appreciation for nature, he is passionate about preserving the diverse trails of Red Rock Canyon. Serving as a board member provides him with numerous opportunities to contribute to its conservation efforts. He is dedicated to improving trail conditions, enhancing the overall visitor experience, and ensuring the canyon’s beauty and ecological significance are protected for future generations to enjoy. Bill’s involvement allows him to advocate for sustainable practices and promote awareness about the importance of preserving this natural treasure.
Director
Terri Janison has spent most of her life either volunteering or working in the nonprofit sector. A champion for children and an avid outdoor person, she has spent her entire adult life supporting her community.
Terri is the former Executive Director of Friends of Red Rock Canyon and served as President & CEO of a Las Vegas autism foundation and VP Community & Government Relations of the United Way of Southern Nevada. Prior to that she served on Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval’s Executive team and was elected to the Clark County School Board of Trustees, the fifth largest school district in the country serving over 300,000 students annually and overseeing a 2-billion-dollar budget.
Terri currently serves on the board for Mountain View Hospital, the Nevada Press Foundation and the national board of Leave No Trace. She is a volunteer at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.
She and her husband, Kevin, have lived in Las Vegas over 30 years, raising two amazing children
Director
Matt is a Senior Vice President, Investments and PIM Portfolio Manager at Wells Fargo and has over 20 years of experience in financial services. He holds Masters Degrees in both Taxation and Advanced Financial Planning from Golden Gate University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing Management from Youngstown State University.
For over two decades, Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area has been his sanctuary for outdoor adventures—rock climbing, hiking, and mountain biking. When he moved here from Ohio 20 years ago, he quickly fell in love with its breathtaking landscapes and endless opportunities for exploration. Now, as a parent of two young children, he is deeply committed to ensuring they, too, can experience this natural wonder in its pristine state.
Being part of the Friends of Red Rock Canyon board aligns with his passion for preserving this unique environment. Friends’ mission to support the Bureau of Land Management in maintaining and conserving Red Rock Canyon through volunteer efforts and educational initiatives resonates with his desire to give back to a place that has given him so much joy. Through his board role and actively participating in conservation projects, he hopes to help safeguard the canyon’s beauty and accessibility for future generations, including his own children.
Director
Christine Smith is the Director of Community Initiatives and Outreach at Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada. Christine was the founding associate dean at the William S. Boyd School at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. After nearly 25 years at the Boyd School of Law, she recently retired from her position as the Associate Dean of Public Service, Compliance, and Administration.
Prior to moving to Las Vegas, Christine was the Assistant Dean of Student Services at the Arizona State University College of Law where she worked from 1976 to 1997.
Always involved in community service activities, Christine has been honored for her work and is the recipient of the Association of American Law Schools Father Drinan Award for Distinguished Service; the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Community Achievement Award, and the William S. Boyd School of Law Public Interest Law Association Silversmith Award. Upon her retirement from the William S. Boyd School of Law and in recognition of her long-time contributions and support of the school’s service mission, the Law School named the school’s community service and public
interest fellowship programs in her honor.
Christine is a graduate of the William P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. She earned a M.S. with Distinction in Educational Leadership at Northern Arizona University.
