Francis Anthony Gallela
Director and Treasurer

West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia
M.B.A Finance, 1967
St. Francis College, Loretto, Pennsylvania
B.A. Economics, 1965

Mr. Gallela is the President of the economic and management consulting firm, Francis Gallela & Associates of Anchorage, Alaska. He has been in the economics, business management, litigation support, and business appraisal fields serving clients in the public and private sectors throughout Alaska for over 30 years. Francis has taught at the University of West Virginia and at the University of Alaska - Anchorage. He came to Alaska as an economist for the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration.

Francis has testified concerning the difficulties facing business development and start-up before the Alaska State Legislature, The Human Rights Commission, The Ad Hoc Commission on Minority Business and others. Francis served in the United States Air Force and then in the Alaska Air National Guard retiring as a Colonel with approximately 29.5 years of service on 1 January 1997.

His memberships include the Institute of Business Appraisers, National Association of Forensic Economists, American Economic Association, Anchorage East Rotary Club, American Academy of Financial and Economic Experts, National Rifle Association, and Safari Club International.

Brian Kraft
Director

University of Alaska at Anchorage, Alaska
B.A. Marketing, 1992

Brian was born in a suburb of Chicago and came to Alaska in 1988 to play NCAA Division 1 Hockey for UAA and has made Alaska his residence ever since. He played Professional hockey in Europe and for the Anchorage ACES hockey team until 2000. Brian also has worked as a roughneck for Doyon Drilling for 3 summers and worked for ARCO for one summer season in the Drilling Engineering Department.

Brian started Kraft Adventures, an Alaskan tourism and guiding company in 1992.
He entered the fishing lodge business in 1994 and built the Alaska Sportsman's Lodge on the Kvichak River in 1997. He is currently the operating manager for Alaska Sportsman's Lodge and one of two owners in that business. In 2004 his company acquired Sitkalidik Lodge on Kodiak Island and changed the name to Kodiak Sportsman's Lodge. Brian is also Trout Unlimited's Southwest Alaska Regional Director

As a pilot and outdoorsman, Brian enjoys fishing and hunting in various parts of the state. He founded the Bristol Bay Alliance in November of 2004 to help educate and enlighten people about the environmental impacts of open pit mining.

Norman Van Vactor
Director

St. Olaf College, Northfield MN
B.A. History & International Studies, 1979

Born and raised in the Southern Philippines, Norman came to the United States and specifically Alaska the day after his High School graduation in the spring of 1975. Driven by his desire to explore Alaska’s great outdoors, and by the necessity to earn money to pay his way thru school, he found his way that summer to Bristol Bay, a journey that he has continued on ever since.

Norman worked his way up thru the ranks as a deckhand on fishing tenders to later become a tender Captain. In 1979 and post graduation, he accepted a fulltime position with Peter Pan Seafoods in production management. Thru the years in various positions he has helped build Peter Pan Seafoods into one of the largest seafood buyers and processor’s in the Bristol Bay region and currently is their Bristol Bay Manager.

Norman is an active member of various civic and business groups including the Dillingham Chamber of Commerce, former medic with the Dillingham Volunteer Fire Department, has served on several Alaska Fish & Game advisory committees and the Bristol Bay Restructuring Committee. As it relates to Land Use issue’s Norman is also currently a Board Member of the Nushagak Mulchatna Land Trust. In his spare time he feeds his passion for the outdoors and aviation by flying as a volunteer pilot for groups like Angel Flight transporting medical patients.

With several thousand hours of flying hours logged in Alaska’s interior and over 30 years of working with a predominantly resident Alaskan fishing fleet, Norman has a love and passion for its land, and its people.

Age-38
Married Kari in 1994. Kids-Sydney 9, Jack 7, Luke 2.
Born in New York State, moved to Alaska at 2 yrs.
Parents were school teachers in the villages of Ekwok on the Nushigak River and Levelock on the Kvichak River. Spent summers on Kvichak fishing, swimming and enjoying the great wilderness.
Family relocated to Palmer Alaska in the late 70's and split our time between Valley and Bristol Bay.
Graduated high school in 1988, completed a two year Aviation Technology program while attending flight school.  Entered into family business in 1991 as pilot/guide/aircraft mechanic  and took ownership with brother in 2006. Hobbies include flying, hunting, fishing, scuba diving, and raising kids.

Dave Atcheson
Director

BA in Sociology, minor in English lit. State university of New York awarded 1985. Dave is a lifelong hunter and fisherman. He's also a freelance writer whose work regularly appears in Alaska Magazine. He has been a Contributing Editor for Fish Alaska, and is the author of the guidebook Fishing Alaska's Kenai Peninsula. Dave teaches fly-fishing at the University of Alaska and spent a number of years with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game working on various studies within the Kenai River watershed. He has also worked as a commercial fisherman on various seiners and as a setnetter in Prince William Sound.