Steve Shepherd
President
President
Matt and Kristin Gibbs
Vice President / Secretary
Vice President / Secretary
Ron Decker
Treasurer
Treasurer
Ed Shoenbach
Board Member
Board Member
We moved to Yakima County from Chelan County in 2004, finding our way to Conrad Ranch in 2005. We were attracted by the beautiful views, open spaces, and the kind of rural lifestyle that's getting harder and harder to find these days. We're resisting the trend of Americans moving into high density urban residence, and we're loving it. We are firm believers in freedom, more personal choice in the way a person lives life, and we are strong advocates for less centralized control over the lives and property of private, tax-paying Americans. We love our property and believe we are the best stewards of it.
We often say that Conrad Ranch is one of Yakima County's best kept secrets. Where else can you find such open spaces, beautiful views, and the convenience of living within reach of town. We spend our time chasing our 5 children, when they're not chasing us. We have learned through our children's passion for soccer that children need something they can really work toward and experience the joy of achieving. For some it's sports, for others it may be equestrian pursuits, recreation, motorsports, you name it. It's all good, and this neighborhood is a great place for kids and adults alike.
Matt is the sales manager for a Naches-based international ingredient trading firm. Kristin manages our household, which means she is the harder working of the two of us. We chose to serve on the board of CROA because we believe that Conrad Ranch is a great neighborhood to live in, and we want to work hard to maintain and even improve the quality of life for Conrad Ranch owners.
We often say that Conrad Ranch is one of Yakima County's best kept secrets. Where else can you find such open spaces, beautiful views, and the convenience of living within reach of town. We spend our time chasing our 5 children, when they're not chasing us. We have learned through our children's passion for soccer that children need something they can really work toward and experience the joy of achieving. For some it's sports, for others it may be equestrian pursuits, recreation, motorsports, you name it. It's all good, and this neighborhood is a great place for kids and adults alike.
Matt is the sales manager for a Naches-based international ingredient trading firm. Kristin manages our household, which means she is the harder working of the two of us. We chose to serve on the board of CROA because we believe that Conrad Ranch is a great neighborhood to live in, and we want to work hard to maintain and even improve the quality of life for Conrad Ranch owners.
I was born in northeastern Washington working the farms and lumber mills. I decided to escape by going to college at WSU and ended up in computers. I fancied myself quite the computer programmer (back in the days of punched cards, no video).
Looking for my first job, I saw a couple of openings - a mainframe state job, the other with some new firm Microsoft. I remember thinking to myself “that state job's a real man's job; Microsoft - those toy computers will never go anywhere”. I took the state job in Olympia. Oh well. Wisdom.
After 30 years of cubicles and rain, I decided to retire in open space and seek something people told stories about called the sun. I remember asking around the office about this whole sun deal - no one had ever actually seen it. Conrad Ranch to the rescue!
I live with my “partner” little sparky (an ocicat). I am still waiting for Gov. Gregoire to make good on her pledge of free health care for my domestic partner, and whatever other subsidies we are due.
As you can see, I have issues to deal with - and we haven't even gotten into this whole mad scientist doing who knows what in that big grey garage thing....
Looking for my first job, I saw a couple of openings - a mainframe state job, the other with some new firm Microsoft. I remember thinking to myself “that state job's a real man's job; Microsoft - those toy computers will never go anywhere”. I took the state job in Olympia. Oh well. Wisdom.
After 30 years of cubicles and rain, I decided to retire in open space and seek something people told stories about called the sun. I remember asking around the office about this whole sun deal - no one had ever actually seen it. Conrad Ranch to the rescue!
I live with my “partner” little sparky (an ocicat). I am still waiting for Gov. Gregoire to make good on her pledge of free health care for my domestic partner, and whatever other subsidies we are due.
As you can see, I have issues to deal with - and we haven't even gotten into this whole mad scientist doing who knows what in that big grey garage thing....
Steve Shepherd is among the old family names in North Yakima County - the Shepherd name goes back to the early 1900’s when Byron Von Shepherd worked as a kid in the old Selah Livery. Grew up in the family business of Land Surveying & Civil Engineering, doing road, utility & soils lab work in the summers. A graduate of Selah High School in 1979 then WSU in 1985.
Moved to Mercer Island in the 80’s then Kirkland in the 90’s when Steve became a family man. Working in the real estate development industry for two decades, he was very involved in Property Rights, Growth Management, Urban & Rural Land Use Planning issues - a member of the American Planning Association & Seattle Master Builders for 20 years.
Relocated from the rain-soaked Seattle Urban Metropolis to sunny Conrad Ranch in 2002. Currently, Steve is a “Tank Farmer” at Hanford and enjoys a quiet country lifestyle with his wife, Jennifer, daughter Ericka, two horses - Sunny & Valla, a dog & a cat.
Steve considers himself a practical, common-sense, traditional American Patriot. “I intend to preserve rural country values in a cooperative, common-sense manner during my term as President of CROA.
Moved to Mercer Island in the 80’s then Kirkland in the 90’s when Steve became a family man. Working in the real estate development industry for two decades, he was very involved in Property Rights, Growth Management, Urban & Rural Land Use Planning issues - a member of the American Planning Association & Seattle Master Builders for 20 years.
Relocated from the rain-soaked Seattle Urban Metropolis to sunny Conrad Ranch in 2002. Currently, Steve is a “Tank Farmer” at Hanford and enjoys a quiet country lifestyle with his wife, Jennifer, daughter Ericka, two horses - Sunny & Valla, a dog & a cat.
Steve considers himself a practical, common-sense, traditional American Patriot. “I intend to preserve rural country values in a cooperative, common-sense manner during my term as President of CROA.
Ed Shoenbach
720 Conrad Road
I was born and raised in the Pittsburgh, Pa. area (easterner) and have a younger brother that lives on the New Jersey shore. After graduating high-school, I enrolled at California State College (small liberal arts college in Pa.) and graduated with a degree in education and taught reading and spelling for four years in McKeesport, Pa. I worked in the steel mills of Pittsburgh during the summer of my senior year at California State College and during my first year of teaching (made more money in the steel mills than I did the first two years teaching). While teaching, I enrolled in the educational psychology department of the University of Pittsburgh (go Panthers) graduated from there and received a fellowship for postmasters work through the University at "Warrendale Youth Development Center" (juvenile delinquent center). At the conclusion of the fellowship, I was hired as a psychologist at Penn State University (go Nittany Lions) and taught graduate courses in counseling psychology. After leaving Penn State, I supervised a methadone clinic for three years in Ohio and taught psychology classes at Wittenberg University. I moved to Wausau Wisconsin (go Green Bay Packers) and spent the next 25 years supervising a large mental-health, alcohol and drug abuse facility offering both inpatient and outpatient services. Also during that employment, the University of Wisconsin (go Badgers) hired me to develop a course on "Documentation in the medical record" which was well attended by professionals in the entire state. I also worked for two insurance companies, Wisconsin Physicians Service and Blue Cross/Blue Shield monitoring mental-health benefits (from an insider's point of view, we need health care reform desperately). In 1992, I moved to Grandview, Texas and offered consulting services to medical facilities throughout the states. I left Texas to accept a position at Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health and worked there as part of the Quality Improvement Team that improved documentation in the medical record. I retired from there in September of 2008.
Socially, I have been married but currently divorced. While in Wisconsin, I was very active with retriever field trials and competed and judged throughout the United States. I was also secretary for "Wisconsin Amateur Field Trial Clubs" for 17 years. I hunt and fish when I have time. I am an avid bicyclist and return to Wisconsin for a 3 day bike ride across the northern portion of the state. I played tennis and competed at the 4.0 level in doubles. My current obsessive pursuit is riding my Peruvian Paso usually back in the L T Murray Wildlife area. In addition to those pursuits, I am the president of Yakima Police Athletic League, a board member of Camp Fire USA and Camp Roganunda as well as recently being conscripted for the "Conrad Ranch Owners Association". My security gate is meant to keep criminals out but not my neighbors. I look forward to meeting all of you. My phone number is 698-5822.
720 Conrad Road
I was born and raised in the Pittsburgh, Pa. area (easterner) and have a younger brother that lives on the New Jersey shore. After graduating high-school, I enrolled at California State College (small liberal arts college in Pa.) and graduated with a degree in education and taught reading and spelling for four years in McKeesport, Pa. I worked in the steel mills of Pittsburgh during the summer of my senior year at California State College and during my first year of teaching (made more money in the steel mills than I did the first two years teaching). While teaching, I enrolled in the educational psychology department of the University of Pittsburgh (go Panthers) graduated from there and received a fellowship for postmasters work through the University at "Warrendale Youth Development Center" (juvenile delinquent center). At the conclusion of the fellowship, I was hired as a psychologist at Penn State University (go Nittany Lions) and taught graduate courses in counseling psychology. After leaving Penn State, I supervised a methadone clinic for three years in Ohio and taught psychology classes at Wittenberg University. I moved to Wausau Wisconsin (go Green Bay Packers) and spent the next 25 years supervising a large mental-health, alcohol and drug abuse facility offering both inpatient and outpatient services. Also during that employment, the University of Wisconsin (go Badgers) hired me to develop a course on "Documentation in the medical record" which was well attended by professionals in the entire state. I also worked for two insurance companies, Wisconsin Physicians Service and Blue Cross/Blue Shield monitoring mental-health benefits (from an insider's point of view, we need health care reform desperately). In 1992, I moved to Grandview, Texas and offered consulting services to medical facilities throughout the states. I left Texas to accept a position at Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health and worked there as part of the Quality Improvement Team that improved documentation in the medical record. I retired from there in September of 2008.
Socially, I have been married but currently divorced. While in Wisconsin, I was very active with retriever field trials and competed and judged throughout the United States. I was also secretary for "Wisconsin Amateur Field Trial Clubs" for 17 years. I hunt and fish when I have time. I am an avid bicyclist and return to Wisconsin for a 3 day bike ride across the northern portion of the state. I played tennis and competed at the 4.0 level in doubles. My current obsessive pursuit is riding my Peruvian Paso usually back in the L T Murray Wildlife area. In addition to those pursuits, I am the president of Yakima Police Athletic League, a board member of Camp Fire USA and Camp Roganunda as well as recently being conscripted for the "Conrad Ranch Owners Association". My security gate is meant to keep criminals out but not my neighbors. I look forward to meeting all of you. My phone number is 698-5822.