About Members
The mission given the Grand Rapids Historical Commission (GRHC), established by the city in 1962, was to, "Collect, preserve, publish, and disseminate the history of Grand Rapids." Thirteen members, appointed by the mayor and city commission for three-year renewable terms, pursue this mission by publishing books and videos, and more recently by documenting segments of the city’s history on the GRHC website.
An alphabetical list of all those who have served on the GRHC since 1962, and the year they were appointed, follows a decade listing of members. In addition to commission members the list includes students and staff who have served.
Member List
Use the slider below to narrow the list down to years within the choosen range, or jump directly to a choosen decade directly below that.
- All
- 60s
- 70s
- 80s
- 90s
- 00s
- 10s
Members from 1962 to 2013
Lewis Clingman
joined 1962
John A. Collins
joined 1962
Norman DeGraaf
joined 1962
Gerald A. Elliott
joined 1962
Mrs. Lee Wilson Hutchins
joined 1962
Thomas G. Kindel
joined 1962
Z.Z. Lydens
joined 1962
John P. Milanowski
joined 1962
Carl H. Morgenstern
joined 1962
Raymond W. Starr
joined 1962
Lewis Steenwyk
joined 1962
Gerald E. White
joined 1962
John Wurz
joined 1962
Joe Zandstra
joined 1962
W. D Frankforter
joined 1962
City Staff
B. G. Brown
joined 1963
Lynn G. Mapes
joined 1970
Donald W. Kohlstedt
joined 1971
Gerald A Bax
joined 1972
Gail O. DeYoung
joined 1972
Paul B. Henry
joined 1972
Homer Burch
joined 1973
Barbara Roelofs
joined 1973
William A. Johnson
joined 1974
Helen Meade
joined 1974
Chris A. DeYoung
joined 1975
John H. Kromminga
joined 1975
Weldon B. Frankforter
joined 1976
Rev. Lyman S. Parks
joined 1976
Carl Eschels
joined 1977
Judith B. Miller
joined 1977
Edward A. Symans
joined 1979
Father Dennis Morrow
joined 1982
Helen J. Claytor
joined 1983
Mary Edmond
joined 1984
Leo W. Graff Jr.
joined 1984
Margaret Snow
joined 1984
John Logie
joined 1985
James VanVulpen
joined 1985
Francisco Vega
joined 1985
Ronald Yob
joined 1985
Gordon Olson
joined 1985
City Staff
June O. Horowitz
joined 1986
Sue Steketee
joined 1986
Anthony Travis
joined 1986
Mary Alice Williams
joined 1986
Bill Cunningham
joined 1986
City Staff
Micki Benz
joined 1987
Harold Dekker
joined 1987
Albert Steil
joined 1988
Jenny Siwek
joined 1988
Student
Omar LaBlanc
joined 1988
Student
Herbert J. Brinks
joined 1989
Jacqueline R. Johnson
joined 1989
Anne D Slade
joined 1989
Bessie Ward
joined 1989
Janelle Mayweather
joined 1989
Student
James Palasek
joined 1989
Student
Gary W. Burbridge
joined 1990
Natasha C. Ream
joined 1990
Student
Ramon Berlanga
joined 1990
Student
Hugh W. Brenneman Jr.
joined 1991
Mauricio Jimenez Jr.
joined 1991
Marc Hilton
joined 1991
Student
Jodi K. Zimmerman
joined 1991
Student
Marty T. Arnold
joined 1992
Lawrence E. Pawl
joined 1993
Levi Rickert
joined 1993
Eduard Adam Skendzel
joined 1993
Clay E. Palmer
joined 1994
Marsha J. Peterson
joined 1994
Karolee Hazlewood-Gilman
joined 1994
City Staff
Adam Beckwith
joined 1994
Student
Jo Ellyn Clarey
joined 1995
Randall Jelks
joined 1995
Colleen R. Jousma
joined 1995
Student
Bernadece Norberg
joined 1995
Student
Janice M. Johnson
joined 1996
James C. Markle
joined 1996
Michael G. Smith
joined 1996
Sandra L. Wright
joined 1996
Kelly Haga
joined 1996
Student
Scott Landheer
joined 1996
Student
Thomas R. Blackford
joined 1997
Maurilia Blakely
joined 1997
Barbara L. McGregor-Packer
joined 1997
Steven E. Tripp
joined 1997
Scott Hardy
joined 1997
Student
Alessia Jasinski
joined 1997
Student
Laureen Kennedy
joined 1998
Bruce A. Tap
joined 1998
Jimmie D. Kilgore
joined 1998
Student
Megan Scanlan
joined 1998
Student
Eugene E. Smary
joined 1999
Jerod Rinkus
joined 1999
Student
Carl J. Bajema
joined 2001
Current member
Diana E. Barrett
joined 2001
Current member
Paul Kutsche
joined 2001
Miguel A. Berrios
joined 2002
Muriel D. James
joined 2002
John Douglas
joined 2003
L. Michael Light
joined 2003
Daniel J. Patterson
joined 2003
Ella Mary Sims
joined 2003
Sarah Flores
joined 2003
Student
Dung Ngoc Pham
joined 2003
Student
Robert VanderMolen
joined 2004
Patricia Clark
joined 2005
Matthew Daley
joined 2006
Current member
Eric Foster
joined 2006
Amanda Lathers
joined 2006
Student
Nicholas Briggs
joined 2007
Candace Chivis
joined 2007
Current member
Veronica Kandl
joined 2007
Shirley M. DeBoer
joined 2008
Current member
Thomas Dilley
joined 2008
Current member
Thomas Logan
joined 2008
Current member
Rebecca Smith-Hoffman
joined 2008
Current member
Richard Vettese
joined 2008
Current member
Tim Gleisner
joined 2008
City Staff
Marlene Fabbro
joined 2009
Current member
Gary F. Korreck
joined 2009
Current member
Alexander Preston
joined 2009
Student
Thomas Wilson
joined 2010
Current member
Alex Forist
joined 2013
Current member