Sarasota Bay Watch is a 501c3 nonprofit organization committed to protecting and restoring Sarasota Bay's ecosystem through community education and citizen participation.
Meet the Board
Meet the dedicated members of the Sarasota Bay Watch Board of Directors. They all work selflessly to protect and enhance our area's most valuable resource -- Sarasota Bay.
Rusty Chinnis, President
Rusty Chinnis is a State Certified Contractor who has been living and working on Longboat Key for the past 29 years. Chinnis is an avid angler who has been enjoying the waters of Sarasota Bay for almost three decades and is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the Bay for future generations.
Rusty is a writer, photojournalist, and President of Outdoor Travel Productions Inc. He was a founder and first President of the Manatee Chapter of the Florida Conservation Association, and Co-Chairmen of the Sister Keys Conservancy. The Conservancy was awarded the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Award in Washington for its work. He served as President and Chairman of the Board of The Florida Outdoor Writers Association and is a member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America. Rusty is a Federation of Fly Fishers Certified Fly Casting Instructor, a Contributing Editor of Fly Fishing in Saltwaters magazine and the Outdoors Editor of the Anna Maria Island Sun.
Ed Chiles
Ed is a graduate of the University of Florida. While in college Chiles helped open the Great Adventure safari park in Jackson New Jersey. He was raised in Lakeland Florida, and moved to Manatee County after completing college. Chiles worked at Joe's Stone Crab, the venerable Miami Beach restaurant institution, before joining a partnership that included Lawton Chiles, Wilbur Boyd and Dennis Fecteau in buying The Sandbar restaurant.
Chiles currently owns the Sandbar in Anna Maria, as well as the Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant and Pub, located in Longboat Key and the BeachHouse Restaurant located in Bradenton Beach.
Chiles is a former board member of the Manatee County YMCA and Manatee County Chamber of Commerce. He is the former Chairman of CALM, the community alliance for leadership in Manatee. He is past president of the Manatee Community Foundation whose assets have grown to 16 million dollars. He is a founding member and served as the Chairman of START for 10 years. Chiles is a founding member of the Library Foundation in Manatee County where he served for a number of years on the board of directors. He is on the board of directors of Goodwill Industries Manasota as well as being its Chairman for 2004 through 2006. He is a former member of the University of South Florida Community Leadership Council. He is a member of the Island Chamber of Commerce, the Longboat Key Chamber of Commerce, and the Manatee County Chamber of Commerce as well as a long standing member of the Manatee County Tourist Development Council. Chiles also serves a Vice Chairman of the Lawton Chiles Foundation.
Ed Chiles was named, Man of the Year in 2000 by the Anna Maria Island Sun newspaper. He was named the business person of the year in 2002 by the Anna Maria Rotary Club, and he was awarded the business partner of the year by the manatee County School Board in 2000. He is actively involved in many civic issues including the Anna Maria Island Community Center. He is a past recipient of the Palmetto Youth Centers, Senator Ed Price Humanitarian of the Year Award. Chiles and his flag ship restaurant, The Sandbar, were named Manatee County Small Business of the year for 2008 by the Manatee Chamber of Commerce.
Chiles has two teenage daughters, Ashley and Christin and resides in Anna Maria. He is an avid fly-fisherman and hunter who also enjoys surfing and kayaking.
J. Stephen M. Fernandez, Esq.
Stephen is a native of Miami and grew up fishing the Everglades back-country for snook, tarpon and redfish. He is an avid fly-fisherman and environmentalist with a profound respect for Florida's marine environment. Stephen moved to Sarasota in 2009 and seeks to help protect Sarasota Bay and its incredible fishery by taking an active role in Sarasota Bay Watch.
Stephen received his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Florida in 2000. He then graduated with honors from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2003. While in law school, Stephen worked with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Aquaculture. His efforts helped facilitate and promote sustainable sturgeon aquaculture in Florida as an alternative to over-harvesting wild sturgeon populations. Following the project's completion, Stephen authored two related articles: "Captive-bred Exceptions: An Unconventional Approach to Conservation Under the ESA", Fisheries Magazine, Dec. 2005;and "A Market Approach to Sturgeon Conservation Under the U.S. Endangered Species Act", U.F. Journal of Law and Public Policy, Fall 2003.
Stephen is a trial lawyer with the law firm of Shapiro, Goldman, Babboni & Walsh, P.A. in Sarasota. He focuses his practice on personal injury, wrongful death and insurance claims throughout Florida and Georgia. In 2010 he was honored to be named a "Rising Star" by Florida Super Lawyers magazine. This merit based distinction is awarded to no more than 2.5% of attorneys statewide and recognizes outstanding young lawyers in Florida.
Caroline McKeon
Caroline is owner of Florida Journeys Communications and is a seasoned communications professional who has developed and acquired television programming for both The Discovery Channel and The Travel Channel.
Since 1998, she has been been developing, writing, producing and distributing Florida content that
captures Florida’s unique sense of place.
Clients include Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness, Global Organic Specialty Source, Inc., Sarasota Bay Foundation, Sarasota B ay Estuary Program, Seven Rivers Foods, 1000 Friends of Florida, Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, Little Everglades Ranch, Coalition to Preserve Our Water Resources, Florida Park Service, Wildlife Foundation of Florida, the John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art Foundation, Discovery Communications, Inc., The Travel Channel, BRAVO/IFC and Tampa PBS station WEDU/Channel 3.
Her big picture vision, ability to integrate complex subjects and attention to detail translates her client’s message into a visual format and recognizable brand.
John Ryan, Secretary
John is an environmental professional who specializes in water quality. Trained as a chemist, he has worked as a pollution regulator and had notable success in ending a significant illegal discharge to Blackburn Bay from an Osprey wastewater treatment plant that went undetected for 25 years.
John's projects for Sarasota County Government have also included investigating Hudson Bayou metal pollution, expanding the Water Atlas web site into Sarasota, monitoring water quality, as well as a myriad of other projects. John worked at Mote Marine Laboratory before joining County Government. Before moving to the Sarasota area John was a backpacker and student in the hills of southwestern Colorado.
The good life is spending the day fishing and snorkeling with his wife and 2 sons out on the bays and taking regular trips to Big Pine Key, Charlotte Harbor, and Ginnie Springs to recharge their spirits.
Pierre Schutte, CFA
Pierre is a Chartered Financial Analyst and Financial Advisor at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in Sarasota. Growing up in South Africa, he was taught at an early age to respect nature by his father and grandfather, both hunters and fishermen.
Pierre believes that Sarasota Bay Watch is an organization that, through its members and volunteers, is making and will continue make an ever increasing impact on the protection and rebuilding of the bay that provides us with so much enjoyment and beauty.
As with any worthwhile endeavor, a vision, persistence, hard work and funding are essential elements for success. Over the years wealthy families and individuals have moved to Sarasota from all over the world to retire, build vacation homes and start businesses, and realistically, this would probably not have happened without the Bay. This is why it is imperative that anyone with a financial interest in Sarasota support all organizations that have the well being of the Bay at heart, by donating in any way possible.
Gary M. Serviss
Gary Serviss is a Principal Scientist with Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. providing environmental consulting services to public and private sector clients the past 20 years. He also served as the Marine Biologist for Sarasota County for over four years. He has a BS Degree in Marine Biology and a MS Degree in Biological Sciences from Florida Institute of Technology.
He has lived and played in Sarasota County for the past 25 years where he enjoys fishing and other outdoor recreational activities. Gary regularly donates his time on many technical and community organizations. He is presently the Vice Chair of the County's Environmentally Sensitive Lands Oversite Committee and is also an appointed member of the County's Coastal Advisory Committee. He has served as a member and Chairman of the Sarasota County Artificial Reef Committee and recently was honored by having an artificial reef (formerly known as M1) named after him. Gary has also served for many years on the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program's Technical Advisory Committee. Over the years he has also participated in a variety of studies and monitoring activities within the coastal area, including shoreline and habitat mapping, seagrass and macroalgae monitoring, macroinvertebrate sampling, water quality monitoring, and studies of fish nursery habitat, artificial reefs and beach renourishment.
Larry Stults
Larry’s family founded Cabbage Key in Boca Grande in 1944, where he discovered the joy of island living and a lifelong love for our waterways. He received his B.A. from New College, Sarasota, FL, where he studied the effects of red tide toxin on sea urchin embryo development. He subsequently earned a Ph.D. in cellular biology from The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, studying symbiotic relationships between crop plants and soil bacteria. After post-graduate research at the University of Georgia, Athens, GA, Larry coupled his science training with a law degree, specializing in biotechnology patent law.
Captain Jonnie Walker
Captain Jonnie Walker has been a resident of Sarasota since 1956, and a professional fishing guide since 1974. He has been the host of ABC Ch7’s “Gone Fishin’ with Capt. Jonnie Walker” (now called Fishing with Bob & Jonnie) show since 1994 and promotes taking kids fishing, hence the closing line of the show “Take a kid fishing because someday he may take you”. He co-chairs the annual fishing event for the Physically Challenged during the SORA race week.
He is a charter member and past President of Coastal Conservation Association. He is also a charter member of the Citizens Advisory Council of the Sarasota Bay National Estuary Program, a member of the Sarasota County Reef Committee, and served 8 years on the Natural Resources and Parks and Recreation Advisory Board of Sarasota County. Throughout his career as a fishing guide, he has worked with Mote Marine Laboratory and was a recipient of the William R. Mote Florida Sport Fishing Guide Award. He has created his own “de-hooker” tool so you would not have to handle the fish to release them. He has been a lecturer and faculty member of the Bradenton Herald Fishing College for many years and gives talks for various clubs and organizations in the Sarasota-Manatee County area on fishing, conservation and the environment.
Jonnie is married to Joanne and has 2 children and 6 grandchildren which he enjoys taking fishing and camping.
Jeff Birnbach
Jeff Birnbach is Managing Director of ROBRADY capital LLC, a private equity group focused on early stage companies. His background includes over 25 years in management and business development of intellectual property and emerging technologies in healthcare, software, communications, and construction markets.
A US patented inventor of wireless monitoring technology, he has been affiliated with a variety of leading edge companies including Sony Electronics and PhysiTel. Community involvement includes serving as Vice Chair of Sarasota County’s Historic Preservation Board, as well as participating in a variety of boating-related nonprofit organizations. In 2011, he was Commodore of the Sarasota Yacht Club and previously served as a board member of SYC; the Sarasota Youth Sailing Program; and SALT (paralympic sailing). A USCG licensed Captain, Jeff has extensive experience sailing and cruising in the Pacific, Atlantic and Gulf regions.
In addition to his role at ROBRADY, Jeff is a principal in Knighton Yachts, LLC, a vessel brokerage, and Spur Partners, LLC, an equestrian training facility. He also serves as an officer and director of several evolving companies in the region. Since 1999 he has lived in Sarasota with his wife Laurie. The couple has one daughter.
Dr. Michael P. Crosby
Dr. Crosby has over 30 years of diverse research, teaching, science management and leadership endeavors. During a great deal of his career, he played an active role in directly leading national and international multi-disciplinary research programs, as well as developing national policy and administrative aspects for our country’s science programs.
In May 2010, Dr. Crosby was appointed as the Senior Vice President of Mote Marine Laboratory. He came to this position following appointments as Associate Vice President for Research and Economic Development at George Mason University, and Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of Hawai’i - Hilo. Prior to those appointments, he served in a federal Senior Executive Service position as Executive Director of the National Science Board. He came to the Board from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) where he served as Senior Advisor for International Science Policy in the Under Secretary’s Office of International Affairs at NOAA where he has held numerous positions.
He has held numerous faculty positions with the Baruch Institute for Marine Biology and Coastal Research at the University of South Carolina, the Department of Marine Science at Coastal Carolina University, the Graduate Program at the University of Charleston, Salisbury State University and is currently Adjunct Professor of Marine Science at UH Hilo. He has also had previous science positions with the National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and National Cancer Institute-NIH.
He is a member of the Natural Areas Association, Coastal Society, National Shellfisheries Association, Estuarine Research Federation, American Association for the Advancement of Science and is a Fellow of the Royal Linnean Society of London. He is also on the Board of Governors and past Chairman for the US-Israeli Binational Science Foundation, as well currently on the Board of Directors and President for the Pacific Congress on Marine Science and Technology, and President for Sigma Xi-The Scientific Research Society.
Dr. Crosby serves as a reviewer and panelist for numerous scientific journals and national and international science panels and advisory committees. He has published over 40 articles and edited several books and manuals dealing with marine protected areas and coral reefs.
