The 2022 Board of Directors
At the January 10th Board Meeting, the Board of Directors elected the 2022 Officers. Read more about them below and congratulations to our new officers!
Mace Carpenter, President
Mace Carpenter retired from the Air Force after 34 years of service. He has been very active in civic and charity groups throughout his life. He is the Chaplain at the Eagles in Alexandria, secretary of his homeowners association, and adjutant of the Washington DC Daedalians. He currently helps manage energy innovation at the Department of Defense and lives with his wife, Andi.
Karen Branding, Treasurer
Karen is looking forward to potentially serving her third term on NOTICe’s Board of Directors. Last year Karen served as NOTICe Treasurer and Membership Chair. Her first term, Karen served as Vice President and teamed up with fellow board member Trevor Riley to co-chair the NOTICe Neighborhood Party at the Gables (right before the pandemic -whew!) and to host NOTICe’s North Old Town is Delicious culinary scene event.
Karen and her husband Dave moved from the Chicago suburbs to the Watergate community in Old Town in August of 2018. She is a retired educator having taught 7th and 8th graders in Illinois for 34 years. She has a B.A. from DePauw University in Indiana, a Master of Arts in Special Education for the Gifted and Talented from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and advanced study earning her a certificate in Educational Administration. In the STEM classroom, Karen taught mathematics, science and health studies as well as coaching the math team and serving as the mathematics department chair. One of the highlights of Karen’s career was traveling to Washington, DC to accept her school’s National Blue Ribbon School recognition award from the U.S. Department of Education.
In Alexandria, in addition to serving on the NOTICe Board, Karen is active with the Old Presbyterian Meeting House and serves on the boards of the Virginia Beta Delta Chapter of DKG International, a society of key women educators, and Virginia Chapter G of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, which focuses on providing educational opportunities for women worldwide. Karen also finds joy singing with Encore Creativity’s Rocks and Chorale choral groups in Alexandria
Mary Harris, Secretary
Mary lives in Marina Towers. She has been a resident of North Old Town since 1994 and a member of NOTICe since 1999. She has served on its Board of Directors and as Treasurer.
Mary also was Treasurer and Board member of the Marina Towers Condominium Association and appointed by the City of Alexandria to the Mirant Community Monitoring Group (now known as the GenOn/Pepco power plant) to provide an information loop between the City, company and residents on clean-up of the plant site. After power plant closure, she participated in the planning sessions to design the new Old Town North Small Area Plan adopted by City Council in 2017.
She currently is Director of the annual Immigration Film Fest. Recently retired from Winrock International and volunteer leadership of the National Wildlife Federation, Mary brings experience from a long career in the field of sustainable development, focused mainly on climate and the social & environmental impact of the energy and transport sectors. She has an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and a BS (which is always useful). Mary is an avid sailor and walker on our Potomac riverfront. She is passionate about preserving history, increasing green space and fostering community spirit in Old Town North as it develops.
Agnès Artemel, Member at Large
Agnès has lived in Old Town North for more than 20 years (at the Rivergate townhouses) and in Alexandria neighborhoods for a total of more than 40 years. She has served on the NOTICe Board for four years.Her professional work focuses on urban planning, real estate, and economic development. She heads Artemel & Associates, Inc., an economic analysis consulting firm, where she does market studies and provides consulting services to local governments and non-profits seeking to revitalize older commercial districts – most recently along Route 1 south of Alexandria and in Baileys Crossroads and Seven Corners.As an Alexandria resident she was appointed by City Council to Boards and Commissions, including the Board of Zoning Appeals and the Eisenhower West Small Area Plan Advisory Group. She has been active with local civic groups and business associations, including the Eisenhower Partnership and the Old Town North Alliance. A past president of the Old Town North Community Partnership, she was instrumental in forging a partnership with the City to improve Montgomery Park with a gazebo, pathways, and a redesigned dog park. Ms. Artemel has a Master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the George Washington University.
Eleanor Quigley, Member at Large
Eleanor, environmentalist and retired certified coach, has lived in Old Town North since 2016 and joined the NOTICe Board in 2018. Her environmental work began in Fairfax County when she was president of her civic association and active with tree preservation and landuse cases. Eleanor is chair of the Alexandria House Garden and Landscape Committee that works to cultivate native plants in the building’s public park and plaza and was appointed to the Alexandria Beautification Commission in 2018. US Department of State was her main client for career coaching and workshops she led for multi-national groups. Previously, she was program manager for leadership development at US Departments of Transportation (Federal Aviation Administration) and Treasury Internal Revenue Service). She has masters degrees from The George Washington University (Public Administration) and Virginia Commonwealth University (Social Work). Appointed Tree Commissioner for Fairfax County’s Mount Vernon District in 2000, she served for 16 years. She is a certified Tree Steward and a Weed Warrior for the National Park Service. She enjoys swimming, gardening, stair climbing and travel. She and her husband Bob love looking out on the Potomac and like to think of it as their “front yard.”
Margaret Townsend, Member at Large
Margaret is the owner of River’s Edge Yoga and Movement Studio in Old Town North.
Margaret is President of the Board of Directors of the Old Town North Community Partnership,Executive Director of Yogis for Positive Change is a member of the Hunger Free Alexandria Committee and is the manager of the Old Town North Thursday Farmer’s Market.
Margaret returned to her childhood home of Alexandria after spending several years in New York City working in the theatre, teaching at SUNY Purchase and consulting in Arts / Not for Profit Management and Special Events.
She is pleased to be serving as a member of the NOTICe Board and looks forward to using her experience in not for profit management and special events to benefit the Old Town North Community.
Former Board Member Trevor A. Riley will serve as the Communications and Event Manager for this term.