Olivia Walcott Gonda

Philanthropy Membership Manager

Olivia was born and raised on a farm in Michigan. Watching the land produce food for her community and swimming in Lake Michigan until she turned blue informed her love of place-based work. In college, Olivia participated in student organizing for sustainability projects and studied environmental science at Northern Michigan University.

Olivia acquired database-management skills from her work as a local-food organizer in Iowa and the San Juan Islands—bringing this experience to the Preservation Trust when she joined the staff in March 2022, initially as Philanthropy Coordinator, then stepping up as Philanthropy Membership Manager in November 2024.

When Olivia isn’t in SJPT’s Friday Harbor office, Orcas Island office, or working from home, you can find her reading, cycling, hiking, or wrangling her 12-year-old diabetic cat, Roger.