Board of Directors
Jennifer Berges, President
Jennifer is the Director of Regional Advancement and Outreach at the Smithsonian Institution. In her current role, she’s focused on executing engagement strategies to advance the Smithsonian’s mission across the Central and Southern United States. Prior to that she served in various philanthropy, management, and leadership roles in women’s health, higher education, arts and cultural organizations. Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and American Cultural Studies from Washington University in St. Louis, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of South Florida. Jennifer, whose family originates from the Dominican Republic, was raised in a bilingual household that deeply valued all forms of education. She believes that public libraries are an integral part of thriving communities, providing inclusive spaces and access to resources that enhance our quality of life.
Susan Goltz, M.D., Vice President
Born and raised in North Dakota, Susan is a recently retired physician. She practiced medicine at St. Luke’s Obstetrics and Gynecology Associates for thirty years before retiring in 2022.
Bill Arezzo, Treasurer
Bill is a retired commercial banker with 48 years of experience in the industry. He spent the last 20 years with National Bank of Commerce where he retired as a Senior Vice President / Senior Commercial Banker. He is a graduate of the University of MN Duluth and the Graduate School of Banking in Madison, WI. Bill also completed the Leadership Duluth program of the Duluth Chamber of Commerce.
He has served on many non profit boards over the years including: Center City Housing, YMCA Board of Directors, YMCA Foundation, Benedictine Living Community of Duluth, American Heart Association (local & state levels), Duluth Superior Symphony Association, Duluth Library Foundation, Port of Duluth Kiwanis, Northland Foundation business loan credit comm. , and the Van Gorden Foundation.
He is currently serving as President of the Duluth Public Library Board, a member of the Benedictine Health System Finance/Audit Comm. and a Church Council & Board of Trustees member of Christ Lutheran Church.
Bill and his wife Jan, a retired elementary school teacher, enjoyed spending time with their two children at the library as they were growing up. They are currently doing the same thing with their three grandsons when they are in town, spending time at the library and attending programs. Bill is an avid reader and library user, currently focusing on the ebook and audio book formats.
Bill feels that the library is a tremendous asset for the citizens of this community. It needs to be continuously maintained, preserved, updated & improved for all to enjoy.
Azrin Awal
Azrin Awal (she/they) identifies as a Muslim, Bengali, Asian-American, Queer woman dedicated to social justice, mental health awareness, public health, and community. Azrin works at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), where she serves as the Pre-Collegiate & Ambassador Program Coordinator with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI). Azrin is a first-generation University of Minnesota Duluth alumni with a background in Public Health, Psychology, and Gender & Sexuality studies. Azrin serves as an At Large City Councilor for the City of Duluth and serves on multiple boards and commissions for the city. Azrin wants to be able to use their voice to promote equity and justice, especially in her work at UMD and throughout the City of Duluth.
Jose Gonzalez
Jose is an attorney in Duluth, a lifelong fan of libraries, and an avid reader who enjoys obscure books with unique reimaginings of storytelling frameworks. Jose believes that libraries are one of the last remaining places where community members can come together in a neutral setting without having to spend money and one of the greatest sources of knowledge and growth we have as a society. Jose is also a member of the Duluth Public Library Board and on the Board of Directors for the Friends of the Duluth Public Library. In his free time, Jose enjoys spending time with his family, reading, and continuing his long-term mission of learning to be a blacksmith.
Luis Islas
Luis Islas serves as the Senior Development Officer for the Swenson College of Science and Engineering at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), where he works with alumni, industry partners, and community leaders to advance philanthropic support for students, research, and innovation. He is also the founder of Raíces Rising Consulting, a nonprofit consultancy offering accessible, high-quality fundraising consultancy services to nonprofits focused on impact, enabling them to achieve their philanthropic and leadership missions. A proud Wixárika and Mexican-American and first-generation college graduate, Luis earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Pre-Law, and History and a Master’s degree in Business Leadership from William Penn University. His commitment to service was further shaped by his time as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Madagascar and a career in nonprofit development, including leadership roles with the American Red Cross, Montana State University, One Valley Community Foundation, and the ACLU of Montana. Luis believes deeply in the power of education, philanthropy, and community leadership to expand opportunity and strengthen communities.
Ingrid Johnson
Ingrid is a Regional Information Officer for the MN DNR. Formerly, she served as the Director of Marketing and Events at Hoops Brewing, where she used her role to be an advocate for community foundations and local businesses. She started her relationship with the Library Foundation in 2021, when she helped the board hold a fundraiser at Hoops Brewing. Ingrid has worked as a communicator in Duluth since 2014, when she joined the Ness administration as the Community Relations Officer. She served at the City of Duluth for seven years, spending the last two years as the police department’s Public Information Officer. Ingrid is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, Duluth with a B.A. in Communication. She grew up on a farm in southwest central Minnesota and spent her summers meeting (and then exceeding) her local library’s summer reading challenge. As an adult, Ingrid has become re-engaged with the library through her twin daughters. As a board member, she is committed to helping spread the word of the important work and services public libraries provide to our communities.
Andrew Keenan, M.D.
Andy is originally from Fridley, MN. He currently practices as a Pulmonary and Critical Care physician at Essentia. In addition to Duluth, he has held library cards from as far afield as Fairbanks, Alaska, and Tottori-ken, Japan. He and his family enjoy camping, skiing, searching for new books from the library, and searching for old library books at home.
Christina Knetsch
Christina Knetsch is the Director of Special Projects at Lake Superior Consulting, where she partners with executive leadership to advance key initiatives that shape the company’s strategy. Since joining LSC in 2013, she has served in multiple leadership roles in Marketing, Business Development, Safety, and Human Resources.
Christina holds a Master of Business Administration in Business Leadership from the College of St. Scholastica and a Bachelor of Arts in International Management from Hamline University in St. Paul. She also studied business and Japanese language at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan.
Raised near Two Harbors, MN, Christina spent countless hours at her hometown library doing homework and reading while waiting for her parents to pick her up after school. Those early experiences shaped her appreciation for libraries – and librarians – as welcoming spaces where curiosity, learning, and opportunity come together.
Christina and her husband live in rural Duluth and are raising their three young children, who already enjoy visiting the Mount Royal branch of the Duluth Public Library.
Cole Maki
Persisting through generational poverty, Cole has always felt deeply pained by the societally created injustices of this existence, as well as a deep calling to push back against needless suffering in her community. Her love of reading goes back to her childhood. She remembers her mother’s encouragement to “read and learn as much as possible, because knowledge is something that can never be taken away from you.” Cole is a single mother who worked fervently to earn multiple degrees: Associate of Arts, Lake Superior College; Bachelors of Science in International Peace Studies, University of Wisconsin Superior; and Masters of Advocacy and Political Leadership, University of Minnesota, Duluth. Each degree holds significant importance to her and represents her unrelenting quest to create a safe, stable, and thriving life for herself and her child. For the past five years, Cole has worked for City of Duluth in Workforce Development, providing employment services to community members who are experiencing poverty, and that may also be in crisis or simultaneously experiencing other significant barriers to employment. Cole serves on the Duluth Workforce Development Board’s Equity Committee, working systemically to help create a socially and economically just city for our entire community. Outside of work, Cole loves dancing, bonfires, and her favorite dinosaur is the brontosaurus. Cole believes libraries are so much more than a building to go check out books. It’s a place of community, where all are welcome; a place where all people can belong.
Kristi Moos
Kristi Moos (She/They) is a queer community advocate with more than eight years of experience in the nonprofit sector and a decade of work in the financial field. A lifelong resident of the Twin Ports, Kristi is dedicated to strengthening financial stability, promoting empowerment, and expanding equitable access to resources throughout the Duluth–Superior community. In their current role at Members Cooperative Credit Union, Kristi leads initiatives that support local families, build neighborhood resilience, and broaden access to financial education and tools. Her deep, lifelong connection to libraries as essential community spaces also fuels their commitment to ensuring these institutions remain accessible, welcoming, and vibrant for everyone. Kristi shares life with their spouse, Matt, and their three adult children, a continual source of inspiration for her ongoing dedication to inclusive, community-centered work. In her downtime, she enjoys engaging with the regional arts community by discovering local art and pottery, and she values visiting area antique shops as a way to support small, community‑based creators and businesses.
Carla Powers, Library Manager
Carla had a brief career in broadcast journalism, but once she discovered public library work, she was hooked. She earned her Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science in 2000 and was director of the public library in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, for several years. Carla has been library manager in Duluth since 2009 and has worked closely with the Foundation. She enjoys living in a community that values its libraries.
Foundation Staff
Erin Kreeger, Executive Director
After living and working in Washington, D.C. for nearly a decade, Erin chose Minnesota as her forever home and moved to Duluth in the winter of 2017. Erin began her career working in public policy, specifically criminal justice reform at the federal and state level for both private and non-profit organizations. After relocating to Duluth, Erin supported The College of St. Scholastica as a fundraiser, overseeing their annual giving program. Erin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies from the University of Wyoming and a Master’s in Public Administration from George Mason University. In her free time, Erin and her family enjoy taking advantage of all the outdoor activities available in northern Minnesota, including hiking, camping, cross country skiing, and connecting with all the lakes and rivers in the area. Erin comes from a family of educators and knows the importance of public libraries in supporting educational access and serving as the center of a community where all people are welcome.
Kristin Zoellner, Administrative Assistant
A native Duluthian, Kristin is excited to play an active role in supporting Duluth’s Public Libraries. She is passionate about the vital role of our libraries in creating access to books, programs, and safe spaces for everyone in our community. Kristin comes to the foundation with non-profit experience in communications, fundraising, and outreach, as well as grantmaking support at two Minnesota foundations. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and a Master of Arts Degree from the University of California, Berkeley. She also enjoys baking, weaving, knitting, and spending time outdoors with her family and energetic dog.
Megan Keogan, Development and Communications Director
As a born and raised Duluthian, Megan Keogan is excited to have recently made her way back to the area after living in major cities for more than a decade. Growing up, she was an avid user of the Woodland branch library where she spent many summer days nestled among the Boxcar Children and the Babysitters Club collections. As an adult, she became the proud owner of library cards from the Chicago Public Library and New York Public Library systems. Megan has spent her career leading branded content and partnerships at the Chicago Sun-Times, USA Today, and Atlas Obscura, where she produced stories and events at places like Carhenge, Nebraska, the once-forgotten Untemeyer gardens in Yonkers, New York, and the hidden pirate tower of Laguna Beach. She’s eager to now give her storytelling and marketing skills renewed purpose at the Library Foundation.
Megan earned a Bachelor’s degree in Catholic Studies and Print Journalism at the University of St. Thomas, and a Master of Science in Journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School. She enjoys taking on house and garden projects with her husband Pat, being an aunt to their five nieces and nephews, and basking in the glory of successfully tiring out their two Australian Shepherds.
Morgan Swingen, Volunteer
Morgan is a wildlife biologist with a tribal natural resources agency, studying wolves, moose, furbearers, and other culturally important species. In the past she has also worked with bats, coyotes, bears, waterfowl, and turtles. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Minnesota State University, Moorhead, and a Master’s Degree in Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology from North Carolina State University. She grew up going to her local library often, and is glad to support the Duluth Library Foundation. In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, watching musicals, and spending time outdoors with her husband and dog.
