Meet the Team
Executive Committee
Chair: Jesse Wernick
Jesse was born in San Francisco and raised all over Marin County, but mostly on the Sausalito waterfront during the hippie heyday.
He has a marine biology degree from UC Santa Cruz and has taken many biology and natural history courses at College of Marin.
Jesse joined the then-newly formed Marin County Chapter in 1998 and the Executive Committee about 10 years later, first as beach cleanup coordinator, then vice chair and, finally, chair.
He is most stoked about supporting and mentoring local high school clubs and coordinating the free summer surf camp, in partnership with SurfWorks and, since 2022, the San Geronimo Valley Community Center.
Contact Jesse at chair@marin.surfrider.org
Treasurer: Tom Richards
Tom lives in Bolinas, CA on the Marin County coast. He is a life long waterman, having surfed all over the world and worked as a surf rescuer at Bondi Beach in Australia. He cares deeply about the ocean health and access missions of Surfrider, and serves as the Treasurer of the Surfrider Marin County Chapter.
He began his professional life as a mergers and acquisitions investment banker in New York at Lazard, UBS and Cowen; went to medical school in his thirties; practiced as an academic physician at UCSF; and for the last dozen years has combined his previous careers either running, consulting to, investing in or serving on the board of life sciences companies.
He has over 20 years of corporate governance and board experience, first as a director of a publicly traded investment bank (Cowen), then as the CEO and executive board member of two private life sciences companies (TessArae & OneBiomed) and now as an independent board member of the country’s leading talent consultancy in the healthcare, higher education and life sciences industries (WittKieffer), where he is currently the Chair. As a result, he has achieved the Director Certification from NACD (National Association of Corporate Directors).
Tom has lived in Australia, Singapore, Switzerland, and travelled to more than 75 countries. He is a graduate of Yale College (BA English), the University of Sydney (MPhil, English) and Harvard Medical School. He is board-certified in Emergency Medicine and has worked as a relief doctor in the less developed world, including Pakistan and Bangladesh. Most importantly, Tom is a grateful father of three wonderful boys who love the ocean as much as he does!
Contact Tom at: treasurer@marin.surfrider.org
Secretary: Justin Botros
Justin is a longtime resident of Marin and currently a Planning Commissioner for the City of Belvedere.
He's the founder of Headlands Design an environmental design studio specializing in sustainable design and natural materials. Justin graduated UC Berkeley with a degree in Architecture and decades developing products to reduce carbon in the built environment and promote ecological and sustainable design.
A few notable projects are Google Mass Timber-Borregas, the new wing at SFMoMA, Bumblebee Spaces, and many residential properties in Marin and the Bay. He designs with the highest regard for integrating architecture and the natural landscape.
Contact Justin at: secretary@marin.surfrider.org
Communications: Christian Lepley
Christian grew up on the beaches of Southern California working in the kitchen of his family’s pizzeria in Huntington Beach.
He made his way north to the Bay Area to continue his marketing career working for brands in the outdoor, endurance sports, apparel, food, and automotive industries.
He’s a committed hater of plastic that never leaves a trail, park, or beach without a found piece of trash in his hand. Also an ultra-trail runner, world traveler, and pizza maker that will never agree pineapple belongs on pizza of any style.
He joined the Marin Chapter Executive Committee as Communications Coordinator to help amplify our message and grow our community.
Contact Christian at: communications@marin.surfrider.org