Mike Morrison
Meet Mike Morrison, WACSC Board Member
For 10 years Mike has been a pillar of our Board, with positions ranging from Vice President to President to Program Chair – his current job, for the second time around. Mike brings a love of world affairs, organizational skills and infectious warmth and enthusiasm to everything he does. Mike writes:
As a teenager and young adult growing up in the suburbs of Seattle in the 1960s and 1970s, I was fascinated with world events, international affairs, and politics. Hoping for a career in diplomacy and the Foreign Service, I started along that academic track at the University of Washington, until I discovered an equally strong interest in the environmental movement that was just getting started. That interest (bolstered by no requirement of fluency in a foreign language!) won the day, leading to degrees in Urban Planning (1972) and Public Administration (1975).
At that time, California was the Mecca for all things environmental and related land-planning jobs, so I moved here. In 1972 I became a public agency planner with the County of Sonoma, beginning a profession that
lasted the next 40 years. I soon developed an attraction to the back-to-the-land movement and so built a geodesic dome house in rural Sebastopol and, in 1980, designed and built a house based on energy conservation and efficiency in the rural area of Kenwood, where my wife Lynda and I have now lived for over 40 years.
Now to the best part. For those 40 years I have been most fortunate. In 1980 I met an extraordinary woman — Lynda Millspaugh — who became my wife, mother of our children (Brad and Dana), and a wonderful supporter and witness to my life. Together, Lynda and I have built a loving relationship that carries us forward. It is no exaggeration to say that Lynda has been the glue holding my life together in so many ways over so many years.
On the work front, after almost ten years with the County of Sonoma as a planner, I founded a private land-use consulting firm serving Sonoma County and the North Bay. With the success of my business and Lynda’s career in law (public agency lawyer and administrative law judge), we have had the flexibility to travel widely. Seeing other people and cultures reaffirmed my fascination with the world and all of its wonders and challenges.
Which brings me to the World Affairs Council of Sonoma County. Upon my retirement some 10 years ago it was a natural step for me to get involved. How rewarding it has been! I’ve been President, Vice President, and twice Chair of the Program Committee. Besides thoroughly enjoying WACSC and helping it succeed, it has been and continues to be deeply satisfying to know and work with the many talented, smart, and dedicated people who volunteer their time to make our World Affairs Council the great organization it is.
Long may it thrive!