Museum Directors

Kim Roberts

Kim is the board chair and founder of the International Mermaid Museum. She co-owns TRG Investments, Vineyards By-the-Sea, Ocean's Daughter Distillery, Westport Winery, and Westport Winery Seaside Retreat, with her husband and daughter.

She has been a freelance writer authoring three mysteries set on Maui where she and her husband Blain formerly owned Lahaina Divers, the largest scuba charter business in the state. She has also written for numerous magazines and newspapers.

She is a graduate of Washington State University with two degrees in architecture. She was one of the first female boat captains on the West Coast and held a 100-tons any ocean license for 25 years. She was also a certified PADI divemaster and underwater investigator.

Kim has been a member of the Washington Wine Commission, the Grays Harbor Planning Commission, the State of Hawaii Ocean Spills At Sea panel, a Maui Community College Marine Options Program advisor, The Ocean Recreation Council of Hawaii Maui representative, the Maui Commercial Boater and Ocean Affiliated Transportation Association president, a Washington State Governor’s Fishery Advisory Board appointee, a Washington State Charterboat Association board member, a Westport Charterboat Association Board member, and the Alpha Rho Chi medalist at the Washington State University School of Architecture.

Kim and her husband Blain live on the winery grounds between Westport and Aberdeen, Washington.

Dodie Brogan

Dodie has been the Fundraiser Coordinator for the Grays Harbor Homeless Backpack Program for over twelve years. She and her husband Luke were awarded the Elma Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year Award in 2017.

Dodie is passionate about improving her community and especially working with children. She had a daycare in Elma, Washington, for over thirteen years. She is currently the Human Resources Manager and Safety Coordinator for Whitney's Chevrolet in Montesano.

Jane Hewitt

Jane is a principle planner for Grays Harbor County. She worked previously as a land sales analyst for Rayonier Timer, a software development project manager at IntelliQuest/Naviant, and sales forecast analyst for LL Bean.

Jane has a bachelor's of arts and a master's degree in community and regional planning from the University of Texas.

She is currently a 4-H leader for Grays Harbor Thundering Hooves. She is a master level judge with American Kennel Club Retriever Hunt Test program.

Jane and her husband Jim and their daughter live on a farm outside of Montesano, Washington.

Karyl Vasereno

Karyl is co-owner of Gold Rush Charters, a charter fishing operation in Westport, Washington. Prior to retiring to Westport after thirty years with the State of Washington, Karyl was employed by WSU at Puyallup Research & Extension Center and at Seattle University’s Hotel and Restaurant Administration program, and at North Thurston Public Schools for the construction/design office, serving as project coordinator.

While her children were young, she was involved in the PTA and spearheading extra-curricular activities such as a Book Publishing Program, Art Docents and The Passport Club, which introduced children to all the countries of the world. Karyl has also been involved for the past 29 years with WILLOW, a group of women who write and share research papers.

Karyl has served on the City of Westport Lodging Tax and Advisory Committee and Destination Westport committees, both groups whose purpose is to bring tourism to the community.

Vickie Raines

Vickie was elected to the position of Grays Harbor County District 3 Commissioner in 2015, and was re-elected in 2018. As a Grays Harbor County Commissioner, Vickie currently serves on a variety of boards and committees. In 1999 she was elected to the Cosmopolis city council and became mayor in 2002, serving until she became a county commissioner.

Commissioner Raines grew up in Marysville, Washington and was a 1983 graduate of Marysvile-Pilchuck High School. A resident of Grays Harbor County since 1984, she and her husband, Jerry, have three children–Chase, Haley, Hunter and a new daughter-in-law, Amanda!

Vickie’s professional career of 25 years was in the financial and insurance industry, holding a Washington State insurance agent’s license in property/casualty, health & disability. In addition, she was Series 6/63 registered through the NASD/SEC.

She currently serves on the Grays Harbor Emergency 911 Administrative Board, the Chehalis Basin Board, Grays Harbor Transportation Authority, Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority, Washington Counties Risk Pool EMS Impact Committee, Grays Harbor County/Quinault Indian Nation/GHE9/Ocean Shores, WSAC Board of Directors, GHC Board of Health, WSAC Legislative Steering Committee, GHC Law Library Committee, GHC Risk Management Committee, Great Rivers Behavioral Health Organization, GHC Law & Justice Committee.

Debbie Simpson

Retired Army Colonel Debbie Simpson is Director and Founder of Battlefield to Ballroom. After retiring from a 30-year career as a Trauma Critical Care nurse, Debbie founded Battlefield to Ballroom to help those suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress disorder. In the military, Debbie she was the Officer-in-Charge of many key missions. This included the Chief of the Wounded Warrior Clinic and Chief of the Community Based Wounded Warrior. On her last deployment to Iraq, she was responsible for coordinating with the State Department and contractual services, the transfer of services from the US military to State department and contractors. This transfer include identification of needed personnel, transportation, supplies and training contractors and local military forces and medical personnel, in the care of trauma victims. Debbie has a Master of Science in Nursing and is Board certified as a Family Nurse Practitioner. Currently she works with veterans in primary care at American Lake VA. In her spare time Debbie enjoys scuba diving, ballroom dancing and Pilates.

Debbie Mirante

Debbie has an Associates of Arts Degree from Clayton State University and is a licensed dental hygienist practicing for forty three years in her career. She also worked with Delta Air Lines in their Employee Benefits division assisting employees with various medical and dental claims, disability benefits, ERISA and COBRA benefit issues and the composition of their Employee Benefits Handbook. She is a past member of The American Dental Hygiene Association, and the Georgia Dental Hygiene Association. She served for over 30 years in the Junior Service League and Service League of Clayton County holding the office of President, Secretary and served as Chairman on various committees such as tour of homes, cookbook, fund raising, and a member of various other committees. She also participated in the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association in various positions as needed.

Debbie joined the board in 2022, and is relatively new to Westport as she is originally from Georgia. She and Paul Mirante, a long time resident of Westport and a retired charter boat captain, met in 2016 and married in 2018. They currently divide their time between Washington and Georgia. Debbie attended the ground breaking ceremony for the museum and expressed her interest in all things Mermaid, volunteering to help and be involved as needed. She has been active in helping founder Kim Roberts to create the unique mersonas on display in the museum with her creation of costumes, from head to tail. She has also contributed to various displays and exhibits throughout the museum.

Debbie Hansen

Debbie had a long career as a booking coordinator and dispatcher with the Union Pacific Railroad. Her career then took her to Crowley Maritime and Hawaiian Marine Lines. She took her experience as a dispatcher to the Kent 9-1-1 emergency center for thirteen years. Debbie and her husband retired and left their farm in Buckley to retire in Westport in 2015. Their home is the second oldest in the community having been built in 2015, it was 100 years old when they moved. They have been actively involved in the community. Debbie joined the Mermaid Museum board in 2022. She has been an active volunteer for the Mermaid Festival. She is one of four team members for first set up the museum, and then helped to install the shipwreck.

Lilly Walsh

Lilly is a graduate of Aberdeen High School and attended Smith College. She is the Director of Marketing at Seabrook Land Company. She filled the seat of her mother, Jamie Walsh, who died in a car accident in 2022. Jamie was the creator of the museum's entry sculptures. Lilly serves on the Grays Harbor County Lodging Tax Advisory Committee.

Dani Bacon

Dani is one of the founders of the Kurt Cobain Museum in Aberdeen.

Over the course of her career, she has over 20 years of experience working as Executive Assistant at Microsoft and BDA, an International Branding Company. Her experience at Microsoft included regulatory compliance with the DOJ within the OEM Sales Division. At BDA, she worked directly with executives from Fortune 100 companies to facilitate communications across all channels.

She retired about ten years ago and is now focused on bringing tourism to Grays Harbor and more specifically to Aberdeen, through the detailed story telling of Kurt Cobain and his childhood in the Harbor.

She and her husband Lee live in Ocean Shores. They have four adult children and a grandson.