Board of Directors & AMBASSADORS

Thom Waldman

Founder, President & Culture Programmer

Thom is the founder and steady hand behind WAAP, shaping its vision, tone, and cultural direction. He leads Pride in the Park and WAAP’s year‑round programming with a focus on authenticity, rural queer visibility, and community belonging. His work blends practical stewardship with a deep sense of cultural care, building events and spaces that feel grounded, welcoming, and drama‑free.

Thom oversees strategic planning, grant writing, partnerships, and program development, always centering the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ people in small towns. He believes in creating gatherings that feel like home — places where people can show up as themselves without performance or pretense.

When he’s not organizing, he’s usually with his two dogs, Freedom and Bowie, or turning temporary spaces into places of comfort and dignity.

Tracy Morgan

Treasurer

Tori Keen

Secretary

Karen Mcnamara

Member at Large

Deb Peterson

Member at Large

For most of her professional life Deb worked as a Sociology professor at a small state university in Bemidji, MN. As a faculty member she conducted research on the climate for LGBTQ+ faculty, female faculty, and faculty of color in the seven Minnesota state universities. This project was conducted on behalf of the statewide faculty union (The Inter Faculty Organization), and the research findings were used to help lobby for campus and contractual change. Deb also sat on several union committees that helped to address inequities in various forms. Toward the end of her career she served as the Interim Title IX Coordinator and Title IX and Civil Rights Investigator, Campus Diversity Officer, and Affirmative Action Officer for Bemidji State University and Northwest Technical College.

COVID19 brought Deb to California to help her spouse, Colleen, provide backup childcare for our west coast grandchild. While doing this, I worked as the Program Analyst for the Cal Poly Scholars program. It was a wonderful job and a great way to end her paid work life.

Now that she is officially retired (as of April 2025), Deb still has a need to participate in groups that do good things and foster positive change. To that end, she is looking forward to the work of We Are Atascadero Pride.

Ambassadors

Don Ackerman

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