WRC TEAM

Elise Savastano has called Durango home for the past 15 years. With a background in print journalism, banking and women’s studies, Elise re-joined the non-profit world with Team Up almost 10 years ago, where she is currently the organization’s Vice President of Finance & Operations. She is committed to Southwest Colorado and helping to make Durango and its surrounding communities a place where all residents can thrive.

Elise enjoys hiking, skiing, spending time in the water, and raising two energetic boys and one scruffy dog with her husband, Anthony. She is excited to serve on the WRC Board and looks forward to helping the organization evolve while continuing to elevate the voices and lives of women in our community.

With over 30 years of public service spanning the San Juan Mountains and Mali, West Africa, Ellen Stein is a true force of nature. An entrepreneurial, mission-driven leader, she has a knack for building impactful institutions from the ground up, including founding the Mountain Studies Institute in Silverton and the Community Agriculture Alliance in Steamboat Springs.

Currently, Ellen serves as the Opinion Editor and Editorial Board Member for The Durango Herald and Cortez Journal. Whether she is shaping public discourse through community journalism or applying her expertise in strategic communications and philanthropy, Ellen’s work is always rooted in strengthening the institutions that sustain Southwest Colorado communities.

Ellen is deeply committed to equity, education, and mentorship. Her dedication to empowering women and girls is a lifelong thread, from service in the Peace Corps, as a mentor with Partners in Routt County and Colorado College’s Public Interest Fellows Program, to her current role on the WRC Board. Off the clock, this Colorado College (B.A.) and Tufts University (M.A.) alumna is a yoga instructor, cycling coach, and tireless outdoorswoman. Having called Durango home since 2005, she remains a passionate advocate for women's personal and economic self-sufficiency worldwide. To learn more about Ellen, visit her LinkedIn profile.

Ryan Blue joined the Women’s Resource Center of Durango’s Womenade Council in March of 2023 and became a member of the WRC Board of Directors in May 2026. Through her involvement with Womenade and her continued commitment to community service, Ryan has seen firsthand the importance of creating meaningful support, connection, and opportunities for women and girls throughout La Plata County.

Ryan brings a unique combination of professional experience, advocacy, and a passion for helping others. For more than 10 years, she has helped lead and manage her husband’s periodontal practice. Ryan is a Certified Life Coach, where she helps individuals gain clarity, build confidence, and create meaningful momentum during times of transition and growth.

Ryan holds a degree in Criminal Justice and has a deep-rooted commitment to advocacy and service. She serves as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), supporting children involved in the foster care system and helping ensure their voices are heard. Through her service with WRC, Ryan is passionate about empowering women and girls, strengthening community connections, and supporting programs that create lasting impact. She believes that when we invest in people, we help create stronger families and a stronger community.

Outside of her professional and volunteer work, Ryan enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter and her boyfriend, and her three dogs Luna, Rio, and Bodhi. In July 2026, she became a grandmother to her grandson, Kruz, a role she describes as one of life’s greatest joys. When she’s not working or serving her community, Ryan enjoys camping, hiking, skiing, paddleboarding, gardening, and exploring the outdoors that make Colorado. 

Rachel Hartgen is a strategic powerhouse with a deep-seated passion for community-led initiatives that uplift women and girls. Bringing over 17 years of leadership experience across both the non-profit and for-profit sectors, Rachel’s career is defined by her ability to drive impact at scale. From local Colorado communities to global initiatives across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, she has dedicated her life to expanding access to opportunity and education.

Currently, Rachel serves as the Senior Director of Education and Skills for CARE USA’s Program Strategy and Innovation Team. In this high-impact role, she oversees a vast global portfolio of programs designed to equip adolescents and youth with the skills necessary to succeed in a modern economy. Her professional expertise is backed by a dual Master’s degree in Economics and International Development.

In 2025, Rachel and her husband traded the Front Range for the mountains of Durango. Deepening her roots in the local community, she opened Thrive Artisan Boutique on Main Street—a curated space featuring ethically made, handmade finds. When she isn’t managing global portfolios or her boutique, Rachel is an avid reader and world traveler who embraces the outdoor lifestyle of the Southwest.

A passionate advocate with a sharp legal mind, Melissa J. Montgomery traded the Front Range for the San Juan Mountains in 2022. A graduate of the University of Colorado School of Law, Melissa spent 22 years specializing in estate planning and trusts—a career built on navigating complex futures with precision and care.

Since calling Durango home, Melissa has dedicated her expertise to the community’s most vital support systems. She serves as a legal guide and interpreter for clients of SASO (Sexual Assault Services Organization), helping survivors navigate the intricacies of the legal process. Her commitment to service extends through her work with the Southwest Safehouse, the Colorado Philanthropic Advisors Network, and the Women’s Estate Planning Council.

Melissa believes in meeting challenges head-on, whether in the courtroom or on the slopes. She has even spent time teaching “Never Evers” how to conquer their first turns at Purgatory. An adventurer at heart, she has backcountry skied across the globe, though she is just as likely to be found writing poetry or playing a heated game of pickleball. Most days, you can find her exploring local trails with her two favorite hiking partners: her dogs, Boomer and Winnie.

Anna is a licensed professional counselor with extensive experience supporting the mental, emotional, and developmental wellbeing of children and families. Most recently, she served as a school counselor with Durango School District, where she worked directly with students navigating the challenges of school and family life. In June 2026, she joined WRC, where she brings together her clinical mental health background with a deep passion for connection, community, and empowering women to build the lives they envision for themselves.

Before pursuing mental health counseling, Anna directed a tutoring center for a Bay Area start-up for three years, then spent 17 years running a successful decorative painting and muraling business for high-end homes throughout San Francisco. During that time, she also dedicated herself to community service and youth advocacy — serving as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), teaching art to incarcerated youth in juvenile detention, and developing art programming for teens expelled from Oakland public schools. Her commitment to service has taken her around the world, including time spent building schools in Botswana.

Anna holds a BA in American History from Stanford University, along with master's degrees in Textiles and Painting from California College of the Arts and in Mental Health Counseling from University of Colorado - Colorado Springs. Her artistic practice continues today through a project of creating quilts made from the clothing of loved ones who have passed away, which people entrust to her, transforming their grief into wearable works of art that offer comfort and connection. In addition, Anna is trained in yoga therapy, integrating mind-body practices into her approach to healing and personal growth.

At the WRC, Anna is excited to weave together her diverse background in mental health, entrepreneurship, yoga, and art to create holistic programming that empowers women to cultivate true wellbeing in every dimension of their lives. In her free time, Anna loves to soak in the great outdoors, biking, camping, and hiking with her husband, teenage son, and two dogs, Cora and Scarlett.

Anna joined WRC part-time as the Development Director in June of 2026. She brings to WRC over 20 years of experience working with non-profit organizations in Durango. Anna has worked with Music in the Mountains, Seed Studio, and Durango Montessori, writing grants and serving on boards. In addition, she is a San Juan BOCES employee specializing in diagnosing learning disabilities. In her role as WRC’s Development Director, she assists the organization with grant-seeking and developing community relationships. She is excited to be on board with WRC’s passionate team of staff and volunteers and hopes to help many clients through her work.

She holds an undergraduate degree in English and an MS in Educational Leadership. When not working, Anna is raising two young boys, 5 and 8, and listening to her husband play the banjo or enjoying time with girlfriends on Durango’s trails.

Ashten Cedar Martinez, also known as Ash, is a student athlete, sociologist in the making, and proud member of San Ildefonso Pueblo in New Mexico, a home that shapes how she carries herself in every room she enters.

Basketball paved her path. From high school she went on to play at Scottsdale Community College, where she earned her associate degree in Sociology, then continued her athletic and academic career at Delta State University in Mississippi before finding her way to Durango. She has just completed her final season playing for Fort Lewis College and is entering her last semester before receiving her bachelor's degree in Sociology.

Since she was little, Ash has loved helping others and getting to know people from different walks of life and different places. Learning about other cultures has been one of the most exciting parts of her journey, and each new place her path has taken her, from the Pueblo to Arizona to Mississippi to the mountains of Colorado, has deepened that curiosity. She hopes to keep learning for the rest of her life.

That lifelong pull toward people is what brought Ash to the Women's Resource Center of Durango, where she serves as an intern during a defining chapter in the organization's history, contributing to its rebuild through social media and helping shape the programs that will serve the next generation of WRC clients. Her deepest desire is simple and ambitious at once: to help women and girls feel powerful and know they can do anything they put their minds to. For Ash, the internship is a front row seat to what it takes to build a nonprofit that truly serves its community, and a chance to put that conviction into practice.

Off the court, Ash can usually be found with a book in one hand and a coffee in the other, out exploring the trails around Durango, or listening to music of every kind, since no genre is off limits. Her favorite days are the simple ones: a good hike, a strong cup of coffee, a great playlist, and time with her brother and parents.

Ariel Perez is a volunteer at the Women's Resource Center of Durango and a student at Fort Lewis College, where she is pursuing a double major in Sociology and Human Services and Psychology. Originally from the Pueblo of Nambe, one of the Eight Northern Pueblos located just north of Santa Fe, New Mexico, Ariel brings a strong commitment to community, advocacy, and service rooted in her cultural background and lived experience.

Ariel's academic studies center on the systems that shape people's lives, including housing, financial stability, food security, access to services, and social justice. She understands that navigating these systems can be challenging, particularly for individuals and families facing crisis, and she is passionate about helping people connect with the resources and support they need. At the Women's Resource Center, she contributes to creating a welcoming environment where women feel heard, respected, and empowered to move forward.

Her long-term goal is to serve her community as a social worker before earning a master’s degree in clinical psychology, where she hopes to specialize in supporting adolescents and teens navigating mental health challenges. Ariel also has experience caring for older adults in the Durango community, reinforcing her belief that meaningful support begins with trust, compassion, and genuine human connection. She is a dedicated advocate for women, the LGBTQ+ community, and expanded access to mental health care.

Ariel joined the Women's Resource Center of Durango in July 2026. She lives in Durango with her sister and finds balance outside of school and volunteering through travel, creating art, spending time at the beach, and enjoying the company of her cat, Simon.