APMM BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Our new Board of Directors was officially elected during our Virtual Conference on March 18, 2022! Welcome to all new directors and "welcome back" to those extending their terms or taking on new roles. If you are interested in a leadership role with your APMM community, please contact us about serving on one of the many committees. This experience will help prepare you to take on a leadership role or simply participate in the direction and mission of our organization. If you have questions, please contact [email protected].

President – Michael Scribner, Garmin International, Olathe, KS

Michael’s history of craft is inspired from his earliest memories and fondest role models. As a child, he was obsessed with Lego, Construx—any and all building sets he could lay his hands on. His father and grandfather were skilled with their hands and knew their way around machines and wood shops. Michael's most cherished childhood toy was a wooden sword his grandfather cut from humble pine on a bandsaw. It took mere moments for his grandfather to cut the crude sword from the simple plank, but to Michael, it was pure magic to watch the shape emerge. He took from his formative years an appreciation for craft, and knowledge of tool use which would later inform his educational and professional pursuits.

Michael is an alumnus of the University of Kansas College of Art and Design, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Metalsmithing and Jewelry Design in 2004. Shortly thereafter, he had the good fortune of being hired at the Industrial Design Model Shop of Garmin International, where he works as a senior prototype developer. His skill set includes form and finish techniques for metal, plastic, and wood, as well as operation of old-school hand tools, shop equipment, and modern computer-controlled tools and software such as CAD-CAM, 3D printers, and 2-and 3D design software.
 

Vice President – Jill Kenik, Acropolis Studios Model Works, Inc., Ste. Genevieve, MO

Jill is the owner of Acropolis Studios Model Works, Inc. and has been a professional designer and model maker for more than 35 years. Her work is typically found in the small metal goods manufacturing sector, which includes products such as jewelry, architectural hardware, gifts, tableware, awards and museum reproductions.

Serving as APMM President from 2018 to 2022 provided an opportunity to give back to the organization that has done so much to support Jill’s model making career.  She is also well-known among APMM’s vendor members, having served 3 terms as Vice President of Vendors. Jill has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Metalsmithing and Jewelry Design from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Rhode Island.

Jill says, "Being part of the APMM has broadened my capabilities as a model maker. Having other professional model makers to reach for technical help, opinions or just to share great projects with is empowering. Together, we represent the best creative and technical minds in the profession!"

Treasurer – Sharon Moore, recently retired from Honda R&D, Long Beach, CA

Sharon recently retired after a 28-year career at Honda R&D Americas, where she worked on design development models using every tool from a sanding block to a computer mouse. Her specialties ranged from mold making and casting, color matching plastics, to 3D printing and model data development. She holds a BFA in Sculpture from California State University, Long Beach.

When not out hiking or bagging a peak, she can be found at home planning trips to hike and bag peaks. Other interests include reading, drawing, travel, paddling, and cooking. She believes a strong foundation of hand skills support the best use of modern technologies, and that the APMM can be a resource for collaboration and skill development to help its members keep up with the rapid pace of change in the model making world. 

Secretary – Alika Brooks, Meadors, Inc., Charleston, SC

Alika Brooks has a background in industrial design, model making, and digital fabrication. At Meadors he brings modern fabrication technology and techniques together with the traditional craftsmanship of their shop. He designs processes for one-off and small batch manufacturing, designs tooling applications for custom millwork, and sees the many small, unique, and unconventional jobs that come into our shop through from start to finish.

He is a dynamic member of the Meadors team as their CAD technician, fabricator and designer. This is Alika's first term on the Board of Directors of the APMM.

VP of Conference – Paul Chabala, Crown Equipment Corp., New Bremen, OH

Paul manages the Model Shop and Design Support Services for Crown Equipment Corp. His responsibilities include staffing and operations along with providing leadership with project/resource management, in addition to modeling/prototyping techniques, processes and materials procurement. He is also responsible for supplying high quality 3D solutions for product development.

A 23-year veteran in model making, Paul began his career as an architectural model maker at 3d Technical Services. Over the next several years, with growing experience and opportunities, he transitioned into product development for companies such as Procter & Gamble and Ethicon Endosurgery. He is a graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and Kent State University, with a degree in Industrial Design and a focus in Art.

Paul feels privileged to be managing a model shop and have daily interaction with the greatest collection of creative and dedicated professionals he has known. He also continues to hone his talents in his free time with model ship building and wood furniture design. Paul says, “Professional Model Making is a collaborative career with more knowledge and skill than can possibly be learned by one person. The APMM allows us to collectively share this wealth to further the industry as a whole.”

VP of Communications – Bruce Willey, Everybody Makes, St. Paul, MN

Bruce has been an active member of the APMM since 1993 when he attended the first-ever conference of model makers in the Bay Area. He has served as APMM Secretary, and the Conference VP for the 2010 Conference in Boston, the 2012 Conference in Kansas City and the first two VCONs in 2021 and 2022. He has been the Communications VP since 2020.

Bruce studied model making under the legendary Art Hedlund at Bemidji State University in Minnesota and has recently returned to the Twin Cities to pursue work in product development. He is active in the maker community and is working to foster collaboration between that group and the APMM.

Bruce says, “The APMM has brought together an incredibly diverse and talented group of people who are very generous with their knowledge and resources. I look forward to us finding more people to share that attitude with."

VP of Education (Europe) – Will Strange, Arts University Bournemouth, Dorset, UK

Will is a full time Senior Lecturer at The Arts University Bournemouth, BA (Hons) Modelmaking. He holds a Postgraduate Certificate of Education and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. As a university lecturer he teaches model making, prototyping, and design, mostly to undergraduate students.

Previously Will has studied at University of Hertfordshire, graduating with an HND in Design and an Honours degree in Model Design. He then worked as a professional modelmaker in and around London, UK. Mostly working with architects and designers, he contributed to projects by Nicholas Grimshaw, Richard Rogers, Thomas Heatherwick, Future Systems and others.

Alongside teaching, Will is a keen designer/maker. Despite playing very badly, he has an obsession with designing and making chess pieces. Rather than just talking to students about making things, he tries to make things for himself too!

Will says, “Joining the APMM has helped us (AUB) to better understand how our profession works around the world. It’s fascinating to see how the same tools and skills are used in different ways in the UK, USA & around the world”.

VP of Education (North America) – Patrick Hebauf, Crown Equipment Corp., New Bremen, OH

Patrick is one of two principal members of the Design Model Shop at Crown Equipment Corporation, focusing on the CAD needs of the model shop as well as the builds themselves. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati’s School of Design Art Architecture and Planning (DAAP) in 2016 with a Bachelors of Science in Industrial Design, focusing on Transportation Design. Through internships, he was hired by Paul Chabala into the model shop upon graduation. It was through those internships that he discovered a love and aptitude for the creation of models professionally, something that had always been a childhood interest.

Outside of work, he enjoys tinkering with cars, playing video games, and feeding a tool addiction that only German hand tools can satisfy. He has also moonlighted as an Adult Ed night-school teacher, teaching CAD and blueprint reading, as well doing his level best to educate the design interns on the model making thought process as it relates to both their work at school and at Crown.

Patrick says, "In my opinion the core component to Design and model making is problem solving. I was always told that it’s not how you (inevitably) mess up a piece that’s important, it’s how you fix the piece that matters. And the wise words of Howard W. Newton have consistently rung true for me: "People forget how fast you did a job – but they remember how well you did it."" Patrick recently created the Model Making as a Career digital booklet for the APMM.

VP of Membership – Aaron Williams, Perkins & Will, Boston, MA

Aaron is the Model Shop Manager at Perkins & Will in Boston, MA and loves exploring the intersection of physical representation and technology. He is a fabricator and problem solver with a history of working in the architecture and planning industry and beyond. Skilled in AutoCAD, Rhino, sketching, Building Information Modeling (BIM), model making, prototyping, and rendering, he loves being curious and learning new skills. Aaron holds a BS in Scenic Design from Skidmore College and enjoys bringing that experience into the models that he builds.

VP of Social Media – Joshua Munchow, Chapel Hill, NC

Joshua is a prototype engineer with more than a decade of experience in product development, fabrication, and prototype development. He designs and build new products for a variety of industries including aerospace, medical, heavy industrial, commercial, and consumer goods. He's been involved in numerous patent developments and enjoys solving complex problems through an integrated approach of physical prototyping, ideation, and iteration.

Besides his day job, Joshua is also a technical journalist in the luxury watch industry, focused on design, manufacturing, and micromechanical aspects of watch design. 

Joshua says, “I believe that a lot of people want to learn how to make things, but the world likes to make skills appear much harder (or much easier) than they are. The maker movement and shows like MythBusters have kick-started a change in the public perception of making, manufacturing, and by extension, model making. My goal is to harness that for the greater good.”

VP of Vendors – Nicole Dietz, B9Creations, Rapid City, SD

Nicole Dietz holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from Black Hills State University, as well as over fifteen years of experience in leadership and marketing and five years of experience in the 3D printing industry. She is the Associate Marketing Manager at B9Creations.

Nicole specializes in product launches, project management, graphic design, and digital media. Outside of aligning innovative companies with the 3D printing technology to push their businesses forward, Nicole enjoys gardening and woodworking, camping in the Black Hills of South Dakota near her home, and taking trips across the globe to scuba dive.