Staff

Laura Dake
Acting Executive Director

Laura Dake has been working with Executive Director Gale Reece since November 2006, first as a grant writer and fundraiser, then – since July 2007 – as deputy director of ITNBluegrass. She particularly enjoys writing, planning events and speaking to groups about the possibilities for improving quality of life for older adults in Central Kentucky.

In addition to her work with ITNBluegrass, Laura is a contract trainer with Bluegrass Community and Technical College's Corporate and Community Development office, where she has developed and taught courses for Toyota, Sekisui, Neogen Corporation and Kentucky Utilities, among many others. She has more than a decade of training facilitation and course development experience in both corporate and educational settings and specializes in courses on leadership development, verbal and written communication and customer service. She loves helping individuals improve their abilities to work effectively within their organizations.

Laura is both AchieveGlobal and DDI-certified and holds advanced degrees from the University of Michigan and George Mason University.

Gale Reece
Founding Director

Gale Reece has a proven track record of business success having started Kentucky Underground Storage, Inc. over 20 years ago in the same facility that houses Highbridge Spring Water (her family's company). Located in a cave in Jessamine County, KUSI is a commercial records center offering storage for all types of information – hard copy, microforms, computer media, etc. During her tenure as president and chief operating officer, the company grew from one employee to more than 20 and the storage to over half a million cartons of documents and pieces of computer media.

After Gale retired from KUSI in 2005, she knew she wanted to work on aging issues and was thinking about housing until a Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government employee convinced her that transportation was the pressing issue, and elders couldn't stay in their homes anyway without it! This fact, combined with her drive and can-do attitude led Gale to ITNAmerica, and ultimately, to the process of establishing a local affiliate.

Working in a non-profit environment is new to Gale, but her past experience with forming companies, negotiating and revising contracts, making decisions, giving presentations and maintaining high levels of customer service has been critical in the startup of ITNBluegrass.

Though a Kentucky native, Gale graduated from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, and for about ten years after that lived in Raleigh, N.C., and Atlanta.

Linda Huffman
Ride Coordinator

Linda Huffman retired from the LFUCG Division of Police in 2002 after 31 years of service. She served in various secretarial positions, most recently in the Communications Technical Unit. Linda is a member of the Legal Secretaries of Kentucky and Legal Secretaries of Central Kentucky groups. She has an adult son and daughter and a grandson. She enjoys travel, crocheting, playing video games and scrapbooking.

Barbara Warburton
Ride Coordinator and Customer Service Specialist

Dispatcher Barbara Warburton first heard of ITNBluegrass when Laura Dake spoke at an AARP career fair, but knew of Gale Reece through Gale’s family’s company Highbridge Springs, a water vendor Barbara purchased from in her position as a commercial buyer for Donaldson Co., Inc., a manufacturer of filtration and air cleaning systems. Barbara was intrigued by the work ITNBluegrass was proposing to do and eager to do something productive after her retirement from Donaldson. In her work as a dispatcher, Barbara loves speaking with members and volunteers on the phone. She says that she has "a heart for seniors, therefore, working with them is such a delight." Barbara is a 2008 graduate of the Citizens Leadership Academy and a 2009 graduate of the Lexington Citizen Police Academy.

Evelyn Kramer
Community Outreach Coordinator

Community Outreach Coordinator Evelyn Kramer has a long history of involvement with non-profit agencies and boards in Lexington and the central Kentucky area. Although her background included studying elementary and special education at the University of Kentucky, she chose to be a stay-at-home mother until her two children graduated from high school. While academics and athletics were important, Evelyn and her husband Stan made sure that community involvement and philanthropic activities were intertwined in their children’s daily schedules.

Evelyn currently serves as the Clerk of Session for Second Presbyterian Church, the Ombudsman for Meals on Wheels, the chair of the Lexington Christian Service Ministry Committee, and the Local Scholarship Chair for Chapter S, P.E.O. (Philanthropic Educational Organization). She also serves on the boards of Canaan House, Second Presbyterian’s Mission Committee and the Presbyterian Housing Corporation. She sees her work at ITNBluegrass as a perfect fit with her interest in independent living, allowing individuals the opportunity to stay in their own homes while being able to safely pursue their outside interests and activities.

Bonnie Detzel
After-hours Ride Coordinator

Victor Rice
After-hours Ride Coordinator

Andrea Richardson
After-hours Ride Coordinator

Toya Richmond
After-hours Ride Coordinator