Citizens Advisory Committee

Aaron Futrell is a life long Aurora resident who uses public transit to get to and from work(postal employee). Aaron is also a local community advocate. Aaron went to MSU Denver 2012-2018 where he served in Student Government from 2013-2017 as a student senator/Speaker Pro tem 3 out of the 4 years. Aaron worked closely with different departments from the Diversity Equity and Inclusion Office to Met Media. Aaron also worked with RTD to make fare affordable for students. In 2016 Aaron was awarded the MLK Peace Breakfast Award for Students for his work on campus. This helped translate into his work in the community where he served on the Human Relations Commission 2018-2022 for the City of Aurora where he served as the Vice Chair from 2021-2022 and spearheaded the efforts to provide outreach to unhoused residents by supplying items that are necessary but aren’t always provided during the winter months. Aaron enjoys exploring Colorado and Photograph. He is a resident of RTD District E. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2026)

Ali Karimi works as a Legal Immigration Assistant at the ECDC African Community Center in Denver. Ali was born in Afghanistan and received a bachelor’s degree in urban planning from Kabul Polytechnic University. After the Taliban took over Afghanistan, Ali came to the United States in 2022. Since then, he has been actively involved in volunteer and community activities to support and amplify the voices of marginalized groups, particularly the migrant community. He is a resident of RTD Distrcit K. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2026)

Andrea Suhaka served on the founding Centennial Council, 2001-2008 and then moved on to serve 10 years on the Centennial Planning and Zoning Commission. Also, in 2007, she was elected to the Centennial Home Rule Charter Commission. She is a graduate of the Transit Alliance Citizens’ Academy and was a founding member of Transportation Solutions Arapahoe County. Throughout 2015, she worked with the Affordable Fares Task Force sponsored by Mile High Connects and continues to follow and take part in the Arapahoe County Transportation Forum. She is. Also, currently, on DRCOG’s Area Agency on Aging. She is the Board Chair of the Denver Regional Mobility and Access Council (DRMAC). She graduated from Douglass College of Rutgers University in 1970 and retired from Girl Scouts – Mile Hi Council in 2007 after a 21-year career. Growing up in New Jersey, Ms. Suhaka bussed to summer jobs in New York City. She is a resident of Centennial, RTD District H. (Term 2 expires 12/31/2026)

Caitlynn Fortner is a development review planner for the City of Aurora, with previous experience as a planner in rural Chaffee County, Colorado. She resides in the Hale/Cherry Creek neighborhood (RTD District A) and frequents the 15, 10, and 40 RTD routes. Before beginning her planning career, she was a software salesperson in downtown Denver. In addition to serving on the RTD Citizens Advisory Committee, Caitlynn is a board member of SOIL Sangre de Cristo, a charitable organization that provides 0% interest loans to farmers. In her free time, she enjoys running, reading, and writing. Through this opportunity with RTD's CAC, she hopes to deepen her knowledge of transportation planning and use her life and professional experience to advocate for the needs of Denver’s citizens. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2027)

Danny Fisher is the External Affairs Officer with Serve Colorado, within the Office of the Lt. Governor, where he supports AmeriCorps programs through strategy, member recruitment, community engagement, and special projects. Danny has been relying on public transportation for nearly 20 years, while living in Denver, Washington, DC, and New York City. For the past 15 years, he has volunteered with the non-profit organization Youth Celebrate Diversity, leading various conflict resolution workshops with high school students and teachers. Danny is a certified mediator and earned an MS in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution from Columbia University and a BS in Psychology from Oklahoma State University. He resides in Denver, RTD District E. (Term 2 expires 12/31/2027)

Devin Saunders is the community relations coordinator for Denver District 1 Councilwoman Amanda P. Sandoval. He is an advocate and supporter of neighborhood organizations, citizen involvement in governance and community-based initiatives to enhance community education, unification and prosperity. Devin has developed extensive knowledge and awareness of community concerns regarding RTD and public transit throughout the city and county of Denver. Prior to living in Colorado, Devin worked with community groups, local nonprofits, local governments and the Illinois EPA and Department of Transportation to successfully obtain federal and state funding for the electrification of the public bus fleet for a Chicago suburb. Devin obtained his bachelor’s in political science from the University of Colorado Boulder. He lives in RTD District M and almost solely uses RTD transit as his method of transportation.

Eric Smith (he, him), with over 10 years of experience in property and asset management and real estate, Eric currently manages Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) properties and co-manages luxury lease-ups throughout the Denver metro area. Mr. Smith is a transportation advocate as many of his tenants rely on a multitude of RTD services for daily living and commuting. Mr. Smith originally hails from Texas, where transportation was not as reliable and plentiful as it is in Denver today. From his time as a chemical engineer and logistician in the U.S. Army stationed at Fort Carson and then traveling the world, Eric always had a passion for improving transportation accessibility and its operations and wants to continue that fight in Denver, where he's called home for the last 16 years. Eric currently uses RTD daily to commute throughout the metro area and to attend classes at MSU. Eric is currently the co-chair of the CAC and resides in Denver, RTD District A. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2025)

Gabriel Cervantez's earliest memories of using transit was taking the light rail from the Downing Station to Littleton with his older brothers as a young child. Gabriel has relied on public transit throughout his life, from commuting to Boulder his entire college tenure to from all over the Denver Metro and now to Lone Tree where he works. With a lifelong relationship with transit and a growing understanding of urban planning and societal dynamics of who uses transit systems, Gabriel has a combination of lived and soft technical experience of how transit can fit into our society. He is a resident of RTD District K. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2027)

Joe Meyer is an aerospace engineer with extensive experience consulting on the design and build of prototype aircraft. At first glance that has nothing to do with transit, but Joe believes that the process of solving – and simplifying – complex engineering design problems can drive continuous improvement in the way a transit system serves the community. He also advocates for fast, frequent, reliable, and accessible public transportation as a co-lead for Greater Denver Transit, and serves in community groups advising on micromobility and land use/development standards. He is a regular rider of local bus (and hopefully BRT in the near future!), light rail, commuter rail, and FlexRide and a resident of District C (with recent residency and community connections in RTD District L). (Term 1 expires 12/31/2027)

Mary Jo Highland (she/her/ella) is an Immigration Attorney with The Meyer Law Office off Colfax, where she enjoys working with immigrant communities and strives to keep families together. She commutes to work via the LD1 and 15 routes. Her eldest child has opted not to own a car at all and relies exclusively on public transit. Prior to her work as an immigration attorney, Mary Jo was an elementary school teacher. She holds a bachelor's degree from the University of San Diego, a master’s degree in Second Language Acquisition and a law degree from the University of Denver. Mary Jo lives in Lafayette, RTD District I. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2026)

Matt Frommer is a Senior Transportation Associate at The Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP), a public- interest organization promoting greater energy efficiency and clean transportation in the Southwest. In his role at SWEEP, Matt works with local governments, electric utilities, and transit agencies to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles and expand multimodal infrastructure and transit services. Matt received a Master of Environmental Science in Sustainable Planning and Management from the University of Colorado in 2017 and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Michigan in 2010. He is a frequent uses the local bus, light- rail, and Flatiron Flyer. Matt lives in Denver, RTD District C. (Term 2 expires 12/31/2027)

Matthew Appelbaum served on the Boulder city council for eighteen years until 2017, including five as mayor. His work with transportation issues began in 1985 when he was appointed to a committee to write Boulder’s first transportation master plan. As mayor he was an active member of the US36 Mayors and Commissioners Coalition, lobbying state and national representatives and fostering partnerships in the northwest corridor with RTD and CDOT to implement the very successful US36 managed lanes and Flatiron Flyer service. Matt currently serves on the boards of ICLEI-USA, an international organization of sustainable cities, and the WaterNow Alliance, which educates city leaders on sustainable water practices. In “real life,” Matt designed and implemented complex computer software systems, and received an MS in computer science. He grew up in New York, taking the bus and subway to both high school and college, and loves to use transit systems around the world. Matt has lived in Boulder, RTD District O, for over forty years, and frequently walks to the Table Mesa Park-n-Ride to catch the bus. (Term Expires 2025)

Michelle Gaeng is an attorney at Womble Bond Dickinson (previously Lewis Roca) with a focus in environmental regulatory work. Her legal education first brought Michelle to Colorado and she is a 2022 graduate from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Michelle was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, but prior to making Colorado her home, she lived in Washington, D.C. for five years, where she formed her passion for public transportation. Never having owned a car, Michelle relies on public transportation and her bike to get her where she needs to go and advocates for reliable, safe and accessible public transit in Colorado. She also lived in Freiburg, Germany, during college, a city that is essentially car-free and that exposed her to a bike and tram-centric lifestyle. Michelle holds an undergraduate degree from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. She resides in RTD District A in the Baker neighborhood of Denver, takes RTD every day, and is always looking for efficient and creative ways to navigate Denver and the front range via RTD, e-bike, bicycle, or her own two legs. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2025)

Mikhail Kaminer is a transportation planner with Fehr & Peers, a firm focused on improving communities through innovative transportation solutions. He is passionate about expanding access to people’s daily lives by enhancing mobility options. The majority of Mikhail’s work is focused on transit planning and implementation projects across Colorado, including the Thornton Transit Plan, Douglas County Integrated Transit and Multimodal Study, and Denver Connector Microtransit Program, among others. Mikhail received his Master of Urban and Regional Planning and a Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Urban Studies from CU Denver. Mikhail is a 25-year resident of the Denver metro and a daily transit user. He hopes that by participating in the CAC, he can provide his perspective and encourage more community voices to be heard by RTD. Mikhail lives in Parker, RTD District G. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2026)

Pamela Jiner is the Director of Montbello Walks, a volunteer-based health organization that addresses the inequities of walkability and safe community spaces (safe access for pedestrians of all modalities), public transportation safety, access and availability, food injustice (hosting weekly food pantry), and the built environment ensuring there are amenities available for families to get outside to improve their health as well as for recreation. Ms. Jiner has lived in her community for 50 plus years where she has raised two sons, fostered 13 Trauma Focused teens for the City & County of Denver, and adopted her 16th child who is now thirteen. For the past 10 years Ms. Jiner has been spearheading a movement focused on improving her community. Some of her successes include the installation of sidewalks at I-70 @ Peoria, obtained wayfinding signage for pedestrians to the Smith Road Light Rail Station; crosswalks, pedestrian islands and stop signs at parks and schools; new park developments and equipment installations; bicycle lanes; one of the originators of The Connector shuttle service; strong supporter for the Costco Wholesale development on Airport Way and so much more. She currently serves as Co-Chair on the DPR Advisory Board, Denver Mountain Parks Board of Directors, and has served on the Participatory Budget Committee and the 307 City Sidewalk Ordinance Committee. She is a resident of RTD District B. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2026)

Tony Jackson is a Sales Manager for a firm called Bus Stuf. He has held various sales roles in the transportation industry since 2009. Tony’s daily business activities are 100% focused on public transportation solutions in the United States and Canada. He is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association where he can consistently network with other members and have an impact on the public transit industry. As a customer of RTD Tony frequents the A Line to the airport and the route 15 bus on Colfax (excitedly awaiting the new BRT). Tony holds an MBA from the University of Denver. Tony and his family live in Denver, RTD District C. (Term 2 expires 12/31/2026)

Ursula "Bryn" Grunwald is an associate on RMI's Urban Transformation team, an independent, non-partisan, nonprofit organization of experts across disciplines working to accelerate the clean energy transition and improve lives. In her work at RMI, Bryn works with city and state governments, local frontline organizations, and other groups to improve cities and communities access to transit, improved urban design, and renewable energy. Bryn has a master’s in mechanical engineering with a focus on energy and the environment from the University of Colorado Boulder, as well as bachelor’s degrees in international affairs and mechanical engineering. Bryn resides in District ) and frequently uses the local bus and the Flatiron Flyer. (Term 1 expires 12/31/2025)