Francis O. Boggus

Clinton County Community Coach

Francis Boggus is a planning professional with more than 12 years as a board-based community specialist at the local, state, and national level. He has experience in community development and engagement; grant writing and management; board development and training; community visioning, fundraising, project implementation; and heritage tourism development.

Lorin Ditzler

Warren County Community Coach

Lorin brings over a decade of experience in community development and a passion for small-town Iowa to her role as the Warren County Hometown Pride Community Coach. She previously worked as a city planning consultant for communities throughout the Midwest, and supported small businesses working and volunteering for multiple Chambers of Commerce. She holds an MS in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Iowa and a BA in English from Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. She is an AICP certified city planner and a trained facilitator. Lorin lives in Des Moines where she volunteers as a board member for the American Planning Association – Iowa Chapter, the Downtown Des Moines Chamber of Commerce, and the City Sounds public piano project. She is also a musician and a freelance writer.

Dan Fox

Grant Wood Mississippi River Region Community Coach (GWMRR)

Dan is a Senior Planner with East Central Intergovernmental Association, a regional council of governments that serves communities in five eastern Iowa counties. Dan has over ten years of experience working with communities on projects in variety of areas including land use, transportation, and housing. He graduated from the University of Iowa with a bachelor’s degree in Geography and a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning. Dan lives in Dubuque and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners.

David Heiar

Grant Wood Mississippi River Region Community Coach (GWMRR)

David Heiar, a Jackson County native, was selected to serve as the Community Coach for the GWMRR counties (Jackson, Jones, Dubuque). He has over 35-years of experience in city government in three Eastern Iowa cities of Bellevue, Manchester, and Dubuque, before joining the Jackson County Economic Alliance in July of 2013. His background includes downtown redevelopment, community development, rural, and urban economic development including workforce development, existing industry services, business attraction, and new business development. Heiar was inducted onto the Iowa League of Cities Hall of Fame in 2019.

Marla Quinn

Cedar County and Delaware County Community Coach

Marla Quinn is the Grants and Municipal Coordinator at the East Central Intergovernmental Association (ECIA) and has been with the agency for 19 years. In her current position, Marla writes and researches grants for communities and organizations in ECIA’s five-county region of Cedar, Clinton, Delaware, Dubuque, and Jackson counties, for projects related to equipment, construction, programming, rehabilitation, community development, recreation, and other special projects. She prepares grants for local, regional, State and Federal funding sources as well as private foundations. When her head is not wrapped around a grant, she works closely with communities on updating city codes, writing ordinances, and answering technical questions. Marla also develops the ECIA Annual Report, and other agency marketing materials.

Marla is a graduate of Loras College in Dubuque with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Writing. She is married to Tony and they have two children, Wil and Lucy.

Margo Underwood

Special Advisor / Pocahontas County Community Coach

Margo Underwood is president of Underwood Consulting, a business that provides resource management and public relations services to communities, businesses and non-profit organizations. Margo has 20 years of experience in both the public and private sectors working with communities to help them develop solid waste plans in Iowa and Minnesota. Margo serves as chair of the Iowa Natural Resource Commission and is a past president and current board member of Trees Forever. Margo grew up on an Iowa Century Farm in Scott County, received her B.S. and M.S. Degrees from ISU, and serves as the KIB Hometown Pride Community Coach in nine communities in Pocahontas County.

Jennifer Walker

Cedar County and Delaware County Community Coach

Jennifer Walker is the Development Coordinator and Consultant at the East Central Intergovernmental Association (ECIA) and has been with the agency for 13 years. In her current position, Jen has written Fundraising Plans, Hazard Mitigation Plans, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants, Economic Development Administration (EDA) Public Works (PW) grants, Iowa Great Places Designations, Strategic and Goal-Setting Plans, Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) grants, Mental Health grants, and Wellness Coalition grants for the counties, communities and organizations in ECIA’s five-county region of Cedar, Clinton, Delaware, Dubuque and Jackson. She has worked with economic development people, city and county officials, and the private sector to write applications in order to leverage funds from various sources for priority projects.

Jen is a graduate of Clarke University with a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and Psychology. She also has a Master of Arts in Art History from Area State University. She is married to Richard and they have two children, Richard III and Claire.