AARP Minnesota Executive Council

A coach, trainer, jazz vocalist, and Wild Elder in Training, Courtney Burton is passionate about creating nourishing spaces and conversations for people to connect with their desires, goals, and dreams. Courtney’s extensive 30+ year career as a retail and sales executive, coupled with her belief creative expression is an essential part of being human, is the foundation of her practical, heart-based approach to business, community, and life. As a jazz vocalist, Courtney has been performing for over 25 years in the Twin Cities in groups ranging from jazz trios to 18-member big bands. As a coach and facilitator, Courtney assists individuals, teams, and organizations in leadership development, redefining their culture, finding common ground, and expanding their communication skills.

Dr. Rose Wan-Mui Chu has dedicated her professional life to the tireless pursuit of education equity and excellence for children and youth. A first-generation immigrant from Hong Kong and a first-generation college graduate, Dr. Chu brings over 30 years of rich and diverse cross-sector experiences. Her original engineering background and work experience, coupled with her most honored role as a classroom teacher have continued to ground her life’s work in educational reform and transformation. She has provided tremendous leadership through her various roles in K-12 settings, in higher education, in the public sector, and in nonprofits. Dr. Chu is an experienced consultant with a diverse professional portfolio, often sought after for her thought partnership and commitment to equity and systems change. She also has a long history of service through her volunteerism and leadership in the community. She co-founded the Dragon Festival at Lake Phalen, St. Paul. She has served on numerous boards, including being a founding board member of AMAZEworks and the Coalition of Asian American Leaders. Dr. Chu is currently a board member of Junior Achievement North and is a Parks and Recreation Commissioner for the city of Little Canada. She was elected to the school board of the Roseville Area Schools and began her first term in January 2020. Dr. Chu is also a 2016  AARP MN & Pollen Midwest's 50 Over 50 Honoree. 

Doug is originally from San Francisco but completed high school and undergraduate work in Minnesota before leaving to get an M.S. in Geophysics and start his career. He worked for nearly 40 years at ExxonMobil, Target, and Xcel Energy, where he held various leadership positions. Doug returned to Minnesota in 1996. Away from work, Doug has been active in his community. While his children were growing up, he volunteered as a football and baseball coach and served as a cub scout leader. He also served at his church, starting out as a council member and eventually becoming the council president. Later in life, Doug added home improvement to his interests. Along with his wife, Sarah Jane, a Designer, he remodeled their home in the Twin Cities and later built a small lake home south of Duluth. When not doing home improvement, he enjoys fishing and bird hunting. Doug retired in 2020 and wanted to give back and take on a role where he could apply his leadership experience to meaningful efforts to help others. This led to his interest in volunteering on the Executive Council at AARP Minnesota. Doug has experienced some of the challenges that seniors face, including high inflation, pandemic issues, and technology scams, to name just a few. He wants to help AARP implement strategies in these and other areas.

Lonnie Duberstein has dedicated his life to education as a teacher, coach, and advocate. Before graduating with honors from Robbinsdale School District in 1968, Lonnie enlisted in the Naval Air Reserve, serving for eight years. He received an Honorable Discharge in 1980. He holds an Associate of Arts degree from North Hennepin Junior College, a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Science Education from the University of Minnesota’s College of Education, and a Master of Arts in Education from the University of St. Thomas.

Lonnie started teaching science at Capitol View Junior High in 1973 and served as Dean. He later served as Dean at Brimhall Elementary School, supervising the ESL program and coordinating Gifted/Talented and Student Support Services. Lonnie taught 5th grade at Brimhall Elementary for 15 years and was a finalist for Minnesota Teacher of the Year in 2006. He was active in the Minnesota Education Association and coached around 40 junior high teams.

Since retiring in 2007, Lonnie has been a board member of the Retired Educators Association of Minnesota (REAM) and the Roseville Area Retired Employees Association (RAREA). He received the REAM Educator Award and the REAM John Moriarity Legislative Award. Since 2012, Lonnie has been a REAM liaison for AARP, volunteering with AARP Minnesota on the Speaker’s and Advocacy Teams.

Inspired by AARP founder Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus, Lonnie is passionate about supporting retired teachers. He lives in Vadnais Heights with his wife, Nancy, and their West Highland White Terrier, MacTavish.

Gary Marx has been in the health care insurance business for over thirty years, serving in executive and marketing roles for Mayo Clinic and Allianz Life and as President of Gary Marx LTC Services, Inc. since 2006. Gary earned a BA in Political Science from CA State Northridge and a law degree from LaVerne College of Law. Gary resides in Saint Paul, MN with his wife, Maggie and Boomer, their 7-year-old Boston Terrier.  Gary has served as a volunteer on the AARP MN Speakers Team, presenting on Fraud Prevention, Advocacy and Disrupt Aging. Gary is also certified nationally by AARP for the Disrupt Aging classroom presentation and has presented at several colleges.

Lisa Radosevich-Craig has lived in northeast Minnesota for most of her life, and currently lives in Duluth with her husband, John. Recently retired, Lisa spent over twenty years working for the U.S. Forest Service, primarily on the Superior and Chippewa National Forests in MN. For many years she has served as the Tribal Liaison, working closely with Tribal governments and the US federal government on land issues. She has also served as a public information officer for large, Type 1, forest fires across the country. Previously, Lisa served as U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone’s Northern Minnesota Director in Virginia, MN. She has also worked in development for the then Northern Lake Girl Scouts Council and for the Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency.

Kate Schaefers, PhD, LP, has a passion for aligning individual talents with meaningful work. Her specialties include coaching clients who are transitioning into new roles, jobs, and careers, and organizations that are exploring ways to tap the talent of a multigenerational workplace. Dr. Schaefers has a PhD in counseling psychology from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in counseling psychology from the University of Minnesota. Her portfolio career has one unifying theme – bringing out the best in individuals and organizations. As a leadership coach, Dr. Schaefers works with leaders to focus development goals and strengthen leadership effectiveness. In her coaching work, she specializes in higher education and nonprofit sectors. She also coaches people as they explore encore careers: career change to meaningful work in the second half of life. Dr. Schaefers is a founding board member of SHIFT, a Twin Cities nonprofit facilitating career change in the second half of life. She teaches graduate level classes at the University of MN and the University of St. Thomas. She is past president of Minnesota Career Development Association and received the Jules Kerlan Outstanding Achievement Award in 2012 for contributions to the field of career development. She contributes to Encore.org, a nonprofit focused on tapping the talent of people 50+ for social impact.Dr. Schaefers was also instrumental in the development of  AARP MN & Pollen Midwest's 50 Over 50 program.