Friends of Camp Fife Board

President
Scott Goranson

Scott grew up in Kennewick, Washington, and was actively involved in the Blue Mountain Council for many years. His family was very active in Troop 126, but in 1990, they started Troop 190 (his brother was their first Eagle Scout) and Troop 275, where Scott was their first Eagle Scout.

He spent every Summer of his scouting experience either as a Camp Fife camper or as a member of the camp staff. Since 2013, he has been in leadership positions within the scout unit in Yakima.

Scott is an active member of the Order of the Arrow, Founders Award Recipient (along with his son), and a Silver Beaver Award Recipient. Since 2020, Scott has served as the volunteer caretaker for Camp Fife, coordinating with an outstanding core group of volunteers to keep the camp operational.

When the former Grand Columbia Council announced that Camp Fife was being considered for subdivision and sale, Scott recruited other camp alumni, camp neighbors, and representation from the Fife family to create the registered non-profit, Friends of Camp Fife, to preserve the property for future generations of the scouting movement.

For over 25 years, Scott has been a music teacher in the Yakima School District, where he has been recognized as a Crystal Apple award winner, inducted into the Washington State Music Educators’ Hall of Fame, and is a National Board Certified Teacher.

Scott resides in Yakima with his wife, son (an Eagle Scout), and daughter, who have all volunteered extensively at Camp Fife and within the scouting movement.

Vice President
Charlene Fife-Halsey

Charlene resides and raised a family just down the road from Camp Fife. Camp Fife and Tom Fife’s generosity continue to be a source of pride for her entire family.

As a Fife descendant, her family’s heritage and gift to the scouting movement is why Camp Fife has been able to enrich the lives of youth for over 100 years. Charlene herself has been active with youth for years, including as a scout leader and in the 4-H organization.

Charlene and her husband have 5 children and 13 grandchildren. Her husband’s father was an Eagle Scout and Camp Fife camper. Charlene and her husband are accountants in Yakima.

Camp Fife’s namesake, Thomas Xavier Fife, was the uncle of Charlene’s Grandfather. Charlene joined as a founding member of Friends of Camp Fife to ensure that her family’s gift continues to benefit the youth of Central Washington for the next 100 years.

Secretary
Janet Gallant

Janet was born and raised in Washington State. She and her family have a rich history at Gooseprairie and Camp Fife, where she remains a camp neighbor and hands-on volunteer.

Her paternal family was deeply involved in Scouting and Camp Fife, and five of her sons were Eagle Scouts. Her Grandpa helped build the original dining hall, swimming pool, and hung the camp bell.

She has been active in Scouting for 27 years, serving as a Cubmaster of two packs and starting a pack in Pasco, WA, which is still thriving 17 years later. She is a member of the OA, has served as a unit commissioner, started a Webelos camp at Camp Fife, and managed the trading post.

Janet’s maternal grandfather was a caretaker at Camp Fife, and her mother was the wrangler. Her daughter and son-in-law were the cook and ranger. Her grandsons are the 6th generation to work at Camp Fife!

Now retired from the Bureau of Reclamation, Janet and her family maintain a presence at Gooseprairie dating back to the late 1800s.

The 63 acres that make up Camp Fife include 40 acres of land that was her great-grandmother’s. Her Grandmother’s home, Grandma’s House/Root’s Roost, also known by some as “The White House”, remains in use on the property to this day.

Treasurer
James Smith

James was born and raised in the Yakima Valley and currently resides in Ellensburg, WA. He grew up in a Scouting family and attended camps at Camp Fife most years, frequently visiting the Friday steak nights with his family.

He is an Eagle Scout and also attended the National Scout Jamboree in 1993. He worked at Camp Fife in the aquatics program from 1995 to 1998. He is a lifelong outdoors enthusiast, and the Camp Fife/Bumping Lake area is still one of his favorite places to visit. He is married with three daughters.

James attended Central Washington University, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Electronics and Electrical Engineering Technology and a Master’s Degree in Industrial Engineering Technology, and earned his PE license in 2013.

He currently works as an Electrical Engineer with Grant County PUD and also owns his own Electrical consulting business.

Fundraising Chair
Michael (Mike) Smith

Mike was born in Crescent City, CA, but moved to Yakima at a young age, growing up in the valley, and graduated from Eisenhower High School in 1985. In the early 1990’s he attended Heritage University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Administration with a Major in Management.

Most recently, he earned a Master of Science degree in Information Technology and Administrative Management (ITAM) with a specialization in Management from Central Washington University where he worked as the Director of Database Management for University Advancement from 2008-2021. In January 2022, Mike relocated to Georgia to assume the position of Director of Advancement Services at the University of North Georgia.

Mike was active in the Boy Scouts of America as a youth and spent many summers as a camper at Camp Fife. As soon as he was old enough, he worked at Camp Fife as a kitchen aid between the summers of 1983 and 1987. From 1995 to 2000, Mike served the scouting movement as a District Executive in the Grand Columbia Council and was the Camp Director at Camp Bonaparte between 1997 and 1999.

Today, Mike is an active member of his church and a founding board member of Friends of Camp Fife.

Member at Large
William (Will) Smith

Will is an Eagle Scout who grew up in the Yakima Valley. From the ages of 12 to 19, he spent every summer at Camp Fife. Five of those summers, he was staff, including Scoutcraft Director, running the archery range, preparing meals in the kitchen, and managing the trading post.

He spent several more summers at Camp Bonaparte as its High Adventure Director and Chaplain. Will also spent many winters at Camp Fife, camping in igloos and ice caves with his troop, and appreciates how special Camp Fife is, year-round.

Will graduated from Central Washington University’s Douglas Honors College with a BA in Philosophy and holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Washington.

Professionally, he manages a strategic transformation team for T-Mobile’s Technology Procurement organization. A 19-year veteran of the telecommunications industry, Will previously managed a negotiations strategy team that contributed to more than $560M in savings & cost avoidance, led analytics projects for strategic procurement, and managed the intake and technical scoping for large-scale projects in T-Mobile’s enterprise program office.

Passionate about volunteerism, Will has given time to local food banks, building new educational opportunities through after-school enrichment programs, supporting political transparency through the Municipal League of King County, and serving as a commissioner with the City of Duvall Cultural Commission.

Will currently resides in Western Washington with his wife and two daughters.

Member at Large
Matt Craig

Craig grew up in Tieton, Washington, and earned his Eagle Scout in 2012. He worked at Camp Fife from 2012 through 2019, starting by teaching blacksmithing at Foxfire, then moving to climbing, both skills he still practices as hobbies to this day.

He earned a Bachelor’s in Physics from Whitworth University in 2020, and now works for WSDOT as a Civil Engineering Technician.

Member at Large
Christopher Wessel

Chris is an Eagle Scout who grew up in Yakima, Washington. He first attended Camp Fife in 2002 and over the years became increasingly involved with the camp, eventually spending two years as Aquatics Director.

His involvement with Scouting included attending the 2005 Jamboree and serving as Assistant Scoutmaster for many years. Though life’s turns sometimes lead away from Camp Fife, Chris always takes any opportunity to visit and carries the spirit of Scouting with him.

Chris graduated from Pacific Lutheran University with degrees in Music and Computer Science. Today, he works as a software engineer in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he lives with his wife, Mollie, and plays the tuba in the Queen City Concert Band.