Heather Purvin, President
Heather is a PA native who got into fly fishing in 2017 to spend more time with her brother and young nephew. She joined DVWFFA after meeting members at the Lancaster (PA) Fly Fishing Show and after serving several years on the board, she has stepped into the role of club president. She enjoys the challenge of matching hatches on the spring-fed Central PA creeks and the highly technical West Branch of the Upper Delaware River where she caught her very first wild trout on the fly. Heather has led fly tying sessions for women throughout North America (virtually and in person), ties commercial and custom fly orders and donates over 500 flies per year to youth, veteran and charity events. She teaches women’s FF101 and STREAM Girls programming, serves on the PA Trout Unlimited Women-Diversity-Inclusion Committee and is a Fishing Skills Instructor for the PA Fish and Boat Commission. Heather lives in Northeast Philadelphia where she has a daily view of the tidal Delaware River and works as a healthcare professional in the field of organ and tissue donation. She also enjoys blues music, bourbon, cigars and camping. Heather has come to understand that having one rod and reel is NEVER enough and has acquired enough fly tying materials to open her own Michael’s location. She’s also developed a profound aversion to dirty hands in fly tying videos.
Beth Miller, Vice President
Beth has been an angler (spinning gear) for about 20 years alongside her partner and is a relative newcomer to fly fishing. She and a friend signed up for a Women’s Learn-to-Fly-Fish weekend in Colorado a few years ago, and she has been hooked on fly fishing ever since. Beth spent her career as a scientist and when not in the laboratory she was an avid freestyle ice skater who could be found practicing in an ice rink at 5am many mornings. Now retired from the lab and the ice, her hobbies include hiking, fussing with her sewing machines in Winter and, as soon as Spring thaws arrive, she can be found heading out to streams in a pair of waders and
bearing a fly rod. Previous volunteer responsibilities include board member Laboratory Robotics Interest Group (NJ/PA), PSU Extension Montgomery County Master Food Preserver (workshop educator), Meals On Wheels, Angel Flight East, Special Olympics (Elkins Park skating rink).
Sharon Zamos, Treasurer/Membership
Ariele Baggett, Secretary
Ariele began her fly-fishing journey 7 years ago upon moving to Philadelphia and meeting Alysson. She finds fly fishing to be a beautiful and calming sport and says her favorite part about it is just being in nature (she has been known to wander off in order to absorb the surroundings). When not on the water, Ariele spends the majority of her time working towards a doctorate in Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University. Ariele holds a B.S. from The Pennsylvania State University and an M.S. from Temple University.
Alysson Cwyk, Events Coordinator and e-Newsletter Editor
Alysson was first introduced to fly fishing as a young child by her father and has been actively participating in the sport for over 25 years. She served as DVWFFA’s President from 2017-2022. When not fly fishing, Alysson enjoys CrossFit, cooking, gardening, and traveling with her wife and their Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, Gouda. She resides in the Port Richmond neighborhood of Philadelphia and serves as the Chief of Staff at Moore College of Art & Design. Alysson holds both a BS and MS from Drexel University.
Carol Bigham, Member At Large
Carol has been spincasting most of her life. She took up fly fishing in 2018 after attending an Orvis 101 class and never looked back on this wonderfully challenging, rewarding and fun sport! She fishes local streams in Bucks and Montgomery Counties in PA, and travels as often as she can to cold water streams in Central PA. Carol especially enjoys sharing her love of fishing and the outdoors by taking kids (and often their parents) to local creeks hoping to get them hooked. She retired in June 2024 and is looking forward to more time on the water and teaching kids of all ages to fish. Carol also serves as the DVWFFA webmaster.
Laura Colangelo, Member At Large
Laura was introduced to fly fishing in 2021 and quickly fell in love with the peace, challenge and frustration that comes with it. While she enjoys fishing for other species, Laura is a trout bum and always searching out cold water even on the hottest days of the summer. She considers herself very lucky to have fallen into strong mentors from day one and knows how much it can alter fly fishing into something that can make an enormous impact on someone’s life. Laura lives in the Catskills along the West Branch of the Delaware and works at Dette Flies. Outside of work you can usually find her fishing the hallowed waters of the Neversink, Beaverkill and Willlowemoc or tying up some patterns at her tying desk. (Classic patterns are her favorite!)
Phyllis Ehrlich, Member At Large
As a new “at large” board member, I would like to tell you a little bit about me. I took up fly fishing 3 years ago although I bought my first “outfit” Literally the weekend before the world closed down due to Covid. So my new equipment sat in my basement for a little over a year. I took a few casting lessons, tried fishing, joined the DVWFFA and took the Fly Fishing 101 class at Orvis. I was fortunate enough to go to Tennessee last summer and to Sedona, AZ to fish. They were both wonderful trips. I am a retired Occupational Therapist who worked for 46 years, 35 of which were in home care and am happy to join the Board of DVWFFA to help out and help shape this organization.
Shauna Holden, Member At Large
I was introduced to the world of fly fishing when I was six by my grandmother. I became a great angler, but the fly fishing did not stick. Fast-forward to 1995 where I decided to pick up Fly Fishing again but put down the road after a horrible incident involving being stalked by a stranger. I didn’t come back to it until 2000. My sister and I took a Women’s 101 program at Orvis Plymouth Meeting where we met members of DVWFFA and quickly joined the group and now I help with those 101 programs. One of my great loves is tying flies with the veterans with Project Healing Waters at the Coatesville VA Hospital. I’m also a Fishing Skills Instructor for the PA Fish and Boat Commission and working on becoming a casting instructor for FFI. I currently reside in Morgantown, PA and work as a CNA and for ARC of Chester County with individuals with special needs. When I’m not on the water, I enjoy traveling in my camper Stella and playing in the SCA. My many haunts are the Tulpehocken, Hay Creek, and many of the Central Pa creeks usually with my fishing buddy Shane. I also make two Erie Steelhead trips a year and I’m always looking for ladies to fish with!
Alice Miller, Member At Large
Residing in Delaware, Alice Miller has been a member of the club for a handful of years now. Not only does she have a beautiful cast, she’s also an accomplished fly tyer, having led some of our fly tying sessions over the past few years. Speaking of accomplishments, she’s a retired LPGA pro golfer who works as a golf Official, Teaching Professional and a PGA/USGA Rules of Golf instructor. Rumor has it she still holds the LPGA record for the fastest round of tournament golf, clocking 18 holes in ONE HOUR AND 26 MINUTES!
Harri Wilson, Member At Large
