(Panel: Public Health Responses Without a Reliable Federal Partner)

Marijke van Heeswijk

Marijke is vice president of VashonBePrepared, an all-volunteer non-profit, and leads the mass care team of the Vashon Emergency Operations Center. Marijke became deeply involved in helping organize the COVID-19 vaccination effort on Vashon Island shortly after her retirement in 2020 from a 30-year career with the U.S. Geological Survey. She continues to help organize annual respiratory vaccination clinics in collaboration with Vashon Pharmacy and local volunteer organizations, such as the Vashon Medical Reserve Corps.

Marijke’s professional career ranged from hydrologist to science administrator, with her final jobs as Deputy and Acting Regional Director overseeing USGS biology and hydrology research programs in Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Marijke earned an MS in Marine Geophysics from Oregon State University and a BS in Geology from Ohio State University.