Pepper Tree Park
Board Members

The Pepper Tree Park Board of Directors consists of seven members elected to rotating three year terms. The current board members are:

 Lyle Squires, President - Term expires 2020 - Lyle grew up in Abilene, Kansas where he attended public schools. He’s had several jobs as a UPS driver, FedEx for 20 years as a manager and Executive Management Services for 15 years as an area manager. He is currently semi-retired and owns Office Pride Janitorial.

Lyle and his wife Sara have been married for 47 years, have 4 grown children and 3 grandchildren. They have been residents of Pepper Tree for 12 years. He is currently serving his second term on the Pepper Tree Board.

“My goal as a board member is to make sure that Pepper Tree continues to be a very desirable place to live while keeping our H.O.A. dues at the current level.” “I also want to make sure that the board is accessible, transparent and spends every H.O.A. dollar wisely.” “While it’s been a joy to serve on the board, I do not desire to serve multiple terms, I think that there are a lot of qualified residents who should have the  opportunity to serve.”

Jodi Tritsch, Vice-President, Term expires 2022
 
I grew up in Topeka after moving here with my family in 1969.  I have two lovely daughters, Maddie and Morgan, and one son-in-law, Cody, plus my current fur-baby, Beckham that some of you may have seen me walking with.  I enjoy a variety of pastimes and activities, that include home renovation, reading, sewing, crocheting and jigsaw puzzles, to name a few.
 
I retired in 2016 after spending the majority of my career working for the State of Kansas and for several agencies.  I spent the last 26 years with the Department of Administration where I worked on their Employee HR and Payroll system and retired as the Deputy Director of the Office of Systems Management where I oversaw the IT staff for the HR/Payroll and Accounting Management Systems.
 
I moved to Pepper Tree in June of 2017 and am thrilled to be here.  I decided to volunteer for the board as I believe it is important to be involved with your neighbors and neighborhood.  I’m dedicated to holding our property values up by keeping Pepper Tree Park a desirable place to live. 

Brenda Jarboe, Secretary - Term expires 2021 - I have enjoyed living in Pepper Tree Park since October of 2013.  I was retired when I moved in but took a job with K-State Research and Extension in February 2016. I serve as the coordinator for all community gardens in Shawnee County, as well as a SNAP-Ed Nutrition Educator, teaching nutrition, resource management, food safety, and healthy habits to low-income individuals.  I also serve as president of the Board of Directors of Topeka Common Ground, a non-profit, community garden support organization. I share my home with mother, Doris Ottman -- she has an apartment in the basement, and I maintain the two upper floors.  We share our Brussels Griffon, Toby.

I moved to Topeka at the age of seven and graduated from Topeka West and Washburn University. I have served on the  PTP HOA Board since 2015,  two years as vice-president and currently as Secretary since 2018. I have learned so much and have appreciated being able to serve the neighborhood.  I find my experience as a former REALTOR for 25 years and previous experience serving on HOAs helps guide me in the decisions I make when voting for the good of the entire neighborhood, instead of special interests.  

I have three married daughters -- one, Nicole Jarboe-Paxson, also lives in Pepper Tree Park. I have four grandchildren: one granddaughter and twin grandsons in Delia, KS. and a grandson in Alexandria, VA.

Jerry Anders, Treasurer - Term expires 2020 -  I was raised and lived north of Topeka almost all of my life.  My Seaman High School sweetheart Paula and I were married shortly after graduation, and soon after that, we each began our working careers at  Hallmark Cards, Inc.

After we retired and each of our three sons was grown , we decided it was time to downsize.  After looking around town and the surrounding area, we were lucky enough to find a residence in Pepper Tree Park that met our needs, and we moved here in the fall of 2014.

Serving on the board has given me the opportunity to have an active participation in the operation and governance of Pepper Tree Park, and to help to maintain the continued viability of Pepper Tree as a desirable community.

Jerry Behrends, Director - Term expires 2022 -  Jerry Behrends was born in 1941 in Hasting, Nebraska, and grew up in Trumbull, Nebraska, population 170.  He graduated from Trumbull High School and attended Kearney State.
   
He then moved to Lincoln where he was employed by Sears, and later was co-owner of a construction company which built a number of houses.  While in Lincoln, his three children (Jeff, Stephanie, and Steve) were born.

About fifteen years later, Jerry and his family moved to Grant, Nebraska, so that he could help his brother-in-law operate a plumbing and excavating business.  Ten years later he took a position as head of maintenance for the Perkins County Schools.  Later he started his own construction company.  During his years in Grant, Jerry served on the City Council for seven years, and also served on the volunteer fire department for fourteen years.

In 1997, Jerry moved to Abilene, Kansas, where he continued to work construction.  In 2000, Jerry moved to Topeka, and that same year he married Carol Stephens.  Since then, Jerry has operated his own handyman business.  In addition, Jerry takes care of the maintenance for two commercial buildings.

Jerry has six grandchildren and nine step grandchildren.

Jerry and Carol moved to Pepper Tree in October, 2017.

bel Morrell, Director - Term expires 2021- Noble grew up in Winfield, Kansas and received a bachelor’s degree from Wichita State University in 1963.  Noble completed a variety of courses from Rockburst College, Central Missouri State University, and the University of Kansas.  Before retiring from the Kansas Department of Transportation in 2005, he taught school in Birmingham, Alabama, held a variety of positions in New York City, worked for the Missouri Division of Employment Security, and the US Department of Labor.  He moved to Topeka in 1980 when he took a position with the Kansas Department of Human  Resources.  

Noble moved to Pepper Tree Park in 2008 after marrying his wife Jan Keeler who is a retired minister.  Shortly after moving to Pepper Tree he started maintaining our swimming pool and was elected to the Board of Directors in 2015.  Among his interests in the park are to help see that the infrastructure is well maintained with available resources and that we have community of friends who look after the interests of one another.  

He and Jan share six grandchildren who live in Kansas and they enjoy volunteering at Pepper Tree and First Christian Church.  They continue to make progress with their travel bucket list. 

Connie Wood, Director - Term expires 2022 - I was raised in the small but active town of Lindsborg, Kansas.  I attended Bethany College for 2 years and then continued my education at Trinity Lutheran Hospital in Kansas City and became a registered nurse.  I have worked and lived in small cities as Lindsborg and large cities and hospitals in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Kansas City, Missouri.  I moved to Topeka with my family many years ago...raised 3 children here and now have 10 wonderful grand children. I became an active member of the Topeka community by becoming involved with activities at Westminister Presbyterian Church, Topeka Symphony and other organizations. I continued with my career after my children began to grow up.  I became a member of the first hospice team in Topeka and then moved to Stormont Vail Health Care eight years later to start a program for older adults, "HealthWise 55".

I became a widow too many years ago but continued my life with children, friends and career.  Sixteen years ago I was looking to make a move from taking complete care of my property and began my search.  I moved to Pepper Tree because of friends who lived here, the pool and the relaxing surroundings.  I have made many new friends since my move. 

As a member of the Pepper Tree Board of Directors I want to continue my experience of our community as a great place to live, enjoy friends and neighbors and maintain the beauty of Pepper Tree Park.

For a roster of PTP board members from 2004 to present click here.