About Our
Neighbors’ Place

Shelly began at Our Neighbors’ Place in  April 2016 serving in the role of Program Coordinator.  In this role, Shelly successfully managed all programs including highly successful fundraising and community awareness building events.  When there was a vacancy in the Executive Director role, the ONP Board of Directors voted unanimously to name Shelly Smith the Executive Director.  Since assuming this role in May of 2018, Shelly has provided leadership in all aspects of Our Neighbors’ Place including highly successful grant writing work and beginning ONP’s first ever corporate giving campaign.  Shelly is passionate about both educating the community and providing assistance to anyone who is struggling.

Sara has been with Our Neighbors’ Place since February 2016. She works directly with guests needing help finding affordable, sustainable housing.  Her expertise and creative problem-solving are a valuable resource at Our Neighbors’ Place.

Sue is the first impression for guests as they arrive at the day center and directs them to the services we offer. She plans our events and applies her organizational skills to ongoing fundraising efforts.

Tanya Franta is a River Falls native, where she lives with her young family. She has been volunteering with ONP since 2014 and is our current board President.

 She has worked professionally as a nurse at the River Falls area hospital since 2013.

When not working or volunteering she invests her time in friends, gardening, house remodeling projects, and running her family farm and store. 

Brian Manion has been a part of Our Neighbors’ Place Board since 2017 and currently serves as Vice Chair. Brian lives and works in River Falls where he has been with WESTconsin Credit Union for over 15 years and currently oversees the River Falls & Prescott Offices as Vice President. Brian chooses to assist Our Neighbors’ Place because helping those who may need some extra assistance is what everyone should strive to do and that’s exactly what Our Neighbors’ Place does. In down time, enjoying any adventure with his family is what he appreciates the most. 

Jeff joined the Our Neighbors’ Place Board in 2026 and currently serves as Treasurer.

Jeff lives in River Falls and is the CFO at River Falls State Bank.  Jeff joined the Board because he believes strongly in ONP’s mission & vision and feels fortunate to be able to contribute to the positive impact the organization has on the community.

In his free time he enjoys spending time with family and friends, running, golfing, hiking, all things Iowa State, and most importantly, supporting his three kids in their various activities.

Amy joined the ONP Board fall 2023. She is delighted to serve an accomplished organization that provides such vital services to our community. In addition to ONP, she has been a member of the River Falls Rotary since 2021 and recently became a founding member of the St. Croix Valley Optimists Association.

As the community development director for the City of River Falls, she helps lead the city through economic development, engineering, comprehensive city planning and building inspections and services.

Amy lives in River Falls and enjoys gardening, biking, yoga, reading, forever learning and birdwatching.

Adam Axvig joined the Our Neighbor’s Place board in 2023.

Adam has been involved in public policy in Minnesota for nearly 20 years and currently serves as President and CEO of the Minnesota Association of Farm Mutual Insurance Companies, a trade association that supports farm mutual insurance companies across the state of Minnesota.

Adam lives in River Falls with his wife Amanda and daughter Molly. When he’s not working, he enjoys fishing, hunting, hiking, traveling, and spending time with his family.

Meet real estate expert, Jill McNamee, owner and founder of the McNamee Real Estate Team. With over 16 years serving homeowners, buyers, families, and business owners on both sides of the Minnesota, Wisconsin border you can say she’s successful through her dedication and passion for the people she works with and the properties she sells. 

Year in and year out, her commitment to excellence never waivers not only consistently earning her and her team a spot on the Top Selling Real Estate Teams in St. Croix County list but also professional advancements as both the Productivity Coach and Operating Principal of Keller Williams Realty Integrity WI/MN, Hudson. Her reputation amongst her peers and community members has earned her the title of trusted advisor and one of the most competent experts in her field. 

Her reputation is nothing less than a female changemaker and business leader for all. Jill’s passion to connect, educate, and empower other small business owners led her to create St. Croix Valley Girls – a 600 member strong networking group in 2009. Each month attendees come to share, support, and learn from one another with professional presentations and best practices. Her commitment to her community is one of passion; lifting up others, while demonstrating the best example of what the word neighbor really means. 

Jill’s excellent customer experience and special touch treatment along with her many collaborations throughout the city, fundraising events for local non-profits, and overall love for her hometown shines through, making the McNamee Real Estate Team the only team when it comes to all things real estate. 

J.W. Matheson joined the Our Neighbor’s Place board in 2024. 

J.W. has been a physical therapist for 28 years and is currently a Senior Manager at Twin Cities Orthopedics Hudson Therapy.  J.W. is a past president of the River Fall Rotary Club and a former Hudson Y Community Board member.  He is excited to support ONP’s efforts to help the community. 

J.W. lives in River Falls with his wife Brittney, daughter Morgan, and rescued dogs Martha and Sanders. Their son Ben lives in Bozeman, MT, where the whole family loves to spend time hiking, mountain biking, skiing, and fly fishing. 

Paul served as an Our Neighbors’ Place Board member from 2017-2023 and is thrilled to be returning to the organization as a Board member in 2025.  

Paul serves as the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management for the Minnesota State system of colleges and universities headquartered in Saint Paul, MN.  In addition to his role at Minnesota State, Paul has served as an adjunct faculty member in graduate programs at the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse, University of Wisconsin – River Falls, and St. Cloud State University teaching higher education administration, student success, and leadership. 

Paul is passionate about the mission of Our Neighbors’ Place and working collaboratively to maximize the positive impact the organization makes throughout the St. Croix Valley region.

Marissa joined the ONP board in January 2025. She lives in River Falls with her husband and two sons. Marissa is Hudson native and is passionate about supporting her community and the vital resources ONP provides.

She currently works as the Director of Client Strategy at Digital Health Strategies, partnering with health systems nationwide on annual and major-gift fundraising. Previously, she worked across the nonprofit sector on direct-response campaigns and held annual and major giving roles at Mayo Clinic and Regions Hospital. Marissa studied Community and Nonprofit Leadership at UW–Madison and is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE).

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, tending to her cut-flower garden, reading, and caring for her dogs and aquarium.

Laurie Harmon joined the board in October 2025. She is looking forward to serving the people in her community in new and exciting ways.

As a recently retired English teacher and a working substitute for both the River Falls and Hudson school districts, she sees first hand the needs of many folks in the area and is honored to be able to devote her time to ONP and its mission to support local families and individuals. As a teacher, she was privileged to lead students in volunteering with the MACV (Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans) Stand Down event three years in a row, which provided homeless veterans much needed services, food, clothing, and housing support and gave students powerful, hands-on service experience.

Laurie enjoys spending time with her husband, son, daughter, two grandsons and two tortie-point Siamese cats. She’s an avid reader and writer, having just joined the Willow River Writers’ Group, and in her free time loves to bike, swim, and explore the area in her UTV.

Maddy grew up in Hudson, WI and has since settled in River Falls with her husband surrounded by her large extended family. In 2026, she joined the board of Our Neighbors’ Place, eager to give back to the community she grew up in.

Maddy currently works as the Head of Client Experience for Trailhead Planners, a wealth management firm. Previously, she spent 10 years working in social services, an experience that shaped how she thinks about community support and continues to inform her work Our Neighbors Place. She studied psychology at Winona State University. 

In her free time, Maddy enjoys hiking, reading, cooking and baking, listening to a good podcast, spending time with family and friends, and traveling.

Kris Thompson joined Our Neighbor’s Place board in 2026.  Kris has been in education for the past 10 years teaching Business at Chippewa Valley Technical College, and now currently teaching at River Falls High School.  Prior to being in education Kris worked at a tech company, CDK Global, in training and implementation.