Foundation Board / Grant Committee

Mr. Dean W. Fenske - President / Treasurer / Grants Committee

Dean works as an environmental engineer for AECOM in Stevens Point, Wisconsin.  Dean has over 27 years of experience in environmental project management and field documentation services for projects including Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments, remedial investigations, soil and groundwater remediation, asbestos assessments and abatement oversight, demolition oversight, stormwater management plans, spill prevention control and countermeasure plans, and hazardous material surveys. 

After serving in the United States Marine Corp. between 1988 and 1992, Dean received his BS degree in Civil Engineering (Environmental and Water Resources emphasis) at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee in 1995 and starting his consulting career at Drake Environmental, Inc. in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.

Jim and Dean became close friends in grade school, discovering they shared common interests in hunting, fishing, camping, and everything else outdoors.   Through high school, the military, and college, Jim and Dean remained close friends.   A working relationship started in 1992 with managing apartment buildings for Jim and his father John while going to college.  In 2002 Dean began working for Jim and his business partners as the General Manager of Chesapeake Investments in Milwaukee.  Dean was the personal administrator of Jim’s estate and began organization of the Foundation in 2005 with the help of Lew and John.

Mr. J. Lewis (“Lew”) Perlson - Secretary / Grants Committee

Lew is a Wisconsin attorney and is Of Counsel with the law firm of Michael Best & Friedrich LLP in Milwaukee.  He has been recognized in the area of trusts and estates since 2006 in The Best Lawyers in America published by Woodward/White, Inc. and distinguished as a “Wisconsin Super Lawyer” in the area of estate planning and probate by Super Lawyer Magazine.  He is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and has co-authored several publications in his field of practice.

Lew is graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Madison where he received a BBA degree from its Business School and a JD degree (cum laude) from its School of Law.

Lew’s community involvement includes being past President of Milwaukee Jewish Family Services and Congregation Sinai in Fox Point, Wisconsin.  He recently served on the Board of Trustees of the Milwaukee Public Library Foundation, Milwaukee Jewish Community Foundation and the Milwaukee Jewish Home Foundation.  He is a Board member of the Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance and serves as Chairman of its Governance Committee.  Lew is a member of the Public Issues Committee of the San Francisco Jewish Family and Children’s Service – Sonoma County Region and Treasurer of the Congregation Shir Shalom Men’s Club.

Mr. John Dutton, Jr. - Grants Committee

John L. Dutton II has taught language arts to middle school students in Prince William County for more years than he can remember. He has spent his career teaching students how to stake their claims through language. After all, words are weapons, and everyone needs to learn how to use them.

He also hosts Spilled Ink VA, an open mic night celebrating the written word every fourth Friday at Jirani Coffeehouse. John is actively involved in two writing groups, Write by the Rails (WbtR) and the Prince William Poet Laureate Circle. He is a life member of the Virginia Writers’ Club and the Poetry Society of Virginia. In 2024, John was named the Prince William County Poet Laureate. He has published four books: Armadillo Lost Her Pillow, The Argument at the Airport, Billy Pug’s Bad Day, and The Great Escape: A New Twist on an Old Tale.

And yes, for those wondering, his name really is John Dutton. He does not run a ranch, but he is far better looking and much easier to work with. For fans of the show Yellowstone, John suspects he would understand Rip Wheeler’s warning perfectly: “There’s sharks and minnows in this world. If you don’t know which you are, you ain’t a shark.”