Management Team

Erin McMahon was appointed Director of the Oregon Department of Emergency Management in August 2023. The Oregon Senate will take up her confirmation as permanent director in September 2023.

She came to the agency as a retired U.S. Army brigadier general, attorney and combat veteran with 24 years of experience advising state and national leaders on emergent and active emergencies requiring operational and civilian support. As the first female Army National Guard general officer in the Office of the General Counsel, she empowered a new generation of leaders to challenge cultural norms and work together to innovate and develop into high-performing teams. In her role as Principal Deputy General Counsel for the National Guard Bureau, McMahon guided the bureau chief through domestic disasters including hurricanes, wildfires, flooding, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Capital Insurrection. She advised federal leaders on the 2021 Oregon wildfires when more than 1,000 fires burned at least 518,303 acres across the state. In that same role, McMahon also spearheaded several groundbreaking programs for the Department of Defense to combat sexual assault. Her efforts were vital to increasing reporting and investigation options, ensuring a more timely and effective response, and providing recovery resources for victims of sexual assault in the military. Most recently, McMahon served as a Senior Advisor at The McChrystal Group in Virginia where she provided executive leader training, coaching, and mentorship to assist organizational leaders in developing teams, building trust and improving employee relations.

Patence Winningham joined the agency as permanent deputy director in September 2023. She previously served as Lane County Emergency Manager since 2019 after having worked with the City of Eugene as an emergency management specialist for more than a decade. She’s a capable and experienced leader, communicator, problem-solver and collaborator who has earned the respect of other emergency managers statewide. She’s also a tireless activist for disaster preparedness, hazard mitigation and other initiatives to reduce risk across the state. Patence has extensive experience in disaster preparedness, including leading Lane County’s response and communication with the State Emergency Coordination Center during a 2019 historic winter storm, followed by another federal disaster declaration due to flooding in April 2019. When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in early 2020, she worked with the county to engage FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers to establish a 42-bed COVID recovery center designed to care for some of the most vulnerable people in the county. She went on to lead Lane County’s response to the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire, which placed both her family and her home in danger. She has additionally supported the response to the 2022 Cedar Creek Fire and emergency planning efforts for multiple Olympic Trials and the World Athletics Championship.

Matt Garrett came to OEM with an incredibly distinguished career with the state, including 13 years as director of the Oregon Department of Transportation, where he managed an agency of about 4,700 people and a biennial budget of $4.2 billion. His agency achievements under his leadership include receiving the largest funding package ever for transportation in Oregon (Keep Oregon Moving in 2017) and implementing the nation’s first operational per-mile road use charge. Garrett, who retired from ODOT in 2019, was appointed in 2020 by then-Governor Kate Brown as the Wildfire Recovery Director, serving as principal advisor to the governor on recovery issues related to the 2020 wildfire season and directing all work related to Oregon’s recovery from the 2020 Labor Day Wildfires. He served in this role through June 2021. In the summer of 2022, Garrett once again assisted the Governor, coordinating state support for the World Athletic Championships in Eugene. He was appointed Interim Director of the Oregon Department of Emergency Management in January 2023. OEM is pleased to have him leading the department’s efforts until the permanent director is confirmed.

Travis rotated into OEM in September 2023 to provide temporary executive leadership through Nov. 15, 2023. Travis served with the Oregon State Police for more than 30 years, spending the bulk of his career in a field command role managing the agency’s collaborative public safety response to natural and man-made emergencies. Travis retired as the OSP agency head in the fall of 2020 and currently is employed at the Department of Administrative Services, where he leads the agency’s statewide workplace investigation and accountability efforts.

Michelle Lovejoy has served as the Chief Financial Officer for the Oregon Department of Emergency Management since September 2022. For more than 14 years, Michelle has provided internal auditing, policy analyses and budget development across nine diverse state government entities, giving her experience in both the legislative and executive branches. Michelle utilizes her legislative, risk management, and financial background to lead the department's finance and budget operations. 

Shawna is the Interagency Strategic Recovery Program Manager for the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM). This program oversees Oregon's enterprise recovery operations, individual assistance programs and Emergency Support Function 16 - Volunteers and Donations. She is also the acting Voluntary Agency Liaison (VAL) for Oregon and manages the Mitigation and Recovery Regional Coordinators. Shawna began working at OEM in September 2020 as a Public Assistance - Program Delivery Manager (PDMG) but was reassigned to recovery operations in response to the 2020 Labor Day Wildfires. Her involvement started as recovery operations support and then quickly elevated to State Disaster Recovery Coordinator (SDRC), which oversaw joint field recovery operations, provided local jurisdiction support, and led the Interagency Strategic Recovery Team (ISRT), which includes all state and federal assets assigned to wildfire recovery operations. Shawna is also part of the OEM leadership team responsible for the activation and coordination of the Oregon Disaster Recovery Plan which includes Oregon's seven State Recovery Functions (SRF).

State 9-1-1 Program Section Manager Frank Kuchta manages the team of professionals at the Oregon Department of Emergency Management who are tasked with administering the statewide 9-1-1 program. This includes distribution of 9-1-1 revenue to local jurisdictions, oversight of the emergency communications network and support services required to deliver 2 million 9-1-1 emergency calls for assistance made within Oregon each year. Frank came to OEM in 2015 as project portfolio manager for the 9-1-1 program. In this role, Frank made significant contributions to the 9-1-1 program including the replacement and modernization of statewide 9-1-1 network services connecting all 43 Oregon Public Safety Answering Points, and the development of a multi-phased Next Generation 9-1-1 tactical plan. Frank has held several State of Oregon leadership positions, most recently for the Office of the State Chief Information Officer, Enterprise Technology Services, where he oversaw a team of senior project managers responsible for implementing a portfolio of statewide technology initiatives.

Amanda Mathis manages the Regional Mitigation and Recovery Program and a team of five Regional Coordinators who serve throughout the state to assist with mitigation and recovery needs. This includes providing technical assistance, training, exercise and disaster assistance as requested. Before transitioning into her current role, Amanda joined OEM as the State Exercise Officer working on the State Exercise Plan.

Prior to working for OEM, her work included military, higher education and state government. She served six years in the Oregon Air National Guard in Security Forces, graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and Communication in 2017 and spent time working on public transit grants for the Oregon Department of Transportation.  

Alaina Mayfield was named OEM Preparedness Section Manager in March 2022, a position created as part of the agency's expansion and transition to the Oregon Department of Emergency Management. In this role, Alaina oversees several staff and supervises preparedness planning and community programs, training and exercises, and preparedness grants including EMPG, HSGP and SPIRE. While her experience in Oregon emergency management has prepared her well for this role, it's her passion for helping Oregonians and their communities that makes her such an asset to the agency. 

Alaina previously served as the Regional Response and Preparedness Manager, managing a team of five regional coordinators, while acting as coordinator for the Willamette Valley region. Prior to that, she was OEM's Emergency Preparedness Planner responsible for the Threat Hazard Identification Risk Assessment and Stakeholder Preparedness Review (THIRA/SPR), the State National Incident Management System contact, and Emergency Support Function 5 covering Information and Planning. Alaina has served as Planning Section Chief for some of the state's most devastating and complicated disasters, including the 2020 Labor Day wildfires and COVID-19. She started her career at OEM in 2015 as an Emergency Preparedness Specialist working in public information.

Alaina graduated magna cum laude from Western Oregon University with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice in 2012. She completed her Master of Science in Emergency Management from the University of New Haven in 2018.

Traci Naile joined OEM in March 2020 as the Operations and Preparedness Section Manager. She previously worked as a regional coordinator for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, regional planner for the Oklahoma State Department of Health, and public assistance program delivery manager for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Traci served in regional volunteer leadership roles and as the Oklahoma State EOC liaison for the American Red Cross, and as a steering committee member for the Payne County (Oklahoma) Animal Response Team. She has served in liaison, operations, planning, logistics and external affairs roles during several federally declared disasters.

Traci's prior career included working in public relations and higher education. She earned a bachelor's degree in animal science from Purdue University. She also earned master's degrees in animal science and agricultural communications, and a doctoral degree in agricultural education, from Oklahoma State University.  

Stephen Richardson is the Hazard Mitigation and Individual Assistance Section Manager, overseeing hazard mitigation and individual assistance programs with the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM). Hazard mitigation planning reduces loss of life and property by minimizing the impact of disasters. The Individual Assistance Program provides funding to individuals and households affected by disasters in an effort to facilitate successful recovery.

Stephen Richardson came to OEM in 2020, during the wildfire and COVID-19 incidents supporting the areas of business and industry. Stephen previously worked as a Compliance Specialist with Business Oregon's Certification Office for Business Inclusion and Diversity.  He worked to ensure the integrity of the program, created “Train the Trainer" events hosted throughout Oregon, conducted outreach for education, and advocated for Oregon's small businesses.

While in his role as business and industry support through Business Oregon during the COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 Labor Day fires in Oregon, Stephen played a key role in sourcing and distribution of hand sanitizer by organizing and collaborating with Oregon distilleries and private businesses manufacturing hand sanitizer for the state despite the national shortage.  Stephen also worked with businesses to re-tool and provide Personal Protective Equipment.

Stephen's prior career included working in the criminal justice field for over 15 years as a corrections deputy, police officer, canine handler/trainer, and community relations officer. 

Stephen is a graduate of Grand Canyon University with a Bachelor of Science. In his off time, Stephen is a mentor to men coming out of addiction, involved in his son's Boy Scout Troop, and enjoys dog training. 

Julie Slevin serves as the State Public Assistance Officer at the Oregon Department of Emergency Management. Her responsibility as the State Public Assistance Officer includes management and administration of FEMA's Public Assistance program.  Julie has served as the State Public Assistance Officer for 19 Presidential Declarations. Julie received a Bachelor of Science Degree from Oregon State University in Construction Engineering Management and has worked at the Oregon Department of Emergency Management since 2000.