Board of Directors

Michele Hertz, President

Michele Hertz is a lifelong environmental advocate and grassroots organizer. Michele and her husband have two sons. Michele is a sculptor and illustrator. In 2009, she became very ill. After a year and a great deal of research, she learned that it was the recently installed Con Edison and Central Hudson electronic meters causing her illness. On the advice of an electrical expert, Michele persuaded the utilities to remove the offending meters and replace them with analog meters. Almost immediately she felt better and knew something was terribly wrong with the newer electronic meters. Michele founded Stop Smart Meters NY to advocate for the removal of electronic meters and is a founding member of NYSUMA. 

Weston Blelock, Vice President

Weston Blelock is a co-founder of WoodstockArts, a publishing, producing and marketing company based in Woodstock, NY. Among other endeavors, they produce award-winning art books with Woodstock subjects and themes. Weston has also served on the board of the Woodstock Chamber of Commerce & Arts and the Woodstock Library Wi-Fi Task Force. He has been actively seeking an analog utility meter opt-out since 2013 via petitions, forums and proceedings before the NYS PSC.

Anita Gehrke, Treasurer

Anita Gehrke is a mother of two and grandmother of eight.  As a certified nursery school, kindergarten teacher and music educator, Anita has been teaching in the Hudson Valley.  Four years ago, against several written and oral requests, Central Hudson installed a smart meter on Anita's house.  Anita became sick immediately and has been fighting ever since for safe meters in the Hudson Valley and beyond.

Toby Stover, Secretary

Toby Stover has been a professional performer and teacher of ethnic dance and music for more than 30 years. She has been a health coach for 25 years. Toby’s mission is to help others achieve extraordinary health, longevity and vitality. After experiencing firsthand the ill effects of “smart” meter radiation, Toby cut the cord to the electric company and was forced to live without electricity for some time. She is determined to reverse the injustice of forced electronic meter installations and is committed to the fight for a safe analog meter choice.

Advisory Board

David Carpenter 

Dr. David O. Carpenter is a public health physician who is a Professor and former Dean at the School of Public Health at the University of Albany. His research centers on environmental causes of human disease. His interest in the health affects of electromagnetic fields dates from his administration of the New York State Powerlines Project in the 1980’s. He has testified on this issue before the US House of Representitives and the President’s Cancer Panel.

Dafna Tachover 

Dafna Tachover is an attorney in both New York and Israel, has an MBA and the founder of We Are The Evidence, an advocacy organization for the protection of the rights of people who have been injured by wireless technology radiation. She has a technical background in wireless networks and infrastructures from her service in the Israeli Defense Forces as a Telecommunication and Computers Officer and commander of the computer center of the IDF's Operations Center and of its Headquarters. In 2009, Dafna developed Microwave Sickness (Electromagnetic-Sensitivity), a condition that is caused by exposure to wireless technology radiation. Since then, she has dedicated herself to educating the public and public officials regarding the adverse health effects of wireless technology and the widespread sickness that exists from this technology and radiation. Dafna has been working on this issue at the Federal and State levels, took part in numerous public speaking engagements and has been litigating. She has been consulting in various related lawsuits, initiated and led a Supreme Court case in Israel to ban the use of Wi-Fi in schools and install wired internet networks instead—a case that led to the strictest limitations in the world on Wi-Fi in schools—and represented 94 international organizations in an amicus brief in a US case. Dafna has been one of the leading experts and advocates on this topic globally, featured and interviewed by TIME, CNN, New York Magazine and other media worldwide and in documentaries about the topic, including in the newly released award-winning movie “Generation Zapped”.

Ellen Weininger

Ellen Weininger is the Director of Educational Outreach at Grassroots Environmental Education, a science based nonprofit dedicated to educating the public about the health risks of environmental exposures.  Serving as a resource to local and state governments, school systems, health and environmental organizations and communities nationwide, Grassroots also develops and provides evidence based solution tools and programs.  Ms. Weininger works directly on various pollution reduction, environmental health, sustainability and climate policies and educational initiatives. She served on the Westchester County Global Warming Task Force and on the advisory board that oversees implementation of Westchester County's pesticide reduction law.  She currently serves on the Westchester County Climate Crisis Task Force. Ms. Weininger has worked in the field of environmental health for nearly two decades following an earlier career as a clinical audiologist at a regional medical center.