6/24/2026
The Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan (CFNEM) Board of Trustees elected two new members to help lead the Foundation. Dr. Nicholas Brege and Matt Waligora, both of Alpena, began their first terms of service in June 2026. Claire Caplis, also of Alpena, joined the Board as youth trustee-elect.
Dr. Brege is Vice President for Administration and Finance at Alpena Community College and is currently serving as Board President of the AMAESD Board of Education. As a native of Northeast Michigan, he has spent most of his life in the Alpena area and enjoys the region’s beauty, outdoor activities, and genuine sense of care within the community.
“CFNEM has such a positive and visible impact in our region, along with a strong reputation for responsibly stewarding donor funds and putting them to work where they matter most,” says Brege. “I’m excited to learn more about the organization’s reach and to play a role in helping it grow and expand its impact even further.”
Matt Waligora currently owns Sunrise Side Fencing in Alpena and is well-known for serving as Mayor of Alpena for 12 years. In addition to joining the CFNEM Board, Waligora also serves as a member of the Alpena Boosters Club.
“I’ve been supportive of CFNEM for many years, and I’m looking forward to learning more about the Foundation and how I can be productive as a trustee,” says Waligora.
The Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees is comprised of community leaders from Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency, and Presque Isle Counties, including two youth members and one representative from each of CFNEM’s three geographic affiliate foundations.
“We are honored to have Nick and Matt as trustees. With deep roots in our northeast Michigan community and a wealth of leadership experience, their service in helping to lead the Foundation will be incredibly beneficial,” says CFNEM Executive Director Patrick Heraghty. “There are a lot of exciting things happening within the Community Foundation, and we are glad to have an exceptional group of community leaders helping to lead that work forward.”
Claire Caplis is a student at Alpena High School and serves on the Northeast Michigan Youth Advisory Council, a youth philanthropy and grantmaking program led by the Community Foundation. As trustee-elect, Caplis will serve a two-year term on the CFNEM Board of Trustees, providing an important youth perspective and helping ensure student voices are represented in Foundation leadership.
The Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan is a charitable organization committed to providing people who care about the future of our area with unique and effective ways of supporting their community now, and for generations to come. Led by a volunteer board of local citizens, the foundation oversees a group of permanently endowed funds from a wide range of donors. Gifts of all sizes from individuals, families, businesses, and agencies are invested in a balanced, well-managed portfolio to build endowments, enabling support for students and local community nonprofits now and forever.
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