Meet the Team

AquaJax is composed of a variety of professionals who all have a common dream to see an Aquarium brought to Jacksonville.  Meet our Team!

Sharon E.T. Piltz  – President

Occupation:  Environmental Scientist

Hometown:  Jacksonville and Lakeland, Florida

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?:  N/A

How did you get involved with AquaJax?: Before working as part of AquaJax, Kim Neumann, Ben Piltz and I were previously working on bringing an aquarium to Jacksonville. When Kim found an editorial in the paper we decided it would be far more beneficial to work with others trying to do the same thing.

Title in AquaJax (ie board member, president, etc):  President

Anything additional you wish to add:  With a degree in Marine Science and a love for the ocean, AquaJax is a good fit. Living in Florida my entire life has helped reinforce my love for the water, not just the ocean, but also the rivers, estuaries, lakes, and creeks. I would like for everyone to be able to see and learn about the creatures that live in the water around us.

Kim Neumann – Secretary and Events Coordinator

Occupation: I am a Senior Environmental Scientist at JEA, in charge of making sure the drinking water we provide to the public is safe to drink.

Hometown:  Chatsworth, CA

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?: I moved from southern California to south Florida for graduate school, and then moved to Jacksonville for work.

How did you get involved with AquaJax?: After working with Ben & Sharon Piltz for about a year on our own attempt to get an aquarium in Jacksonville, I read a Letter to the Editor written by our former president, George Harrell who was trying to do the same thing.  We decided that joining forces could strengthen our position.

Anything additional you wish to add:  As a child, I was lucky enough to visit Hanauma Bay in Hawaii and see the beautiful reefs and all the colorful fish.  Since then I have been fascinated with the ocean and its inhabitants.  I studied environmental and marine biology in college hoping to make a career out of this love.  While my work has led me in other directions, I want to bring this aquarium to Jacksonville to share the wonder of the sea with as many people as possible.

Erika Sepega – Treasurer

Occupation: 15 years as an Engineer and Project Manager for the Military focusing primarily on Marine cleanup efforts on military ranges. Currently a full-time mom with 2 little girls that have dreams of being a mermaid and a dolphin!

Hometown: Southern California

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here? After obtaining a Marine Technology degree from the College of Oceaneering in Long Beach, CA, I moved to St. Petersburg, Florida to get a Bachelor’s degree in Marine Geophysics, then came to Jacksonville University for an MBA.

How did you get involved with AquaJax?: After seeing his editorial I contacted George Harrell and started helping plan for One Spark.

Anything additional you wish to add:  My interest in the marine world started very young and I logged over 1,000 volunteer hours for different marine science organizations before I even graduated from high school!  That love and service continues to this day.  I really would like to bring an aquarium to Jacksonville for my girls and all the other kids to enjoy!

Lew Belkin

Occupation: Retired real estate developer. Current nonprofit housing consultant

Hometown:  Lawrence NY

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?: A desire to build affordable housing.

How did you get involved with AquaJax?: Read a letter to the Editor from our former president and found we had much in common

Title in AquaJax (ie board member, president, etc): Advisor

James J. Hammond III

Occupation:  Retired Firefighter/Paramedic JFRD

Hometown:  Jacksonville, Florida

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?: N/A

How did you get involved with Aquajax?: Started AquaJax after sharing ideas about downtown revitalization with former President and Chairman George Harrell

Title in Aquajax (ie board member, president, etc):  Board Member

Anything additional you wish to add:  I’m passionate about seeing downtown Jacksonville return to its former glory.

Dan Maloney

Occupation: Since 2010, I’ve served as Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens’ Deputy Director of Animal Care & Conservation. So all things animals, including animal health, daily care and even field conservation, reports into my portfolio.

Hometown:  Paramus, NJ

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?: My job at the Zoo lured me to Jacksonville from my position at the Royal Melbourne Zoo in Victoria Australia. My wife Laura and I live in Avondale and absolutely love our neighbors and friends, our home and the easy access to the terrific shops and restaurants.

How did you get involved with AquaJax?: Bringing a world-class aquarium to Jacksonville seems like a no-brainer, but I didn’t realize there were others who shared the same dream, until a mutual friend introduced me to George Harrell. Then I came to understand that there is a tribe of us true-believers!

Title in AquaJax (ie board member, president, etc.): Proud board member!

Anything additional you wish to add:  My 35-year career has given him the opportunity to work for some of the world’s top zoological institutions, including the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx and Queens Zoos, the Philadelphia Zoological Garden, the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, and Zoos Victoria’s Royal Melbourne Zoo. WCS, Audubon and Zoos Vic are multi-campus zoological institutions. Two of those three organizations also run aquariums, and I believe we can do the same here in Jacksonville!

Ben Piltz

Occupation:  Environmental Specialist with the State of Florida

Hometown:  Jacksonville, FL

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?: N/A

How did you get involved with AquaJax?: Before working as part of AquaJax, Kim Neumann, and my wife Sharon were previously working on bringing an aquarium to Jacksonville. When Kim found an editorial in the paper about another group working to achieve the same goal, we all met up and formed the founding board of AquaJax.

Title in AquaJax (ie board member, president, etc):  Board Member

Shane Tierney

Occupation:  Environmental Specialist with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Hometown:  Fort Pierce, FL

If you aren’t a native to Jax, what brought you here?: I studied at the University of Florida for my degree in Environmental Sciences and then moved to Jacksonville for work.
How did you get involved with AquaJax?: An AquaJax member I work with asked me to help out while they were preparing for their successful OneSpark campaign.  I began to do all the graphic design work for the group and have been helping out ever since.

Title in AquaJax (ie board member, president, etc):  Board Member

Anything additional you wish to add:  I’ve always been fascinated with sea life since I was a boy looking through books by Jacque Cousteau.  I’ve lived in Florida all my life and thus have never been too far from the sea.  Being interested in marine life has pushed me to understand the larger environmental challenges that the Earth is experiencing, and has lead me to become the person I am today.