Colorado Luxury Ranch Resort | Vista Verde Ranch

Ben Martin

General Manager
Wilderness First Responder
Hometown: Terre Hill, PA

This is Ben’s 15th year at the helm of Vista Verde Ranch, where he oversees ranch operations and keeps the staff focused on the VVR ethos of servant leadership and life change. When he is not at the ranch working, as he says, “with the best folks a guy could ever ask for,” Ben enjoys time at home with his wife of 23 years, Holly. These days, they are empty nesters, with two kids off in college and two living and working in Denver. In addition to VVR, and his golden retriever Finn, Ben loves his Philadelphia sports teams, listening to and playing music, coaching track and field at Steamboat Springs High School, and playing on the North Routt softball team. Fun Fact: Ben is the youngest of 49 grandkids.

Charlie Cammer

Director of Ranch Operations
CPR Certified
Hometown: Windham, NY

Charlie has been in Colorado since he was 24 years old and gradually worked his way up to Clark. Before coming to Vista, Charlie was the manager of Round Mountain Ranch. Charlie has been a part of the VVR team since the late-90′s and quietly keeps the ranch running as the master organizer of our team. He and his wife Barb enjoy spending time with their grand kids, as well as road biking. Charlie rides a brown 1974 Motobécane and his wife rides a silver 1975 Motobécane. He also enjoys barbecues outside on the patio of their timber frame house he built looking out on Farwell Mountain.

Stephanie Wilson

Marketing Director
Hometown: Woodside, CA

Steph takes care of all things related to getting you here, and then making your experience as wonderful as possible at the ranch. A California native who came to Colorado for a summer to escape the classrooms of UC Davis with plans to stay a season or two, and has never left. She found the perfect combination of her background in the horse world along with an agricultural business degree in the dude ranch industry. As a mother of two, Steph loves to spend time with her daughters, as well as riding horses, mountain biking, practicing yoga, and skiing. Steph’s husband, Todd, is a former Olympic skier and now coaches ski jumpers in Steamboat Springs.

Bill Backer

Properties Manager
Hometown: Clark, CO

Bill has been around Vista Verde for upwards of 25 years now! In his free time, Bill enjoys fixing up old, damaged cars and is also very skilled at making furniture. Much of the furniture located in the ranch’s accommodations was created by Bill. If you want to make friends with Bill, make him a pie. His favorite is rhubarb pie, and you should see the rhubarb he grows in the ranch gardens!

Nate Margason

Safety Manager
CMC EMT Program
Hometown: Elgin, TX

Nate is officially our Safety Manager, but that is just the start of what he does at the ranch! When not fixing things or overseeing our fleet of 14 hot tubs, or guiding, or wrangling, he finds time to pursue his hobbies that include hiking, playing softball, dancing, and horseback riding. Nate really enjoys playing on Vista Verde’s intramural softball team during the summer and volleyball during the winter. For his first job, Nate was involved in restoring a 1939 Cadillac LaSalle. He is a volunteer with North Routt Fire Department as an EMT and Firefighter type 2. Finally, Nate married our own lovely Melissa in October 2016 in VVR’s Great Room!

Zach Wingo

Human Resource Manager
Wilderness First Responder, USCG Certified Captain, CPR, AED
Hometown: Annapolis, MD

Zach is a dedicated outdoorsman who has been chasing anything with a set of gills or pair of antlers since he was 2 years old. Growing up on a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, he enjoys fishing for striped bass and sailing during the summer months. In the fall, he can be found bowhunting for whitetails and sika deer. Zach is also a proud USC Gamecock and looking forward to an awesome summer at VVR! Fun Fact: Before joining us at VVR, Zach sailed 1,900 nautical miles from Annapolis, MD to the Bahamas with his father.

Devyn Cordes

Director of Hospitality and Reservations, Yoga Instructor
Hometown: Louisville, CO

This is Devyn’s 13th season at VVR! In grade school she was constantly reprimanded for too much chit chat and now she gets paid to talk to people! Devyn is a certified RYT 200 hour Baptiste Yoga instructor. She is also a Colorado native who spends her winters skiing and summers hiking and fishing. A graduate of Boston Conservatory, Devyn is a singer and loves to sing the Star Spangled Banner.

Shannon Neff

Activities Coordinator
CPR & First Aid Certified
Hometown: Fort Collins, CO

We are so excited to welcome Shannon back for her third season here at Vista Verde! Shannon graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in Natural Resource Tourism and she is so happy to call the ranch home. She loves to travel and is passionate about music. She can frequently be found drinking coffee and petting dogs. Last winter Shannon fell in love with down hill skiing. This summer you will find her enjoying the sunshine, reading, hiking, and camping!

Katie Grosso

Reservations
Hometown: Whiting, NJ

Katie has a bachelor’s degree in Women and Gender Studies from Rutgers University. She is also a certified Mind Body Eating Coach through the Institute for the Psychology of Eating. When she’s not serving in the dining room, you’ll likely find her out in the sun reading, working on a screenplay or poem, or pondering life’s deep questions. When she grows up, she either wants to be a philosopher queen or Marion Cotillard.

Holly Martin

Store Manager
Hometown: Colorado Springs, CO

Holly grew up in Colorado Springs, CO, and attended Colorado State University where she obtained a degree in social sciences and criminal justice. She went on to receive her law degree from the University of Arizona. After focusing on the kids for the past few years, Holly is enjoying working alongside her husband, Ben, at the ranch. They have four children: Amanda, Chelsea, Annie, and Jack, and a son-in-law, David, as well as two dogs, Finn and Hazel. Holly’s favorite thing is when all the kids are back home.

Phil Brinkley

Financial Controller
Hometown: Fort Worth, TX

Phil spent 30 years in the corporate world as an electrical engineer before joining VVR this year as our Financial Controller. He loves to tell about how something he designed is on Mars… deeply embedded in Mars because it crashed there. It’s not all that reassuring to know that our finances are in the hands of a failed “rocket scientist”, but we’re happy to have him on the team anyway. Phil is married to Sara Brinkley, our massage therapist, and the two of them live very cozily with their dog near Sand Mountain in a small homesteader’s cabin that they restored. They have two kids who are now married and living abroad in Spain and Australia.

Reservations
Hometown:

Ranch Hands

Patrick Davis

Ranch Hand Crew Leader
CPR
Hometown: Eureka, KS

This winter marks Patrick’s 5th season at VVR. When not helping with the many behind-the-scenes tasks the ranch hands do to keep things running smoothly, you can find him skiing or hiking. In the off season, Patrick works as a hunting guide in Montana for big game–yes, including bears and mountain lions! Patrick’s love of the outdoors inspired him to study wildlife and outdoor enterprise management at KSU. Fun Fact: Patrick lived in Germany for four years!

Maggie Berlin

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Charleston, SC

Maggie joins the VVR crew for her first summer on the ranch after completing her degree at the College of Charleston. A dedicated student, Maggie triple-majored in Historic Preservation, History, and Archaeology. She is also an accomplished athlete, and was a Division 1 goalkeeper. Fun Fact: Maggie loves collecting antiques.

Heyward Harrison

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Louisville, KY

Heyward, a graduate of UNC Chapel Hill, is joining us for his first season at the ranch. Before coming to the ranch, and before the pandemic, Heyward was working in Australia as a swim instructor. He enjoyed living abroad, and hopes to do so again as the world starts to open back up. Heyward is interested in media of all kinds, and in his spare time you can find him reading fiction and philosophy.

Jacob Huffman

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Weatherford, TX

Jacob is a recent graduate of Texas A&M University. Although this is his first season at Vista Verde, he is familiar with ranch work. When not greeting guests at the airport or working on one of the many projects the ranch hands have, you can find Jacob spending time outdoors. He also enjoys fishing and dancing.

Noah Jones

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Wheaton, IL

Noah just completed his sophomore year at Wheaton College, where he is majoring in business and economics. Noah also plays on Wheaton’s football team, so when he is not ranch handing, you can find him running or training. Fun Fact: Noah has seven other siblings in his family.

Jack Martin

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Clark, CO

Jack returns to VVR for his second summer season. After completing his freshman year at CU Boulder, Jack took a Covid gap year. In the fall, he will be transferring to Elon University to study Finance and Sport Management. He loves all things sports and is excited to be back for another summer! Be sure to wave when you see him riding the Scag, mowing the lawns.

Jack Smith

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Chatsworth, CA

Jack is back for his second season at the ranch. He holds a degree in global studies and professional writing at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Jack loves participating in any and all outdoor sports activities, including snowboarding in the winter, and camping and hiking in the summer. After this season, he is looking forward to starting a career in the non-profit sector.

Clint Walker

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Thibodaux, LA

Clint grew up running through the bayous and marshlands of South Louisiana enjoying all that that its sportsman’s paradise has to offer. His passion for building and architecture led him to graduate from LSU with a degree in Construction Management. Clint’s construction career has taken him many places but the mountains of Colorado captured his love for adventure. Clint is looking forward to exploring all that Steamboat and Clark have to offer this summer.

Giovanni Weeks

Ranch Hand
Hometown: Kent City, MI

This summer is Gio’s first season at Vista Verde. Next fall, he’ll be a junior at Wheaton College, where he is a running back on the football team, in addition to pursuing his studies in business and economics. Fun Fact: Gio is the 2019 Michigan 200 Meter Dash State Champion.