About the board

While our staff handles day to day operations at the gym, the board considers feedback from our staff, discusses our performance as an organization and ways to improve it, and is responsible for setting our goals for the upcoming months and beyond. Additionally, the board is responsible for balancing our budget, allocating funds to programs and projects, and reporting our progress to the public.

Meet our board

Don Loock (chair)

Jennings Carney (secretary)

Jennings Carney grew up in Rappahannock County, Virginia climbing with his two brothers in the Shenandoah National Park. After being on the road playing music in Europe and the US in the psych-rock band Pontiak, Jennings moved back to Rappahannock in 2015 and started Pen Druid Brewing in Sperryville, VA. The brewery focuses on traditional-method lambic-inspired beers and native yeast fermentation as well as spontaneously-fermented cider. Jennings spends his time climbing Old Rag and the surrounding mountains with friends every chance he can escape from work and loves cooking dinner and traveling with his partner.

Anna Miner (treasurer)

As a native of Seattle, where visits to the Seattle Bouldering Project are a traditional millennial pastime, Anna was immediately drawn to State Climb when she moved to Culpeper from DC in 2022. She has been volunteering her accounting and budgeting skills to amplify the mission of State Climb since 2023. Anna works as a senior financial analyst and lives in Culpeper County with her husband, daughter, and cat.

Dos Allen (executive director)

Dos Allen is the founder of State Climb and was raised in nearby Madison County. He attended schools in Madison, Orange, Culpeper, and Rappahannock counties.  With a degree in Professional Music from Berklee and a decade of experience as a freelancer, it is fair to say that his journey home was roundabout and full of adventure.  He now lives in downtown Culpeper with his family, and enjoys being able to walk to the gym nearly every day.  As the ED, he happily serves as a link between the staff (usually 7-10 employees) and the board. Dos coaches State Climb's competition climbing team, and travels with them to compete with other gyms around the country.  In addition to his work at State Climb, Dos also serves on the USA Climbing DEI Board Committee, where he advocates for economic accessibility in the climbing industry.

Jennifer Mintz (member)

Jenn Mintz grew up in Boston, VA scrambling to the top of Old Rag each Thanksgiving and New Year with her family and deepened her love for climbing out west as she spent time educating and empowering youth amidst the beautiful slabs and routes in California, Colorado, and Utah. After a rewarding career in science education and communication, she returned home with her partner to continue to support humans of all ages in living well and in harmony with the natural world with the creation of In True Nature wellness sanctuary and tended lands, as a nature-based wellness practitioner and educator. In her free time, she can be found on local trails and rivers, studying as she pursues a degree in adventure-based and somatic therapies,  exploring with her partner and pups, or traveling afar to learn about people and wellbeing in other parts of the world. She's thrilled and grateful that State Climb made its home in Culpeper, VA, and is honored to be part of its board and growing community of those who find challenge, joy, and connection in climbing! 

Daniel Mintz (member)

Daniel Mintz grew up in Charleston, SC. Living in a flat area, he started climbing later in life as a mechanism for getting over a fear of heights. Mostly climbing in gyms, he has climbed in NC, CA and AK. He moved to the Shenandoah area with his partner Jennifer to start a homestead. He manages a local brewery while spending a lot of his time doing outdoor education and regenerative agriculture. He is also a musician playing several instruments, loves surfing, collecting vinyl, and spending time with his wife and fuzzy children. 

contact our board

A major component of the work we do is listening to our community and responding to need with action. Let us know about your experience with our organization so that we may better serve you, and our community!