Kaleb Michaud, Chief Executive Officer

Favorite games: Agricola, Race for the Galaxy, Eclipse, Betrayal at House on the Hill, and Catan: Cities & Knights

Kaleb is passionate about his board game hobby. With a collection of over 2,200 games, he has always wanted to share his hobby with others and hence came Spielbound. Kaleb wanted to have a convenient location where people could find and play these hard-to-find games (like a public library), and similar to a library, it would be a new type of community center, bringing all peoples together for the enjoyment of play. By day, Kaleb is an assistant professor of medicine, epidemiologist of rheumatology, leads a non-profit arthritis research company, and holds degrees in physics and astronomy.

Scott O'Dell, Chief Operating Officer

Favorite games: Werewolfe, Eclipse, Agricola, and Zombicide

Scott O'Dell also owns and operates Game Vault on 63rd and Center which buys and sells new and used video games. He loves interacting with customers at the point of sale and helping expose people to new board games that they might enjoy. Scott enjoys everything from strategy to social to cooperative games.

Ashley Taylor, Secretary

Favorite games: Dominion, Race for the Galaxy, and Settlers of Catan

Ashley is an enthusiastic accounting student at UNOmaha. She enjoys the social learning opportunities that board games offer. In her free time she is always exploring ways to expand herself and those around her through positive, connecting experiences. She looks forward to having a local place to bring fellow students to relax and engage in this stimulating board game community.

Cecily Zdan, Volunteer Coordinator

Favorite games: Pandemic, Ticket to Ride, Catchphrase, Gift Trap, and Sleuth

Cecily is an energetic marshaller of troops, who is thrilled to share her passion for board games with other enthusiastic players. She loves meeting new people, especially new Spielbound volunteers. Cecily believes board games are a fantastic way for would-be strangers to become fast friends, whether challenging strategy games or fast-paced party games, and Spielbound is the perfect place to find those friends. You can also find Cecily swing dancing with the Omaha Jitterbugs, volunteering at the Omaha Community Playhouse, and watching Princess Bride on repeat.

Marcus Ross, Librarian

Favorite games: Pandemic, Power Grid, Alien Frontiers, Qwirkle, Euphoria, and Tournament Rules Monopoly

Marcus loves nothing more than playing a new game with old friends (he only agreed to take the librarian job because he gets to touch ALL THE GAMES). After getting hooked on Catan in 2003, he's been up to play any Eurostyle tabletop within reach. Marcus has a real soft spot for games by Matt Leacock or Friedemann Friese and pretty much all cooperative games. You're most likely to find him nose deep in a rules manual or designing his own for Water Bear Games. Marcus currently holds both the family's annual Monopoly trophies and won't be giving them up any time soon.

Adam Cornish, Webmaster

Favorite games: Shadow Hunters, Settlers of Catan, Werewolfe, and Battlestar Galactica

Adam is a simple man: happiness in his life comes from sleeping, eating, dancing, learning, and friends. He really enjoys board games because they can satisfy two to three of those desires, while adding psychological intrigue, the development of a cooperative spirit, and intellectual challenges. When Adam is not looking forward to his next board game session, he is inevitably buried in his studies at the University of Nebraska Medical Center where he is working on his Ph.D. in bioinformatics. However, he can also be found swing dancing with the Omaha Jitterbugs, tinkering with one of his many home servers, or continuing his pursuit to find the best steak in Omaha.

Jessica Steffen, Senior Center Outreach Coordinator

Favorite Games: Ghost Stories, Pandemic, Dominion, and Small World

Jess is a self-proclaimed board game fanatic who loves finding new games to share with her friends. Her obsession has extended to holding regular board game lunches with her coworkers and she hopes to include even more of her colleagues in the fun. During the week Jess is buried behind a computer working on SQL queries as the manager for a systems support team. On the weekends she’s lucky enough to get paid to share her love of games with a great group of senior residents at a local assisted living facility. She loves getting to know them and finding new games for them that appeal to their various interests. She’s seen firsthand the positive impact gaming has had on the residents and believes Spielbound is an ideal organization to offer that same positive experience to others. When she’s not working or playing games, Jess spends her time playing with her oversized German Shepherd and attempting to achieve her goal of reading over 100 books this year.

Michael Fryda, Teacher Outreach Coordinator

Favorite Games: Dominion, Betrayal at House on the Hill, Dungeons and Dragons, Battletech, and the X-wing Miniatures Game

Michael has seen how games can unlock a desire to learn in anyone. He is a public high school science teacher, sponsoring a Game Club at his school and designing games to support learning in his classroom. His goals include teaching students critical thinking skills, self advocacy, teamwork, and positive social interactions. Michael is an adjunct professor of education and was honored as the 2010 Nebraska Teacher of the Year. He lives in Omaha with his wife and five non-human children.

Michelle Nodskov, Program Coordinator

Favorite games: Rack-O, Catch Phrase, Phase 10, and Ticket to Ride

Michelle is always up for a good challenge and loves games that involve strategy and competition. As a kid, she was known to be a fierce opponent in her family's UNO tournaments, which sparked her love for card and board games. Some of her most fond memories have taken place around a kitchen table with family and friends—playing crowd-pleasing favorites such as Apples to Apples, Catch Phrase, and Skip-Bo. She believes in the power games have to overcome differences and bring people together. As a college advisor, Michelle has developed a passion for meeting new people and serving as a role model within the community. You may also catch her cheering on Husker football and hanging out with her fluffy, white dog, Napoleon.

Maggie McReynolds, Communications Intern

Favorite Games: Ticket To Ride, Hanabi, Bananagrams, Splendor, Trivial Pursuit

Maggie is always happy to play a word game, being an avid reader and writer since childhood. She loves the casual camaraderie of a board game, and finds the atmosphere of Spielbound exceptional in fostering a fun-loving community for all ages, shapes, and sizes. When not writing clever demo descriptions, Maggie works at the real life Ticket to Ride company of Union Pacific, enjoys swing dancing with Omaha Jitterbugs, reading more and more books to feed her knowledge, and writing stories when her muse can be found. And occasionally dressing up as a superhero.

Neil J. Opitz, SpielMasons

Favorite games: 7 Wonders, RoboRally, Duel of Ages, and Battle Line

Neil is a husband, father of 4, alpha analog gamer, mathematician, musician, game designer, and illustrator. He grew up in a house with 7 other siblings, as well as lots of classic board games. What he enjoys most is sitting on the beach, watching baseball, and playing board games with his family and friends (and is looking forward to doing all of these simultaneously someday). When he’s not playing the role of data scientist, you will probably find him playing games with his family or testing new game designs.