Our Board
Brian Aulick, President
Believing in the power of the arts and creativity to bring individual and community transformation, Brian conceived of the idea that would become CultureWorks in the spring of 2009. He is now thrilled to see the many excellent opportunities CultureWorks affords the Holland-Zeeland area. Brian received his Bachelor of Science in business from Indiana University and his Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He and his wife Christina have two sons, Jared and Evan, and a daughter, Kaylyn. Brian loves reading, coffee shops and diverse types of music.
Breah Groen
Breah graduated from Hope College with a Bachelor’s of Social Work degree. After graduation she joined the staff at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Ottawa County as a Forensic Interviewer and has been there for 4 years. Breah gets excited about the everyday restoration happening in our community when people find out how much they matter, especially when it involves building into kids and families. Intentionally creating space for art and creativity has always been life giving to her as well. So, it’s no surprise that she jumped at the chance to be a part of a place where creativity and community transformation happen together.
Steve Nienhuis
Steve serves as president of Taylor Baird, Inc., a manufacturing consulting and marketing firm. Previously, he served as the former VP of M & S Industrial sales and was also a member of the Holland Chamber of Commerce. Steve has served on numerous boards in the Holland area including Young Life.
Thomas Niergarth
Thomas Niergarth is currently Vice President of New Product Commercialization at Herman Miller Inc., and has worked extensively within creative processes and with creative people to design new products, conceptualize marketing materials and explore business models. Thomas has a Mechanical Engineering degree from Michigan State University as well as an MBA from Grand Valley State University and is a member of the Industrial Designers Society of America.
Jaron Nyhof
Jaron is a business, real estate and securities attorney in the Holland office of Warner Norcross & Judd LLP. Jaron has significant experience with nonprofits both as an attorney and as a volunteer board member, including recent service on the Holland Area Young Life Committee and the board of Urban Youth Ministries. As a father of three himself, including some aspiring young artists, Jaron has a heart for providing kids with opportunities to develop to their full potential. Jaron received his Juris Doctorate degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from Dordt College.
Mike Morin
Mike is a seasoned business strategist with solid experience in building early stage ventures. His professional and academic background include software design and development, sales and marketing and supply chain logistics. Mike currently serves as Sr. Business Advisor at Windquest Group, a venture capital firm, Mentor Director at Momentum-MI, a new business start-up accelerator and as President of SeeSpotRun.com an online business service for the radio industry. Prior to Windquest, he served as SVP of Business Development for Mediaguide, a Philadelpia based technology firm that provides business intelligence information to the music, advertising and radio industries. Before Mediaguide, Mike served as the President of Knoware, a technology services firm and business incubator.
Mike holds BA and MBA degrees from Michigan State University, Broad School of Business and resides in Holland, MI with his wife Karyl and daughters Sarah and Rebecca.