The Team
EMILY RIPPETEAU - OWNER AND FOUNDER
Emily was born and raised just outside of Chicago where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Math degree from Loyola University. In 2011, Emily and her husband, Tyler, moved to Boulder in order for her to pursue a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Colorado-Boulder, but not before the two of them traveled the country, exploring craft breweries from coast to coast. Emily credits that time, along with her husband’s influence, for her becoming a craft beer evangelist. In 2014, the year after she earned her MBA at CU, Emily decided to combine her educational background and her passion for craft beer by founding Rippeteau Consulting. These days, Emily lives in Longmont with her husband and their two children, Malcolm and Addy.
MEGHAN ZALE - ACCOUNT DIRECTOR
Meghan received her Bachelor’s Degree from Ohio University and her Master of Science in Communication degree from Northwestern University. She spent 8 years working in Alumni Relations and Development at several top universities. In 2017, Meghan decided to transition back to her passion for numbers as an Account Manager for Rippeteau Consulting, where she has recently been promoted to Account Director. Meghan lives in Dublin, Ohio. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Brad and her three children, Penelope, Nick, and Luke. She loves to run, travel and explore the exciting Columbus brewery culture.
Kelly Finn - Account Manager
Kelly was born and raised in a small town in central Nebraska. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. After Kelly moved to Longmont in 2011, she worked in the Operations Department for Elevations Credit Union. Since having children Kelly has stayed home to raise and care for her three beautiful girls. She is very active with the PTO at her girl’s school planning multiple events a year. She enjoys going on long walks, yoga, cycling and spending time with her husband Sean and their girls. One of her favorite pastimes is having a drink in the Colorado sun with friends.
Lacy henry - account manager
Lacy joined the Rippeteau Consulting team in 2018. Prior to that, she worked in the non-profit sector and in higher education. She earned a Bachelor of Speech Communications from the University of Illinois and a Master of Science in Communication from Northwestern University. Lacy lives outside of Chicago with her husband and two children. She loves to be active by working out and practicing yoga and enjoys volunteering at both of her children’s schools. Lacy prefers a glass of wine to a beer but is always excited to try new things, especially when she knows the hardworking people behind the products.
Diana Leopard - Account Manager
Diana joined the Rippeteau Consulting team in 2019. Prior to that, she worked in research administration, managing grants and contracts at Northwestern University and Virginia Commonwealth University. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology, with a sub-concentration in Social Welfare & Social Services from the University of Michigan. Diana lives in Richmond, Virginia with her husband, Seth, and son, Tucker. She enjoys spending time outdoors, either locally, or at the mountains and beaches of Virginia and North Carolina, where she may be found sampling a local sour ale in warm weather or a roasty stout in cooler temperatures.
Lynsey McLean - Account Manager
Lynsey earned her bachelor's in psychology from the University of Colorado Boulder and master's in human resource management from Colorado State University. Prior to joining Rippeteau Consulting, she worked for several companies in Colorado as a bookkeeper and office manager. Lynsey lives just outside of Boulder, Colorado with her husband, Scott, and her son, Milo. She is a voracious reader, loves musicals, and can often be found at trivia night at a local brewery.
Gemma Webster - Account Manager
Gemma joined Rippeteau Consulting in 2023. Prior to that she worked in a Children’s Museum for 12 years. She wore many hats in her time there building exhibits, developing children’s educational programming, managing membership databases, building a website, and helping to formalize the training and management of the non-profit. Her final role at the museum was as the Director of Development where she wrote grants both local and federal, oversaw programs and developed metrics for reporting. In this role she discovered an aptitude and love for spreadsheets and budgeting. Gemma earned a Bachelor of Arts in Italian Language and Literature from The University of Colorado Boulder. In her spare time, she can be found playing Duolingo, riding bikes with her daughter or walking her dog. She and her family love to spend time in the mountains. In the winter they can be found hitting the slopes at Winter Park. Her beer of choice is a nice clean porter.
Candace Yurkonis - Account Manager
Candace joined the Rippeteau Consulting team in 2020. Prior to that, she worked as an elementary school special education teacher. Candace graduated from Northeastern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education and History. She later went on to earn her Master’s degree in Special Education from there as well. Candace lives outside Chicago with her husband and two daughters. Candace loves to cook, spend time outdoors, and play with her kids. She also enjoys trying new breweries with her husband.