Paul Gromer
Paul founded Peregrine, provides overall strategic management, and leads client engagements concerning renewable energy and regulatory strategy. Paul is a former Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER), a graduate of Harvard Law School, and a regulatory attorney with more than 20 years of practice before the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU). He is a long- time member of Massachusetts Energy Efficiency Advisory Council, the entity that oversees the state’s utility-funded energy efficiency programs. Paul is also a member of the board of directors of LEAN Energy US, a national nonprofit dedicated to expanding community choice aggregation across the country.
Kim Pare
Kim manages the electricity procurement process for our aggregation communities. She continuously monitors the electricity market and advises communities when it is time to go out to bid, then provides hands-on guidance through the bid process. From preparing indicative price proposals designed to test the market to developing formal executable proposals, Kim works closely with each community to craft program offerings that are tailored to achieve their goals and to obtain the most competitive price available. Her background includes more than 14 years of energy industry experience as both a supplier and a consultant.
Marlana Patton
Marlana oversees public outreach and education, customer support, and operational program management for our aggregation communities. As our clients’ day-to-day contact for starting projects and solving problems, Marlana helps cities and towns to create messages, materials, and events that educate and engage the public and to escalate and resolve operational issues. Her background includes more than 25 years of communications and program management experience for industry, academic, and non-profit audiences. She was also previously executive director of a Boston-area nonprofit that provides ESOL instruction and brings a particular focus on outreach to non-native speakers of English and other vulnerable community members.
Fran Cummings
Fran Cummings focuses on the analysis and facilitation of strategies to integrate low-carbon distributed energy resources into utility networks, energy districts and resilient microgrids. He is currently working with the Cities of Boston and Chelsea and several community stakeholders to develop neighborhood microgrids with small-scale battery storage, solar PV and other clean energy technologies. Before joining Peregrine, Fran was Policy Director at the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust, Policy Director at the Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources, and a Principal for a major energy consulting company.
Carol Carver
Carol is our most experienced team member with customer support, and she established many of our practices and standards around answering customer questions. Known particularly for her empathetic style, Carol works to be sure that customers of all kinds have access to a knowledgeable, patient advocate to help them understand their electricity bill and make the best decision for themselves. Carol’s background includes more than 30 years of administrative management in the clean energy industry.
Andy Grossman
Andy manages Peregrine’s business and administrative operations. He manages finances and contracts, oversees Peregrine’s technology network, including our telephone customer support center, interacts with customers and vendors, and assists with our regulatory compliance activity. For Peregrine’s web-based aggregation services, he processes customer service requests with electricity suppliers. His background includes more than 30 years of financial and operational management experience, including fiscal operations for a state agency, and two decades serving Peregrine’s municipal and non-profit customers. Andy has additionally organized more than 40 professional conferences throughout New England, tasks including content development, venue selection, attendee marketing, registration management, venue and technology set-up, speaker liaison, material logistics, and day-of, on-site management.
Julie Harris
Julie is Community Outreach Manager for Peregrine’s aggregation communities. She works hands on with and within our client communities to design and implement outreach efforts that make it easy for even non-energy experts to understand, participate in, and benefit from electricity aggregation programs. She is particularly focused on reaching those who are hardest to reach, giving them the knowledge and confidence to make informed decisions about their electricity bills. Julie’s background includes extensive experience working in cities and towns throughout Massachusetts to increase participation in electricity- and energy efficiency-related initiatives, including community solar, rooftop solar PV, and Mass Save.
Jonah Lara
Jonah works with our business partners and with program participants as a customer advocate and champion. He holds electricity suppliers accountable for providing the customer support they have committed to while also personally engaging with customers to help them address issues. He also works tirelessly behind the scenes to support program regulatory compliance. Jonah’s background has been shaped by a commitment to service and includes experience as a teacher, a social worker, and a guardian ad litem. Jonah is able to provide assistance in both English and Spanish.
Harris Fiering
Harris helps to create and refine the messages and materials that explain aggregation to the public. He works to ensure that the web, social media, and printed communications that we provide to all of our client communities are up-to-date, accurate and clear, while also engaging directly with customers to answer their questions and help them address issues. Harris’s background has been shaped by mentoring, teaching, and a love of language.