Meet The Executive Committe of the PFW Board
Ashley Mathy, President
Ashley is from Northern Wisconsin. She is a well-known disability advocate who has spoken around the state of Wisconsin advocating for individuals with disabilities. Ashley is a Self-Advocate Leader with People First Wisconsin, a public speaker, and a peer mentor intern. She serves on the Governor’s Committee for People with Disabilities and recently completed her term as the Chair of Wisconsin’s Board for People with Developmental Disabilities. She is also a Wisconsin Partners in Policymaking graduate, Employment 1st Ambassador and a Self-Advocate Leader who teaches Safe and Free and Rights classes as a consultant for People First. Ashley may look familiar as she is one of the hosts of the Self-Determination You-Tube Channel. Ashley’s motto is, “Cross out the Dis and Embrace the Ability”. Ashley won a Diehard Award in 2020 for her advocacy.
Josh Gretebeck, Vice-President
Josh is from southcentral Wisconsin and has served on the PFW Executive Committee for many years. He is a graduate of BPDD’s Partners in Policymaking and was very active with the Save IRIS advocacy efforts. Josh leads by positive example. In his spare time he enjoys Special Olympics and has travelled to Washington D.C. to represent Special Olympics Wisconsin. When running for Vice-President, Josh shared, "I want to serve on the People First Executive Committee because I want to still contribute to the board and help others. I want to run for vice president because I’m a great leader and a great person and I can help the president if he or she can’t run the board meetings.”
Larry Brown, Member-at-Large
Larry is from southeast Wisconsin and has served as the president of his local PFW Chapter. When asked why he wanted to serve a second time as a member-at-large of the PFW Executive Committee, Larry shared, “I believe I have the skills and life experience to bring to the board to help People First Wisconsin achieve their mission. I believe that I have a lot of great skills and can help improve the lives of people. I will listen to people. I am currently a member-at-large and I have other board experience on UWW’s Disability Advocacy and Awareness Coalition." Larry is a graduate of BPDD’s Partners in Policymaking and has been active with other advocacy organizations for many years.
Andrew Mentzel, Member-at-Large
Andrew shared, “I want to be on the People First Executive Committee to help people with disabilities. I am in Special Olympics and do soccer, softball, bowling, and basketball. I have been a member of People First Wisconsin for over 15 years in the Ozaukee Chapter. I used to be on the state board for PFW several years ago as an alternate member. Transportation is a big issue for people with disabilities. It is difficult to get around and people have to rely on their family, friends, or taxi. I would like to see this get better and want to work on this.”
Nealy Rothe, Member-at-Large
Nealy has been a member of People First Wisconsin for many years and has served in leadership roles in the Milwaukee Chapter. She is active in Special Olympics and is an accomplished artist. When running for the executive committee, Nealy shared that she wanted to be of help.
We have quarterly board meetings. Our Executive Committee meets each month. Members of our chapters vote every four years for who will serve on the Executive Committee. The current committee was voted into office at the November 2025 Board Meeting.