Ann Duke is a very funny lady. She's also a founding member of the Traverse City Comedy Fest (TCCF) and now its Chief Executive Officer. In addition, she is an accomplished businessperson. "Savvy" and "Approachable" are two words that describe her talents, and why she is such an asset to the TCCF, LLC. Her career has included stints at Habitat for Humanity, HOUR Media and various other companies and non-profit organizations. In addition to managing to build a burgeoning standup career, she is an accomplished Public Speaker and Event Producer. Friendly, helpful, always with eyes focused on the success of the festival and Traverse City, she brings a genuine enthusiasm that comes from a love of standup comedy and bringing people together. 

Stuart Lazar is a man of many talents. A founding member of the Traverse City Comedy Fest, and now its Chief Financial Officer, he's a successful businessman – always with several Traverse City ventures running at the same time. Stuart also is a tenured professor at the University at Buffalo Law School teaching courses in tax and business law. He also has a love for standup comedy and improving his community in Traverse City. One such improvement was the opening of his successful Traverse City Comedy Club five years ago, which has played host to some of the best and most famous comedians in the country. Stuart is the business eye of the TCCF, LLC. He truly loves his community and his number one priority for his involvement in the LLC is building a strong and lasting yearly event that benefits the citizens of his beloved city.

Bob Phillips is a nationally touring comedian who also spent three decades as Marketing Director for one of the country's top Defense suppliers. Now on year 25 of telling jokes around the country, Bob is the Chief Marketing Officer of the TCCF. Bob plays theaters and clubs from Florida to Alaska, has three full length comedy albums to his credit, a large Sirius/XM presence on four comedy channels, and an Open Bar Comedy special.  Bob combines his past business experience with a deep love for the art of standup and standup comedians to help make the Traverse City Comedy Fest the best comedy festival in the country.

Beth Milligan has volunteered as publicist for the Traverse City Comedy Fest since its inception, bringing experience that includes marketing and PR roles for organizations including Up North Pride, the Traverse City Film Festival, Traverse Connect, Fresh Coast Film Festival: Traverse City, the National Writers Series, and Porterhouse Productions. Beth is a journalist and co-hosts Currently with Christal Frost, a weekly podcast discussing the region's top news stories.

Kimberly Nestor has spent over 40 years assisting clients with their advertising and marketing needs. Having worked both in media and sponsorship sales with iconic corporate and name brands like WJR Radio, Detroit Sports Franchises, CBS TV, Huntington Bank, America’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and The Detroit Free Press Marathon, she built long term relationships by creating ‘out of the box’ ideas to help her clients grow their business. Currently retired from the corporate world, Kimberly has found a way to continue her passion of connecting businesses with creative marketing solutions!  She is in her third year of Sponsorship Sales with the Traverse City Comedy Fest. Married to Tom, they divide their time between their home in Bloomfield Hills, a cottage on Torch Lake and visiting their 8 grandchildren on the East coast.

Marti Johnson has been part of the Traverse City Comedy Fest since its very beginning and has been performing stand-up comedy since 2010. Over the years, she has had the privilege of opening twice for comedian Leanne Morgan, along with several other well-known headliners. In addition to comedy, Marti works part-time in staffing and recruiting and is the proud owner of Laugh Your Glass Off Wine Tours, LLC. With many years of experience in sales and marketing, she is thrilled to once again contribute her skills and enthusiasm to help make this coming April’s Traverse City Comedy Festival another incredible success.

2026 will be the 4th year that Alana is heading up to Traverse City to be a part of the team! With over 20 years’ experience in event marketing and management, and over a decade as a performer herself, Alana signs on again as the Production Director and Volunteer Manager. Her career spans across radio and multiple advertising agencies over the years, but her life-long passion for comedy has existed throughout. You will find her clocking thousands of steps making sure the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed behind the scenes, laughing at a higher decibel than the average human, or simply attempting to live exclusively on brunch foods.

Louie is the owner of Fat Squirrel Creative, a Michigan web design and digital marketing business. This is his first year with TCCF. He’s holding out hope that, in his lifetime, humanity will pioneer a bold new idea — rail transportation — to link Metro Detroit and Traverse City!

Ross Dillon is a lifelong comedy fan and first-year member of the Traverse City Comedy Fest team. Since 2008, he’s built a career in social media, developing digital strategies and educational platforms across multiple industries. While he primarily works in the psychedelic space helping raise awareness for groundbreaking, life-saving research, he has also served as a social media consultant for several popular comedians, including The Amazing Jonathan, Derek Richards, and the Fest’s own Bob Phillips. Beyond his professional work, Ross hosts a TikTok channel with over 700K followers, where he blends storytelling and pop culture to share his passion for comic books.

Jennifer Treece is an art director and graphic designer with a long creative career and a love for illustration, painting, gardening, and baking. When she’s not making things pretty, she’s with her family and two tiny pups. She’s excited to be part of her first Traverse City Comedy Festival, helping bring great comedy and creative energy to Northern Michigan.

2026 marks Deanna Zawislak’s fourth year with the Traverse City Comedy Fest, where she plays an essential role in coordinating festival operations and artist relations - bringing exceptional organization and attention to detail to every aspect of the weekend. Based in Oak Park, Michigan, Deanna works as the Marketing & Communications Associate for Habitat for Humanity of Oakland County, where she has spent over three years sharing stories that inspire connection and community. Combining her background in communications with her love of comedy, she’s proud to help bring laughter and energy to Traverse City once again.

Rachel Kret is an administrative manager from Wyandotte, Michigan, returning for her fourth year with the Traverse City Comedy Fest. As one of the festival’s original team members, she has played a key role in operations and artist relations since its debut. With a background in live entertainment from performing onstage to organizing large-scale productions, Rachel brings both creative insight and hands-on experience to the team. She is currently pursuing a degree in Public Relations at Wayne State University, where she focuses on ethical communication and audience engagement, continuing her passion for connecting people through laughter and storytelling.