Meet the VDCI Technical Operations Team
Broox Boze
Director of Technical Services
Peter Obenaur
Technical and Training Manager
Deborah Bennett
GIS Specialist
Broox Boze
Director of Technical Services
Dr. Broox Boze is the Director of Research and Innovation for Vector Disease Control International (VDCI) and has a Ph.D. from Colorado State University. As a specialist in emergency response she has developed protocols and coordinated surveillance and management operations with various local, county, state and federal organizations. In 2016 she served as the on-site coordinator to both the Virgin Islands and Marshall Islands after the emergence of Zika Virus, and in 2017 she served as the IPM Manager for VDCI’s hurricane response efforts in Florida after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. She is the Industry Director for the American Mosquito Control Association, sits on the National Environmental Health Associations Vector Program Committee, and has worked with mosquito control programs throughout North America, in the Caribbean, West Africa, and the South Pacific
Deborah Bennett
GIS Specialist
Deborah joined VDCI in 2003 as a GIS Specialist. Over the years, she has handled GIS data from over 60 ground contracts and over 35 aerial contracts in 15 states. Her emergency response work has included more than 20 hurricanes and tropical storms, and numerous West Nile Virus outbreaks, across the country. Deborah is proficient in ESRI’s ArcGIS, SkyTracker/Wingman, SatLoc, and AGNAV mapping programs. She is also an active member of the Northwest Mosquito and Vector Control Association.
Deborah earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Chemistry from Eastern New Mexico University and her CPGIS from The Pennsylvania State University. Before making the career switch to GIS, Deborah was employed as a Quality Assurance Chemist with Cargill, Inc. In addition to working for VDCI, she held a Teaching Assistant position with The Pennsylvania State University in their GIS program for 8 years.
In her spare time Deborah is an avid Travel Hobbyist who has visited 37 U.S. states and 25 countries. Her other passion is cheering for the Buffalo Bills. She resides in Tennessee with her wonderful husband, Tim, and one very mellow dog, Molly.
Pete Obenaur
Technical and Training Manager
Peter J. Obenauer was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and as the son of a CIA Intelligence Officer, he grew up in South and Central America prior to settling in Fairfax, Virginia. Pete’s education includes an undergraduate degree in Biology and Secondary Education from Longwood University; Master’s Degree in Entomology from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville; and culminated with a Doctorate of Philosophy Degree in Entomology from the University of Florida in 2009.
Pete retired from the United States Navy with the rank of Captain (0-6) in 2021 after 23+ years of service. His career highlights included: deployments to Nicaragua as a member of a humanitarian response force during Operation Build Hope, two combat tours (2003, 2004) with the Marines in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Banda Aceh, Indonesia to support Tsunami Relief Operations during Operation Unified Assistance. Moreover, he was seconded in 2015 at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA serving the President’s Malaria Initiative as the entomological representative for Rwanda, Nigeria, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. He concluded his career at the Navy Environmental Preventive Medicine Unit 5 (NEPMU-5) San Diego, CA where he served as the Officer in Charge.
Pete joined the Vector Disease Control International team in March 2022 as the Business Development Manager. He has authored and co-authored over 30 scientific publications. He is a member of the Entomological Society of America, Society for Vector Ecology, and the American Mosquito Control Association.