The Food Council Nominating Committee selects and appoints nine representatives for one- and two-year long terms as Montgomery County Food Council Board Members.
CEO, Futurity
Jack is the CEO of Futurity, a food foresight company that works with food and agriculture organizations to better understand emerging food trends and consumer attitudes and behaviors so they can position themselves to thrive in an ever more complex world. He is a globally recognized thought leader having delivered more than 300 speeches in 50 countries on the future of food and consumer psychology. Jack previously served as the Chief Communications Officer at Intrexon Corporation, the senior advisor for global food policy at the U.S. Department of State and as an attorney at Crowell & Moring LLP. He received a J.D., an M.S. in Environmental Science, a B.A. in psychology and chemistry and a B.S. in biology from Indiana University.
Secretary
Associate, Community Science
Elisa currently works as an Associate at Community Science where she supports research, evaluation, and technical assistance projects related to health equity and community and systems change. Elisa has expertise on the social determinants of health, with an emphasis on food policies and community food systems and how these issues affect Latin American and Caribbean communities. Before joining Community Science, Elisa was a Research Coordinator at the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, City University of New York. Elisa holds a Ph.D. in Sociomedical Sciences from Columbia University and a Master’s in Latin American History from the State University of New York at Albany. She was born and raised in Puerto Rico.
Vice-Chair
George is an attorney who has spent much of his career working on food related issues and non-profit governance. For more than twenty years he was General Counsel for the Food Marketing Institute, the national association for food retailers and wholesalers. In that role he was responsible for all the Institute’s legal affairs, including governance procedures, antitrust compliance, and employment matters as well as managing all of FMI’s regulatory activities. He has appeared before numerous congressional committees and regulatory bodies on a wide variety of issues impacting the food distribution industry. He helped form and served as counsel to the Food Marketing Institute Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that funds education and research on food safety, nutrition and health and wellness education. He also served as counsel to the Safe Quality Food Institute which audits food safety procedures of farms, food processing facilities and retailers around the world and certifies those that are in compliance with the most effective practices. George is a graduate of Senior Leadership Montgomery and a graduate of Queens College and Brooklyn Law School. He and his wife Glenda enjoy traveling, the outdoors and spending time with their grandchildren.
Treasurer
General Manager, Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-Op
Mike grew up in Arlington, VA and is a graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Agriculture. He began working in natural foods in Brooklyn, NY at Perelandra Natural Foods, an independently owned market opened in 1976. Brooklyn’s natural food scene provided a wealth of opportunities to meet local and independent vendors and learn about the industry. In August 2012 Mike moved back to the DC area and became the Assistant Store Manager and later Store Manager for the newly opened Dawson’s Market in Rockville. Dawson’s was honored for commitment to environmental leadership and cited for inclusive hiring practices. Mike became General Manager of Takoma Park Silver Spring Food Co-op in August 2018. Mike is a graduate of Leadership Montgomery and serves on the board for the Takoma Business Association.
Program Director, Institute for Public Health Innovation
Evelyn has nineteen years of experience as a public health practitioner and researcher and has engaged in a variety of public health efforts ranging from community planning and capacity building to health policy development and advocacy. As a Director at the Institute for Public Health Innovation (IPHI), Evelyn works with a variety of sectors and stakeholders including: executive-level leadership, elected officials, health departments, planning agencies, police departments, funders and community-based organizations to implement policy, systems, and environmental changes aimed at improving the quality of life of the community. Prior to post at IPHI, she has worked at CommonHealth ACTION, CASA Inc. and the Montgomery County Latino Health Initiative. Her professional interests include community development, community engagement, health equity, community organizing and advocacy, food justice and chronic disease prevention. Evelyn earned a Bachelor of Science in Health Promotion from American University and a Master of Public Health from the University of South Carolina.
Board Chair
Vice President of Community Health, Holy Cross Health, Silver Spring, MD
As the Vice President of Community Health, Kimberley oversees Health Equity and Healthy Behaviors, Senior and Disability Services, and Faith Community Nursing departments of Holy Cross Health. Community Health strives to build healthy communities, through engagement and action, throughout Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties. The programs and services provided under the guidance of Kimberley take the mission of the health system outside the walls of the two hospitals and goes beyond clinical care to improve the health of the community by focusing on health equity, prevention, and self-management and by developing and supporting strategies that are sustainable through policy, system and environmental changes. Ms. McBride has worked in public health for more than ten years and received her B.S. in community health from Truman State University in Missouri and her MPH in Maternal and Child Health/Community Health from Tulane University’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Ms. McBride resides in Silver Spring with her husband and three daughters.
Chair, Policy Committee; Co-Chair, Racial Equity Committee
Founder, Healthier Kitchen
Wendy Nevett Bazil is a lawyer, writer, and avocational cooking teacher always seeking new ways to support delicious, affordable, equitable, and healthier food for all. Under her business name, Healthier Kitchen, she has been writing about food and food systems since 2009 and teaching home cooking skills since 2014. Wendy has taught both private clients as a cooking coach as well youth through Montgomery County’s Excel Beyond the Bell afterschool program. In addition to her archived blog, her writing has been published on Food52, in Moment Magazine, and the Jewish Food Experience. Wendy has been involved with the Food Council since 2014, first as a member of the Food Education Working Group, later as a council member and chair of the Policy Committee, and currently, a member of the Board of Directors.
Director of Student Affairs and Initiatives, Montgomery College
Dr. Carmen Poston Travis is the Director of Student Affairs & Initiatives at Montgomery College. She is a basic needs advocate. In addition to many other roles and responsibilities, she led the development and implementation of the Student Health and Wellness Center for Success focusing on students' physical and mental health well-being. Most recently, she has assumed the lead for the development and implementation of the Presidential Scholars Program, established to increase the representation of African American men in high-wage, high-demand careers.
Carmen has over 27 years of experience in educational and vocational administration that includes K-12, vocational rehabilitation, and higher education. At Montgomery College, she has worked and served in various roles and on Collegewide committees in both Academic and Student Affairs.
She has published and presented domestically and internationally, reaching global audiences on topics relevant to food insecurity, including the publication of her dissertation entitled Addressing Food Insecurity at a Community College with a Food Campaign: An Instrumental Case Study. Carmen holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Management with a concentration in Global and International Education from Drexel University, M.P.P.A in Public Policy and Administration from Jackson State University and a B.S. in Business Administration from Alcorn State University. She is married with children.
Executive Committee
Director, Maryland Hunger Solutions
Michael joined Maryland Hunger Solutions in July 2013 as Director. In this role, he is helping to lead Maryland’s premier hunger advocacy, education, and outreach organization as it works to end hunger and improve the nutrition, health, economic security, and well-being of low-income families in Maryland. Michael serves in a leadership role in many statewide coalitions and is a core advisor in the Governor’s Partnership to End Childhood Hunger. For more than three decades, Michael has been a leading advocate for economic and social justice. He worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative and press assistant for the late U.S. Representative Charles Hayes (IL). He also served in numerous positions at the U.S. Department of Labor, culminating as Chief of Staff in the Employment Standards Administration where he coordinated legislative, regulatory, communications, and policy development. Michael also was an international officer and director at the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union where he headed the legislative and political department and led the union’s efforts in food policy and worker advocacy. Michael served as a FRAC Board Member for more than a decade, as well as a Board Member for the Consumer Federation of America and Americans for Democratic Action, where he also served as National Director. He received the Community Human Rights Award from the United Nations Association of the National Capitol Area in 2009, the Secretary of Labor’s Exceptional Achievement Award in 1997 and 1999, and a Special Commendation from the Wage and Hour Division in 1997. Michael has a B.A. in communications arts and sciences from Michigan State University.
Environmental Impact Working Group
Administrative Director, Francophone Africans Alliance
Anica is the Administrative Director of Francophone Africans Alliance, a Montgomery County-based non-profit organization. Its primary mission is to support the African Francophone community members by providing them with information and education for a more empowered community. In that capacity, she oversees the day-to-day operations, manages the organization’s community outreach efforts, and volunteer recruitment. She also coordinates the organization’s special events. Anica is a law-trained professional. She received her LL.M. in International Legal Studies with a specialization in Environmental Law from American University Washington College of Law.
Food Recovery and Access Working Group
Manager, Auxiliary Services, Universities at Shady Grove
Obioma (Obii) oversees Auxiliary Services units at The Universities at Shady Grove (USG); in her role she serves as a liaison between internal departments, and students, and business vendors, to make sure that campus needs within Aux. Services areas are met. Obii is also involved in the food access initiatives at USG, she coordinates the Mobile Market food distribution made possible through the partnership with Capital Area Food Bank (CAFB). Obii’s role allows her the privilege to interact with students, staff and faculty to gain insights that help in improving services offered on campus. Besides work, Obii is also pursuing a doctoral degree in management which she hopes will be a great value to her professional and personal growth. When she is not studying or at work, Obii enjoys outdoor runs, attending bootcamp classes, spending time with family and relaxing with a good fiction book from authors like John Grisham, Robert Ludlum, David Baldacci to name a few.
Food Education Working Group
Garden Program Manager, Community Health and Empowerment through Education and Research (CHEER)
Director of Neighborhood Garden Programs at Community Health and Empowerment through Education and Research (CHEER) Lisa is a life-long gardener who has dedicated much of the last decade to garden- based education and empowerment, assisting City Blossoms with garden classes at CentroNía bilingual preschool in Langley Park (2013-2015) and more extensively through hands-on lessons for hundreds of students at Rolling Terrace Elementary School in Long Branch (2013-2018) where she chaired the PTA’s Garden Committee and helped establish a Wellness Committee. Believing strongly that all students deserve access to fresh, healthy and delicious school food, she served on the Advisory Board for Real Food for Kids - Montgomery (2014-2016). In 2021, under a Food Council garden grant to CHEER in partnership with Audubon Naturalist Society, Lisa led the formation of the Long Branch Gardeners (“Jardineras/Jardinière”) group with members of the Conexo community leaders group. Lisa brings Spanish fluency and cultural sensitivity to her work, having traveled extensively worldwide and spent 17 years (1990 - 2007) working on rural applications of photovoltaic and other renewable energy systems in southern Mexico and Central America. Lisa holds a BA in Engineering and an MA in Environmental Studies from Brown University, and studied Chinese for two summers at Middlebury College. Lisa loves to camp, hike, bike and cook with her family, and after a hiatus hopes to resume backyard beekeeping.
Food Recovery and Access Working Group
Operations Lead for the Montgomery County Food Security Task Force
Marla was the former Director of Student Wellness Initiatives and Director of the Division of Food and Nutrition Services for Montgomery County Public Schools. She is currently the Operations Lead for the Montgomery County Food Security Task Force. Marla’s passion has been to creatively think out of the box to support children, families, and communities with a focus on food security. She has devoted her career to the elimination of hunger as well as promoting health and wellness among all populations. She is the former chair for Manna, Montgomery County’s food bank.
Food Economy Working Group
Pastor, Owner, Coop’s Soups
Cristin Cooper is a dinner church pastor who makes Coop's Soups. Coop's Soups is soup to share as an awesome way to make friends and fight off loneliness. For Cristin, the practices of preparing and sharing food are invitations into deeper empathy, compassion, and love. Cristin has a BA in Communications from the University of South Florida and a Master's of Divinity from Wesley Theological Seminary. She was catapulted into the MoCo food sphere when she started Coop's Soups in the summer of 2019. She joined MoCo Made and the Food Economy Working Group in fall 2019. Since then she has discerned a growing passion and commitment in connecting her small food business colleagues to resources, connections, and encouragement. She truly believes we are all in this together and that any narrative stating otherwise is an illusion. Her dream is to one day launch a CO-OP coworking kitchen specifically for women entrepreneurs. As Cristin envisions it, part of the members commitment would be to assist one another in at-home demands that are unique to women entrepreneurs, ie. cooking for one another, watching one's kids while they are using the kitchen, etc,. Whatever table Cristin is sitting at, she is always ready to discern the question: "What if?"
Co-Chair, Environmental Impact Working Group
Montgomery County Solid Waste Advisory Committee
Kelly is an avid gardener, recycler, and composter who enjoys growing and using local foods while supporting healthy and sustainable food production and distribution practices. Kelly previously worked for the U.S. EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Solid Waste in San Francisco, serving as a liaison to tribal and state governments implementing integrated waste management, recycling, composting, green purchasing, and waste reduction programs throughout the Pacific Southwest. She is currently active in her local elementary school PTA
Wellness Committee and serves on the County’s Solid Waste Advisory Committee. Kelly earned an M.S. in Environmental Science and a J.D. from Indiana University, Bloomington. Kelly also holds a B.S. in Ecology from University of California San Diego. She loves hiking, gardening, learning about local ecology, and adventuring near and far with her family.
Food Economy Working Group
Founder, Executive Director, Community FarmShare
Jennifer Freeman is passionate about reducing food insecurity, improving the health of vulnerable populations and building a resilient local food system by supporting our local Farmers. Jenny is the founder and Executive Director of Community FarmShare, a Montgomery County nonprofit that provides residents in need throughout the county with weekly bags of healthy, fresh, nutrient dense produce, delivered directly from farm to family. By buying produce at a market price from our farm partners, Community FarmShare supports our local community supported agriculture farms (CSA), enabling them to grow and expand their farm business, therefore building a resilient local food system benefitting all eaters. Partner farms are organic orcertified naturally grown; and, keeping food assistance hyper local - directly from farm to family - our carbon footprint is low. After graduating from Georgetown University and starting her career in banking at JPMorgan, Jennifer has spent most of her professional career in the field of microfinance (providing small loans to low income individuals who lack access to credit). Working overseas, she set up new projects and strengthened existing microfinance programs primarily in the Balkans, as well as consulted on microfinance process improvements and internal audit for development-oriented banks in Asia and Africa. She now loves living in the wonderful Poolesville community with her daughter and various farm critters in MoCo’s Agricultural Reserve.
Food Access and Recovery Working Group; Co-Chair, Racial Equity Committee
Executive Director, Shepherd’s Table
Manny is currently the Executive Director of Shepherd’s Table, Inc. Prior to Shepherd’s Table, Manny served as Principal of Hidalgo Community-Based Consulting LLC, which assisted local governments, nonprofits and national advocacy organizations with their strategic development needs. In addition, Manny has served in the federal government’s Senior Executive Service as Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity in the US Small Business Administration (SBA). He also served for 9 years as Executive Director of the Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC), a community-based, economic development organization dedicated to building wealth in low income Latino communities throughout the DC region. In 2009, Manny won the Center for Non-Profit Advancement’s EXCEL Leadership Award, and in 2011 he won the Meyer Foundation’s Exponent Award, which recognizes outstanding executive directors of nonprofits in the DC Metro Area. He has a BA in History from Georgetown University and a MA in Latin American and Caribbean Studies from Florida International University. He lives with his wife and children in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Food Education Working Group
Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, University of Maryland (UMD) School of Public Health – Department of Family Science
Dr. Hurtado Choque is an Assistant Professor at the School of Public Health and Extension Specialist at the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at UMD focusing on family and community health. Mr. Hurtado focuses his research, scholarship, and outreach in the development, implementation, and evaluation of health promotion interventions at the family and community levels.
Food Education Working Group, Board Chair
Vice President of Community Health, Holy Cross Health, Silver Spring, MD
As the Vice President of Community Health, Kimberley oversees Health Equity and Healthy Behaviors, Senior and Disability Services, and Faith Community Nursing departments of Holy Cross Health. Community Health strives to build healthy communities, through engagement and action, throughout Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties. The programs and services provided under the guidance of Kimberley take the mission of the health system outside the walls of the two hospitals and goes beyond clinical care to improve the health of the community by focusing on health equity, prevention, and self-management and by developing and supporting strategies that are sustainable through policy, system and environmental changes. Ms. McBride has worked in public health for more than ten years and received her B.S. in community health from Truman State University in Missouri and her MPH in Maternal and Child Health/Community Health from Tulane University’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Ms. McBride resides in Silver Spring with her husband and three daughters.
Food Recovery and Access Working Group
Manager MD Region, Capital Area Food Bank
Maryland Regional Manager, Capital Area Food Bank Gaby has long shared Montgomery County’s Food Council commitment to improving and building paths towards an equitable local food system. Gaby serves as Manager of the Maryland Region for the Capital Area Food Bank where she and her team support a network of over two hundred non-profit food emergency assistance partners in Prince George’s and Montgomery County, and also oversees The Food Emergency Assistance Program (TEFAP). Prior to moving to the D.C. region, Gaby’s professional experience was primarily in the corporate world. For over ten years she worked in the fields of Research and Development (R&D), Quality Assurance, and Food Safety for the Latin American divisions of well-known quick-service restaurant chains, such as YUM! and Subway restaurants. As part of a cross functional team, she oversaw the planning, training, menu offerings, and process improvement of franchisee kitchens and restaurants in Latin American. More recently, she served as the School Wellness Coordinator for the Transformative Community Initiative (TCI), a partnership between the Institute for Public Health and Innovation (IPHI) and Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS). The project’s goal was to increase school wellness policy implementation at select public schools through the formation of local school wellness councils (LSWCs). She also worked for the Whole Kids Foundation; a non-profit created by Whole Foods Market. The organization’s mission is to support schools, inspire families, and improve children’s nutrition and wellness. Her role was to expand the foundation’s Healthy Teachers Program in the DC metro area. Gaby was born and raised in Ecuador. She loves edible gardens and enjoys hiking with her family.
Environmental Impact Working Group
Founder & Executive Director, Charles Koiner Conservancy for Urban Farming
Kate is the Founder and Executive Director of the Charles Koiner Conservancy for Urban Farming (CKC), which operates at Koiner Farm in downtown Silver Spring. In 2019, CKC permanently protected Koiner Farm under a conservation easement in partnership with the Maryland Environmental Trust. As a former Biology teacher, Kate is passionate about creating engaging outdoor learning opportunities, like the hands-on STEM programs offered at Koiner Farm. Kate has a B.S. in Biology from Susquehanna University and an M.S. in Environmental Biology from American University. She previously worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and co-lead the Green Project Reserve, a set-aside fund of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund for innovative water quality protection projects. She is an adjunct Biology professor at Montgomery College and enjoys hiking, building tree houses and hanging out at the farm with her husband, Ricky, and their three young kids.
Policy Committee
Food Security Consultant
Amanda's interests focus on food security advocacy, strengthening the federal nutrition safety net, and food security community organizing. From October 2017 to July 2020, Amanda was the Food Security Programs Manager for the Montgomery County Food Council, where she worked in partnership with local food assistance providers and County government agencies to carry out the recommendations set out in the County's Five Year Food Security Strategic Plan, as well as formulate and implement the County's initial COVID-19 food security response strategy. Amanda previously worked as a Legislative Associate at national anti-hunger nonprofit MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, where she advocated on Capitol Hill to increase food security initiatives for seniors, veterans and serving military families, and prior to that she worked as a Legal and Strategic Advisor for the Office of the Prime Minister of Israel, and as a corporate attorney at law firm Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton LLP. Amanda holds a Masters of Law degree from Columbia University, and a B.A. in Law from Cambridge University.
Garden Coach & Educator, Food Security Advocate & Edible Activist, Homestead Hustle & Healing
Vanessa Pierre is a garden coach, educator, and food activist in the DC Metro area. When she is not performing her functions of being a single mother to three beautiful children and working full time, she runs an organization whose mission is to build strong, self-sufficient, empowered and healthy minority communities through food & gardening education, demonstration, & advocacy. Her brand, Homestead Hustle & Healing, is an online platform with local community initiatives, whose mission is to end food insecurity among minority populations.
Wellness Supervisor, Montgomery County Public Schools – Division of Food and Nutrition Services
A graduate with his bachelor's from the University of North Florida and his master's from Bowling Green State University, Shaun Sawko is a Registered Dietitian working in public health for over a decade and specifically school nutrition for over six years. Shaun was first exposed to school nutrition during his dietetic internship where the spark for school food ignited. After completing his dietetic internship, Shaun came back to Hillsborough County Public Schools as a Nutrition Coordinator. Shaun then reversed “snow birded” to DC Public Schools for two years where he aided in the expansion of their self-operated schools. Shaun has since been able to continue his career with Montgomery County Public Schools where he is excited to bring his knowledge and experience in collaborating with his current colleagues. Acknowledging that eating habits begin at an early age, Shaun believes that nutrition works best as preventative medicine and is excited about continuing to introduce culturally appropriate healthy foods to the students of Montgomery County.
Foreign Service Officer, USAID Bureau for Global Health
Alexandria Schmall is a public health nutritionist and behavioral scientist with strong experience designing, implementing, and evaluating diverse programs and research in areas including nutrition, health equity, agri-food systems, behavior change, youth, and gender across 30+ countries. She has a skill set in both quantitative and qualitative research methods and has contributed to over two dozen field- studies. At present, Schmall is a Global Health FSO with the US Agency for International Development. Throughout her career, Schmall has worked with USG, United Nations agencies, NGOs, and academia and led global nutrition, food systems, and behavior change programs to improve nutrition and livelihoods in collaboration with communities across diverse global contexts. Schmall completed her undergraduate and graduate training at Cornell University (BSc, BSc), Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health (MSPH), and Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy (PhDc). Schmall works professionally in English, Spanish, and French. Her favorite things about living in Montgomery County include trying new local restaurants and hiking in the beautiful MOCO parks with her family.
Food Economy Working Group
Farmers Market Program Manager, Crossroads Community Food Network
Sara Servin currently manages the Crossroads Farmers Market with Crossroads Community Food Network in the Takoma Langley Crossroads. She is most excited about work that is rooted in the community and comes from a background roote in food equity and urban agriculture. Her dedication to expanding nutritional benefits and their use at farmers markets has been integral to her work in the region. You can find her at the farmers market, growing and crafting herbal medicines for her community, or making hot sauce.
Co-Chair, Food Economy Working Group
Food and Beverage Manager, Round House Theater
Hudson was born and raised in New York City and left to attend the University of Michigan. After graduating, he returned to New York City and entered Wall Street. Prior to the 2008 financial crisis, he acquired the Manchester Pub, a bar and grill located in midtown Manhattan. After deciding to take a sabbatical from Wall Street and focusing his time and energy on the Manchester Pub, he entered hospitality and never looked back. He sustained the success of the Manchester Pub until it was closed due to a fire in the fall of 2014. Subsequently, he has opened the Cotton Calf Kitchen in Braselton, Georgia, Pi Pizzeria in Bethesda, Maryland, and Terrain Cafe in Bethesda, Maryland. In addition to opening restaurants, he has been involved with turn-around projects, such as Soapstone Market in Washington, DC. Currently, Hudson is reimagining the Food and Beverage Program at Round House Theatre in Bethesda, Maryland. In addition, he owns and operates Runners and Revenuers, a beverage catering company based in New York City, and is an advisor to TwentyTables, a social enterprise that provides an online marketplace to diner and restaurants to benefit the hungry and food insecure.
Food Education Working Group
Retired Food & Drug Administration
Christine has lived in Montgomery County for over 30 years. After graduating from Pennsylvania State University with a PhD in Nutrition, she moved to Montgomery County to begin what turned out to be a 20-year career at the Food and Drug Administration. She served as Director of the agency’s Office of Nutritional Products, Labeling and Dietary Supplements. In this capacity, she oversaw a staff of more than 50 scientists who were responsible for research, regulation and enforcement related to nutrition issues and dietary supplements. In 2004 Christine began a two-year FDA assignment to the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland where she focused on international approaches for determining dietary supplement safety. Following her retirement from FDA, Christine was named a Scholar at the Institute of Medicine within The National Academies. Her projects included evaluation of the process for setting Dietary Reference Intakes, consensus recommendations for the standards for school lunch, identification of strategies for reducing sodium in the diet, and an evaluation of the recommended intakes for vitamin D and calcium. From 2011-2017 she was a scientific consultant at the National Institutes of Health. Christine currently is a volunteer at the Museum of American History and serves as Chairperson of the American Society for Nutrition’s Committee on Advocacy and Science Policy.
Food Education Working Group
Statewide Healthy Food Systems Coordinator, University of Maryland Extension, Maryland SNAP-Ed
Lynn began her work with Maryland SNAP-Ed in 2009, facilitating nutrition education for youth and adults across Montgomery County. In her current role, since 2012, Lynn works to strengthen and expand partnerships with state collaborating agencies that work to increase food equity for Marylanders. These collaborations seek to maximize healthy food access and to foster sustainable food equity policy, healthy and sustainable food systems, and increased access to healthy food across all food access sites and sources. Other focus areas include nutrition education program and curriculum development, along with training facilitation for MD SNAP-Ed educators and for collaborating partners statewide. Lynn is a proud life-long resident of Montgomery County, a graduate of Montgomery County Public Schools, and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management and Consumer Affairs from the University of Maryland, and a master’s degree in Youth Development from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Lynn’s passion for local food extends beyond the work week. On the weekends, you are likely to find her at one - or more - of the bountiful farmers’ markets in Montgomery County.
Environmental Impact Working Group
Director of Environmental Stewardship, Glenstone Museum
Paul Tukey is an award-winning journalist, author, filmmaker, HGTV host, consultant and motivational public speaker who is internationally recognized as a pioneering leader in sustainable landscaping. Now serving as the Director of Environmental Stewardship for the Glenstone Museum in Potomac., Md., Paul is helping to create a “living classroom” on the all-organic 300-acre site that includes native meadows, a five-acre organic lawn, restored streams and tributaries, forests and more than 11,000 newly planted native trees. Winner of the prestigious Communicator of the Year Award from the American Horticultural Society, as well as the 2018 Green Medal Award from the Garden Writers of America, Paul has been featured in thousands of media outlets from Martha Stewart and Good Morning America as well as National Geographic, Readers Digest and the New York Times, which called him, “The godfather of the natural land care movement.”
Food Recovery and Access Working Group
Sr. Director of Participant Support, Manna Food Center
Angela Whitmal has worked with Manna Food Center since 2005 and currently serves as the Senior Director for Participant Support. Originally serving Manna from an administrative, finance and HR perspective, Angela now provides support and leadership to the Logistics and Participant Services teams, which both connect community members to assistance through its Food for Families program and others. Originally from Chicago, Angela earned a B.A. in Communications and an M.A. in Historical Administration which led to a career in the non-profit museum world. She worked first with museums in the Chicago area and, later, in Southwest Georgia where she served as Director and Curator of the Albany Civil Rights Institute. Inspired by her time in Albany, Angela found her way to Montgomery County for ministerial studies and a commitment to healing the root causes of food insecurity with Manna.
Food Recovery and Access Working Group
Housing and Community Development Manager, City of Takoma Park, MD
Grayce is the Housing and Community Development Manager for the City of Takoma Park. She is responsible for administering the City’s rental housing and grants programs in addition to the implementation of a variety of housing related projects that benefit city residents. Prior to joining the City of Takoma Park government, Grayce worked for the
Legal Services Corporation (LSC) - the nation’s single largest funder of civil legal aid programs for low-income Americans. At LSC, she served in a program officer capacity to legal aid organizations, evaluating non-profit operations, legal work, board governance, and program performance. In addition, she worked as the Director of New York Programs and Legal Services at Single Stop USA, a national non-profit organization dedicated to helping low-income families build economic stability. Single Stop provides a unique “one-stop” model that combines benefits screening and application assistance with tax preparation, legal assistance and financial counseling. In this position, she worked with community-based organizations and legal providers in the implementation of the model and evaluated its impact on families trying to move out of poverty. Grayce has also served as the Rent Administrator for the District of Columbia Government, carrying out the administration of the rent stabilization program, including the review of complaints and applications, and issuing written decisions arising from administrative petitions. Her experience also includes working as a staff attorney in the state of New Jersey handling housing and public benefits cases.
Co-Chair, Food Recovery and Access Working Group
Program Coordinator, Faith Community Nurse program Holy Cross Hospital
Peruvian native, Lucia Zegarra, has been involved in community development programs from a very young age. From leading youth and environmental groups in Peru to developing and facilitating bilingual support groups for the homeless in Washington, D.C., Lucia has become a strong advocate for peer support as a sustainable complement of formal health care services and prevention of disease. As the Director of Community Health Programs at CHEER, a community-based nonprofit serving Takoma Park and Long Branch, she lead a team of community health workers who support food insecure community members with type 2 diabetes. She also oversaw healthcare enrollment and other community-based initiatives that promote health equity. Lucia holds a BS in Biological Sciences from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Before moving to the D.C. area and hoping to make a difference in women’s lives, Lucia volunteered to become a certified domestic violence counselor in Los Angeles and later a certified breastfeeding counselor in D.C., using the latter to help minority populations achieve healthier lives. Now, she volunteers at a radio station offering health living resources and advice to a Hispanic audience in the D.C. metro area, Houston, Las Vegas, and San Francisco. In addition, she chairs the Parent Council of the German International School in Washington, D.C.
The Alumni Circle provides Food Council alums with a unique opportunity to continue to make a difference in the Montgomery County food system by staying connected to the Food Council’s efforts and serving as trusted advisors to the organization. Alumni Circle members will also have the opportunity to continue to benefit from the Food Council’s broad and deep network of subject matter experts, food system partners, and stakeholders.
Eleni Antzoulatos
Jenny Brown
Jackie DeCarlo
Jim Dempsey
Susan Eisendrath
Sharon Feuer Gruber
Mark Hodge
Thu Huynh
Dave Lambert
Kathy Madaleno
Jerry Martin
Tessa Mork
Aizat Oladapo
Shelley Rae Rudick
Tanya Spandhla
Dick Stoner
Susan Topping
Jenna Umbriac
Bart Yablonsky
Jan 19
Third Wednesday of each month, 9-10:30am via Zoom.
Jan 25
4th Tuesday of each month, 9:30-11am via Zoom.
Jan 26
Are you an advocate or funder of regional food systems? Do you want to know more about RFS and “thinking regionally”?
Feb 1
The first Tuesday of the month from 9:30AM-11AM via Zoom.
Feb 2-6
Healing Caucus Spaces for BIPOC and White Farm, Garden, Food, Land Educators.
Feb 3
In the fight against hunger, data collection plays a critical role in assessing need, identifying service gaps and deploying resources.
Feb 14
Second Monday of each month, 1:00 to 2:30pm. Please register in advance.
Mar 5
Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) will hold its first-ever Youth Climate Summit for high school students on Saturday, March 5, at the Universities at Shady Grove in Rockville.
March 15-17
Join thousands of your fellow anti-hunger advocates from across the country at the 2022 virtual National Anti-Hunger Policy Conference (AHPC), March 15-17.