Michelle was born and raised in Texas and moved to Colorado in 2018. Upon moving to the state, she made a career change from Dental Assisting to Administrative and Clerical Support and is now employed with Conejos County in the San Luis Valley. She has served on several boards including the Town of Romeo and Conejos County Housing. As someone with an auto-immune condition that is dependent on diet, there is nothing more important in her everyday life.

Joan Brucha is the Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) Unit Manager at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment with over 15 years of experience working statewide and nationally with childhood obesity initiatives. She led the Healthy Schools Program with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, an initiative started by the Clinton Foundation and American Heart Association, and was Vice President of Professional Development Services at RMC Health. Joan holds a Master Degree in Public Health from the University of Northern Colorado. In her spare time, she enjoys listening to live music, attending Rockies and Nuggets games, and being physically active, especially running in Denver’s City Park.

Caroline is the Associate Director of Corporate Engagement at The Good Food Institute (GFI), a nonprofit organization accelerating the shift to a sustainable, healthy, and just food system. She advises some of the world’s largest food manufacturers, meat producers, and retailers, as well as startups and investors on opportunities in the rapidly evolving alternative protein industry. She also supports GFI’s state-level policy work within Colorado.

Previously, Caroline served as the Director of Marketing for Celestial Seasonings at The Hain Celestial Group. She has also worked at Moet Hennessy USA and Janus Capital Group. With almost 15 years experience in CPG brand management, finance, and consulting, she is deeply familiar with the food industry. Caroline is a graduate of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

In addition to her role as a Regional Food Coordinator with Hunger-Free Colorado, Marci Cochran wears multiple Food System hats in Pueblo – all related to her passions of an equitable Food System that meets people where they are, ensuring access to relevant, holistic nourishment for humans.

Chef Ann Cooper is a celebrated author, chef, educator and enduring advocate for better food for all children. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Ann has been a chef for more than 30 years, over 15 of those in school food programs. She currently serves as the Director of Food Services for the Boulder Valley School District. Known as the Renegade Lunch Lady, Ann has been honored by The National Resources Defense Council, selected as a Kellogg Food and Society Policy Fellow, and awarded an honorary doctorate from SUNY Cobleskill for her work on sustainable agriculture. In 2009, Ann founded the nonprofit Chef Ann Foundation to focus on solutions to the school food crisis with free and accessible tools, recipes and resources to support schools transitioning to scratch-cooked meals made with whole, healthy food.

Krista Garand recently joined the Colorado Department of Education Nutrition Unit as the Supervisor of Grants and Strategy. In this new role she provides oversight, project management and strategic direction for the following areas: farm to school and meal quality initiatives, including Local School Food Purchasing Program; Blueprint to End Hunger implementation grant; USDA Technology Innovation Grant; USDA Farm to School Grant; new programs and grant funding opportunities; quality improvement projects; and unit strategic plan. This work supports the mission of the unit to support the child nutrition community through innovation, training, and partnerships to ensure all youth have access to healthy meals.

Prior to this new role, Krista served as the Food Service Director with Durango School District 9-R for sixteen years where she championed farm to school work in the state of Colorado in order to support local agriculture and healthy school meal initiatives. Krista was an appointee to the Colorado Farm to School Task Force.

Hollis Glenn is currently the Director of the Division of Inspection and Consumer Services for the Colorado Department of Agriculture. In this role, he oversees a number of regulatory programs associated with Colorado’s agricultural industries; including oversight of custom meat processors, egg dealers, farm products and commodity handlers, produce safety, and commercial animal feed. Hollis serves on the Board of Directors of the American Association of Feed Control Officials and serves on the FDA Governing Council for the Partnership for Food Protection, which is focused on a national initiative to develop a blueprint for a new era in food safety. He has over 14 years of regulatory experience with the state of Colorado. Hollis is a proud Colorado native and earned his MBA from the University of Colorado at Denver.

Al Goodman (he/they) is the Operations and Markets Manager for East Denver Food Hub where they focus on aggregation, distribution, and his true love, farmers markets. He specializes in building meaningful relationships and partnerships with farmers, ranchers, and producers across Colorado and the broader food region. Al is always looking for new market channels, from small CSAs to large institutional buyers, to make profitability that much more viable for growers in the state.

Prior to moving to Colorado, Al worked in D.C.-area food systems for over five years, serving as a FoodCorps AmeriCorps School Garden Coordinator in District of Columbia Public Schools, managing farmers markets around the city with FRESHFARM, and helping low-income community members enroll in food assistance programs He also lived in Ireland where he worked extensively on small-scale regenerative farms and helped create a local purchasing program for a small restaurant group.

Tessa Hale is the Healthy Beverage & Food Advisor at Boulder County Public Health where she supports community members in tackling the systems leading to dietary-related chronic disease through building farm to institution food systems and innovative policy campaigns. Tessa is especially interested working toward a sustainable, equitable, healthy, and just food system in Colorado. Her perspective on Colorado’s food and agricultural system is informed by her family’s roots as farmers in Kit Carson, Colorado, and her current work on increasing access to healthy foods for all Colorado residents. Tessa holds a Master of Science in Nutrition Education from American University.

Derrick Hoffman was born and raised in Loveland, Colorado. His family originally immigrated to Colorado in 1903 to work the sugar beet fields in Weld County. His grandfather grew up to farm, as well as his father. Derrick ended up farming with both of them until his Dad retired in 2002, from there Derrick embarked on a 22 year career in Education working in Information Technology. During this time, his wife Hanmei started an urban farm on their 3 acre property in north Greeley. With Derrick’s past experience, they have grown their small farm into a 100 acre operation of mixed vegetables that they sell directly to consumers, as well as to K-12 school districts and other institutional buyers. 2022 will be their 8th full season in operation.

Karla Maraccini currently serves as the Division Director of Food and Energy Assistance for CDHS in the Office of Economic Security in order to connect people to resources and improve outcomes for individuals and families across Colorado through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Low-income Energy Assistance Program, Electronic Benefits Transfer, and Automation. She has previously served the Mountain Plains Region as the Program Analyst for the USDA in SNAP Employment & Training after serving the State of Colorado as the Director of Community Partnerships at the Office of Governor Hickenlooper assisting the administration with fundraising and management of special projects. Karla has extensive knowledge of human services systems and has worked with individuals and families impacted by abuse, neglect, substance abuse, poverty, housing and food insecurity, and mental health issues in several capacities. She is an active community volunteer who has called Colorado home for 28 years and has rescued several dogs who are her pride and joy.

Nicholas Marquez was born and raised in Colorado, his passion and commitment towards community empowerment and achieving true racial, economic, and social justice stems from his and his family’s past and current struggles to living a dignified life. He currently works as a Community Organizer with Hunger Free Colorado. His focus is to engage Colorado’s most impacted communities in meaningful ways that builds trust and deep relationships which nourish community members as leaders in their communities while also bolstering their lived experiences as expertise to push for long-lasting systemic changes.

Michele has worked at Community Agriculture Alliance (CAA) since 2010 and assumed the Executive Director role in 2018. She brings over 25 years of professional fund raising and marketing experience to the CAA. Michele previously worked for United Way, Hospice of Larimer County and has her own business as a personal trainer/yoga instructor, she is also a part time ski instructor.  Upon moving to the Yampa Valley in 2010, Michele owned and operated a small family farm with her three children active in 4-H.  Sharing the hard work of raising and growing food shaped her passion for local food.
Michele started the CAA local food program in 2014 and has guided its growth to a thriving local food market with an expanding impact in the community.  Michele chairs the NW Colorado Food Coalition, serves on the Yampa River Fund Board and Steamboat Springs Chamber Board.  She also serves on the Colorado Cattlemen’s Ag Land Trust Yampa Valley Advisory Committee.

With a diverse background, Michele comments, “One of the main reasons I moved to NW Colorado is the natural beauty of the Yampa Valley.  The scenic working landscapes, open spaces, and heritage of agriculture are critical to keeping the area unique and so special.”

Julie Moore has been the Director of Nutrition & Education for the Colorado Beef Council since May 1997. A Nebraska native, Julie grew up on a diversified farming and ranching operation. After completing both a Food Science and a Human Nutrition degree at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Julie worked for JBS for three years in the beef processing facility in Grand Island, Nebraska. She attended Colorado State University and received a Master’s in Meat Science and then worked for one of the Burger King beef patty suppliers before coming to the Colorado Beef Council. During her tenure at the Colorado Beef council Julie has been a part of several AHA committees, the CDPHE Cardio-Vascular Disease & Stroke Task Force, a founding member of COPAN (predecessor of LiveWell Colorado) and founding appointee to the Colorado Farm to School Task Force. Julie lives in Aurora with her husband Rex and two sons William (20) and Ethan (16).

As the director of food systems, Wendy leads the development and implementation of LiveWell Colorado’s strategies related to food systems, food access and food promotion.

After moving to Colorado in 2005, Wendy researched healthy food access initiatives for the National Convergence Partnership while also serving as project coordinator for the “Gardens for Growing Healthy Communities” research project with the University of Colorado-Denver and Denver Urban Gardens. She joined the consulting firm Civic Results in 2007 to help staff the healthy schools and food access teams of the Metro Denver Health & Wellness Commission. Wendy launched her own firm, WPM Consulting, in May 2009. Since then, she has collaborated with numerous organizations—including LiveWell Colorado, LiveWell communities across the state, Colorado State University, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, Hunger Free Colorado, and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment—to work on a variety of projects aimed at leveraging our food systems to improve equitable access to healthy foods.

Wendy holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in city and regional planning from the University of California-Berkeley. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her three young kids, trail running, camping, and reading fiction.

Effie Rorke is the Executive Director of Public Policy and Communications for Feeding Colorado, an association of the five Feeding America food banks serving all of Colorado and Wyoming. As an experienced nonprofit lobbyist and public health professional, she is passionate about advancing policies that alleviate food insecurity. Prior to joining Feeding Colorado, Effie was a member of Feeding America’s lobbying team during the 2018 Farm Bill, led the legislative portfolio on disaster response, as
well as served as a liaison between the national office government relations team and the nationwide network of food banks. Effie began her tenure in food banking as the State Advocacy and Public Policy Director for the Oklahoma Food Banks, where she was fortunate to be able to identify and prepare the only SNAP recipient to testify in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture during the lead up to the 2018 Farm Bill.

Effie is also the Principal Consultant of This Land Consulting, Inc., helping public and nonprofit organizations advance their missions through campaign planning, issue advocacy, and research. Clients have included the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition, the Maine Council on Aging, Indian Nations Council of Governments (OK), and more. Effie completed her undergraduate degree at Oklahoma State University, earned a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Arizona, and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Oklahoma. Effie and her family live in Colorado Springs.

Greg Thomason recently joined the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade as the Rural Opportunity Representative for Eastern Colorado. Prior to assuming his new role, Greg served as the Executive Director with Morgan County Economic Development Corporation where he established support for an agribusiness incubator and advanced initiatives in support of workforce housing,

He currently serves on the boards of directors with the Colorado Growth & Revitalization Fund, the Economic Development Council of Colorado; and the Northeast Colorado Association of Local Governments.

Laurian Unnevehr is a retired Professor (Emerita) of Agricultural Economics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.  She resides in Grand Junction, Colorado.

During the past four decades, Prof. Unnevehr has published extensively on food policy issues, and she is recognized as a Fellow of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA).  She has served on several national advisory boards for USDA, the National Academy of Sciences, and the food industry.  She has a Ph.D. and M.A. from the Food Research Institute, Stanford University; and a B.A. in Economics from the University of California at Davis.