The 2012-2013 Tacoma Food Co-op Board of Directors was elected by co-op member-owners in the October 2012 annual elections. Board members are elected to serve up to a 3 year term. All year long we are in the process of soliciting new Board Members for the next term. Are you interested? Please contact us.
David Foster, President
David joined the board in 2011. Although currently a Seattle resident, David has close ties to Tacoma, and as a longtime CSA member local food enthusiast, he enjoys working to promote healthy, local, sustainable food systems.
David has been a practicing architect with his own award-winning design and real estate development firm for twenty years, and brings his experience in business, planning, and creative thinking to the co-op. Previous board and community experience includes serving on the Design Review Board for the City of Seattle, and as chair of his neighborhood association.
Robert More, Vice President
Rob was recruited to the Tacoma Food Co-op board in July 2010, and has since enjoyed the collaboration that takes place among its members. Being on the board has given him the opportunity to help move the food co-op forward.
Rob has a Masters in Architecture from Montana State University. He is skilled in the development of construction documents and presentation graphics, as well as having worked in the construction trades. Rob was a Peace Corps volunteer in rural Bolivia from 2004-2006 working in community development, which taught him about the challenges and methods of accomplishing things with very limited resources. Since returning to the states, he has been working with a local architecture firm helping to bring multi-million dollar projects to completion by working with clients to general contractors.
Molly Archer, Treasurer
Molly Archer moved to Tacoma in 2006. After looking for a co-op, she instead became a regular at the farmer’s market and then found out about this effort. She volunteered on the finance committee and was elected to the board at the 2009 annual meeting. After WSU, she joined a regional CPA firm in Yakima where she became a partner specializing in taxes and retirement plans.
In 2000, she and her family decided to simplify and moved to Holden Village where she became much more aware of the health, environmental and social issues surrounding our food. Molly currently works in Tacoma as the Director of Finance for the nonprofit Associated Ministries. She enjoys getting to know the Tacoma community through volunteering and shopping at the new Co-op.
Jennie Agard, Secretary
Jennie Agard moved to Tacoma in 2006. She has worked in Accounting and IT for over 30 years, and has served on the PCC-Kirkland members advisory committee and as Treasurer for Washington State NOW. She is currently business processes analyst at Ballard Hardware in Seattle, and lives 2 blocks from her 2 daughters, their partners and her 2 grandsons.
Jennie is an organic gardener, raises chickens for eggs, and is a CSA member (Filbert Acres in Puyallup). She has been gluten and dairy-free since 2004 and soy-free since 2006. She is enthusiastic about the alternatives the co-op offers us for different dietary needs and the co-op’s emphasis on local and organic foods.
Mandy Landa
Mandy moved to Tacoma in 2010 and looked around for a local co-op. What she found was a dedicated group of individuals working to start a co-op. Mandy joined the Board in 2010 as they worked tirelessly raising money and community support for a store. Prior to serving on the Board of the Tacoma Food Co-op, Mandy has served on the board of the Sno-Isle co-op in Everett, WA where she cultivated respect for the value of co-ops and their principles.
Her interests on the Board are governance, leadership, and helping our co-op relate to the larger world of co-ops. During her time as President, Mandy hopes to facilitate the co-op as it becomes a vital, integral, and indispensable part of the greater Tacoma community. Professionally, Mandy works with ecommerce businesses to create and implement their online strategies…she is a born marketer. Personally, Mandy enjoys Tacoma and its surrounding water and nearby hiking areas.
Tim Runge
Tim grew up in the South Puget Sound area where he developed his love for outdoor activities, the environment, and good fresh food. Since he was 6 he has been hiking, climbing, skiing, cycling and exploring the world around him any chance he gets. He have found cooking to be an extension of his love for exploration where he’ll try anything and everything. Just as in nature, though, the experience is so much better when the ingredients are clean and pure.
His first real job was at the REI call center. Tim left that Co-op to earn his bachelor’s degree from Central Washington University in Interpersonal and Organizational Communication. After college he returned to REI, working in four REI stores around the west before transferring to the Distribution Center where he is now an operations supervisor. In 2011 he and his wife moved to Tacoma and discovered the TFC. Tim hopes to contribute to the TFC Board his leadership and management experience in order to ensure that this organization can serve as many people as possible in a sustainable and responsible way.
Carl Toews
Carl moved to Tacoma in 2011 and joined the co-op board in 2012. His interest in organic, locally sourced food has roots in his devotion to health, good eating, community, and the environment.
Carl has a background in mathematics, and has worked as a teacher and a scientist for over a decade. His interests in the co-op include governance, policy, and outreach. When he’s not teaching, researching, or spending time with his family, Carl enjoys getting to know the complicated character of his new native city and exploring the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
Katy Stewart
Katy and her family arrived in Tacoma in 2009. She has been thrilled to discover that her new home town is a hard working, friendly community with an amazing spirit of entrepreneurship, dedicated to supporting its local small businesses, creating access to good food, and supporting the arts, farmers markets, and parks. She is delighted with the success of the Co-op’s first year and plans to contribute to its continued growth.
She has a background in documentary film making and environmental science, and has a 100 ton captain’s license. She brings experience with running a small non-profit, familiarity with coordinating a volunteer workforce, and a strong desire to get involved in her new community.
Aaron Donny-Clark
Aaron moved to Tacoma in 2008, and took his time settling in to the community. He found himself interested in the politics of food, and eventually discovered the best place to shop ethically, the TFC. Aaron has a background in governance from his time at McGill University, where he was President of the Student’s Society of McGill University. He was appointed to the Board in the fall of 2012, and can’t wait to be chest deep in policies, by-laws, and other governance documents.
Aaron’s interests on the Board are governance, transparency, and understanding the unique role of coops. He will advocate for the coop to take an active role in community efforts to combat the obesity epidemic. As a new member of the Board, Aaron hopes to learn as much as possible so that he can be a true asset. Aaron is an avid cyclist, loves long hikes in the Olympics, and will soon be raising a puppy.
To contact the TFC Board of Directors, please email: tacomafoodcoop@gmail.com
