Board of Trustees
Jen Ballen
(Boston, MA)
Jen is the Founder of The Sustainable Investor, an editorial blog demonstrating through data-driven research that profitability and environmental/social impact need not be mutually exclusive.
Amy Ballin
(Gloucester, MA)
Carl Baty
(Dorchester, MA)
Valerie Cardoso
(Dorchester, MA)
Emmanuel Encarnacion – Chair
(Lynn, MA)
After graduating from Salem State University with a double Bachelor’s in Business and Dance, he began working as a Community Health Worker for Mass General Hospital assisting families suffering through food insecurities.
Danielle Benedict
(Sharon, MA)
Appointed Chief Human Resources Officer at United Natural Foods (UNFI) in April of 2016 and previously held the position of SVP and National VP HR since 2013. Responsibilities include total rewards, executive compensation, diversity & inclusion, succession, organizational design, talent management, change management & communication.
Danielle joined UNFI from Clean Harbors Environmental Services, where she served in various roles over a 7-year timeframe; including Vice President of Leadership Development, Vice President Human Resources and Director of Compensation & Benefits. Prior to Clean Harbors she worked for Dunkin Brands and Victor Coffee for several years each in various accounting and HR roles.
Norris Guscott
(Lynn, MA)
Norris also leads a statewide working group that is actively facilitating connections between BIPOC farmers, building that networks capacity for policy advocacy, and drafting language for bills, he drafted a significant amount of language for bills HD 1661 & SD 1036.
Irene Li – Vice Chair
(Brighton, MA)
Abra Francois
Abra Francois currently serves as an Associate General Counsel at Tufts University, where she specializes in labor and employment as well as litigation, civil rights, athletics, and malpractice matters. Prior to this role, Abra worked as a Supervisory Civil Rights Attorney at the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, where she enforced civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, and age.
Abra also previously focused on civil rights and employment law at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and New York City Law Department. Abra is a graduate of Simmons College and Boston College Law School. She lives in Quincy and is an avid gardener who loves growing vegetables for her husband and two kids.
Evelyn Arrivillaga
I grew in Lynn and ever since I was young I’ve always had the intuition to explore. I’ve been inspired to try new things and see where the wind takes me. I’m continuously challenging myself and growing, working hard for myself and those around me. The Food Project is what I consider to be my second home. I hope as a board member I’m able to encourage this feeling within this organization. I want to make sure we as a collective are constantly improving, after all, I am here to be a part of working towards the brightest future of TFP.
Ezra Hausman
Bio Coming soon
Gardenia Leon Munoz
Born in Boston and raised in Lynn. Gardenia is a sophomore attending Lynn English High School. She enjoys Inclusivity Panel and reading sometimes. She’s been a youth at TFP since the summer of 2022 and ever since that summer she’s been happy to stay at TFP. Currently she’s a member of Academic Root Crew. Gardenia decided to join the board to gain insight as to what transpires within the organization and how decisions are made as a committee.
She found out about this opportunity through her supervisor, Will Capriola and Andy Ly, her peer leader. This past year, she’s been interested in agriculture, social work, finance and gardening. She’s hoping through this opportunity she can gain experience as a board member, learn from her peers, and eat good food!
Kathleen Lomatoski
Bio Coming soon
Kimberly Lee – Development Committee
Raised on a small family farm in rural Illinois, Kim graduated from Cornell University with a degree in Chemistry and earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Washington. A career in biotech culminated in her role as Director of Proteomics at Cell Signaling Technology, Inc. Kim extended her impact at CST beyond the laboratory, co-founding the DEI Council and chairing the community grants committee, which ultimately led to her introduction to The Food Project. Kim now focuses full-time on community service and nonprofit support in the vibrant City of Lynn.
In addition to her role as a Trustee for The Food Project, she serves on the Board of Directors of Girls Inc. of Boston and Lynn, volunteers with ESC (Empower Success Corps) to provide strategic planning consulting services to nonprofit organizations, and is a member of the Lynn Arts & Culture Council, The Boston Club, the Rotary Club of Lynn, and East Baptist Church. Kim is passionate about youth development and equity in food and nutrition. She enjoys watching sports on TV with her husband and dog, cooking healthy meals, and traveling to visit friends and family, attend sporting events, and try new restaurants.
Moshammed Jahan
My name is Moshammed (Moshe) and I am a 16 year old sophomore at Lynn English High School in Lynn, MA and I am also currently working as a youth member for the North Shore’s Root Crew Academic Year. Some of the things that I enjoy doing include spending my free time with my friends and family, as well as cooking! Whenever I spend time with my mother and grandmother, I get to learn so many new recipes and even on my own time I enjoy researching delicious and nutritious foods that I can cook even alone. Now, growing up in Lynn I have gotten to know about The Food Project over the course of the past 7-8 years and while also working in the North Shore Region as a youth member of the Youth Development Program for the past 2 years. Joining the organization as a youth member would’ve been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made!
I say this because of how much the organization has helped me build on my leadership skills along with both inspiring and empowering me to utilize these skills within my local community. The skill sets that I have managed to expand on with the help of The Food Project have supported me in making changes within my school community and also helping other schools in my district! Being able to learn, experience, along with growing at The Food Project made me want to gain a deeper understanding about why the organization does what it does and how other non-profit organizations run as well. During the end of my second summer of the Youth Development Program, I applied for the TFP Board Position wanting to become more knowledgeable on the behind the scenes of this organization. Soon enough, I found out that I made it! Even so, my hopes with being on the board include providing the board with insights on how their decisions impact the youth and how The Food Project can improve further onto strengthening the three of our main pillars. Youth, Food, and Community.
Reuben Pomerantz
Bio Coming soon
Diane Stansbury (Clerk)
(Arlington, MA)
Sarai Zelada
(Lynn, MA)
Our Board of Trustees meets six times per year. To reach out with questions or interest in joining our board, please send an email to: boardinfo@thefoodproject.org.