Leadership
“Inside the word ‘emergency’ is ‘emerge’; from an emergency new things come forth. The old certainties are crumbling fast, but danger and possibility are sisters.”
Rebecca Solnit, Author: Hope in the Dark, Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities (2016)
Jennfer Gray Thompson, CEO
Jennifer Gray Thompson, MPA
Named as one of Forbes "50 over 50" IMPACT Leaders in 2022, Jennifer Gray Thompson has helmed Rebuild North Bay Foundation since January of 2018, right after the North Bay Megafire of October of 2017. Gray Thompson took a fledging organization and made it into a powerhouse national nonprofit that is the recognized national leader in recovery from megafires.
"We advocate, educate, collaborate to solve the issues with megafire."
Jennifer Gray Thompson is a lifelong resident of Sonoma Valley in Northern California. After teaching high school for 10 years, Jennifer earned a master’s degree in Public Administration from University of Southern California’s Price School of Public Policy. Post-graduate school, Jennifer worked for the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. After the devastating fires in the North Bay of San Francisco in October 2017, she accepted a position as Executive Director of the newly formed 501c3 nonprofit Rebuild NorthBay Foundation (RNBF), an organization dedicated to helping the region rebuild better, greener, safer, and faster.
Since the Camp Fire of 2018, RNBF has paid lessons forward to every wildfire affected community in the American West. As a response, RNBF created After the Fire USA to help solve the issue of megafire, a climate-based disaster affecting millions of people globally. This initiative was born of practice in communities for several years and the increasing threat of the Era of Megafire.
As CEO of this organization, Jennifer has designed an effective and innovative Wildfire Resiliency Network, implemented a Survivor Deployment Model for newly fire-affected communities, provided immersive and actionable After Action Reports to national organizations and communities, advocated with wildfire survivor leaders for sane and smart federal policies, and hosted a national summit on Wildfire Leadership twice, including a major expansion in 2022.
Jennifer is committed to equitable and resilient recoveries for every community, regardless of their ability to pay. ATF USA (non-profit wing) does not charge communities for their services and acts as a support for locally led and designed recoveries.
ATF USA has a thriving resiliency program under our Parent Organization, Rebuild North Bay Foundation, that is the lead agency for nearly $10M in state and federal grants for wildlands fuel mitigation programs.
Jennifer is nationally recognized as a leader in the space of wildfire and has presented at several national conferences at the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation, HAC, Fannie Mae, Brownsfield, Smart Cities, FEMA, and more.
Jennifer is the creator and host of the “How to Disaster” podcast, which highlights proven and effective leaders with great ideas in the space of disaster. She is on the board of directors of La Luz Center, a center focused on Latino communities, & First Responders Resiliency Inc, attending to the mental health of first responders nationally.
Jennifer Gray Thompson, MPA
Founder + Chief Executive Officer, After the Fire USA
Executive Director, Rebuild North Bay Foundation
After the Fire USA / Rebuild NorthBay Foundation Executive Board
Our Executive Board is comprised of regional and national leaders deeply committed to the resilience and rebuilding of fire affected communities.
Judy Coffey, RN, Board President
Judy Coffey, RN, served as the Senior Vice President and Area Manager of the Kaiser Permanente Marin-Sonoma service area from 2004 until she retired in early 2019. She was the chief executive for hospital and health plan operations in Sonoma and Marin counties, with over 300,000 members. Ms. Coffey is currently chair elect for the Northern and Central California Hospital Council Board of Directors, served as the chair of the North Bay Hospital Council for two years; is a board member with the Sonoma County Workforce Investment Board, United Way of the Wine Country, and Empire College; and is a member of the Sonoma County Health Action Council and Sonoma County Health Alliance. She is also Treasurer for the American Heart Association’s Western States Affiliate Board, Chairman of the AHA Operations and Finance Committee, and a member of the AHA Hospital Accreditation Business Management Committee. Ms. Coffey is a registered nurse, holds a bachelor’s degree in management, and has a master’s degree in business administration.
Judy Coffey, RN
Board President
Marko Bey
Marko Bey is the Founder and Executive Director of Lomakatsi Restoration Project (lomakatsi.org) based in Ashland, Oregon and affected by the Almeda Fire in 2020. Lomakatsi’s ten regional ecosystem restoration programs and associated workforce development initiatives are a primary result of his work. Lomakatsi has a proven record of success serving rural forest-based communities throughout Oregon and Northern California through supporting local jobs, community business infrastructure development, and restoration implementation across thousands of acres of forests and miles of streams.
Bey has over 30 years of experience working in forestry and ecosystem restoration from the ground up, working across six western states. His leadership has been essential in orchestrating the formation of collaborative partnerships, including with federal and state agencies, Native American tribes, non-profit organizations, industry, private landowners, and community members.
Bey also serves as the President & CEO of Lomakatsi Ecological Services Inc., a full-service wildland firefighting and prescribed fire contracting outfit, and serves as the Board President of the Southern Oregon Forest Restoration Collaborative. He participates in a variety of strategic coalitions and committees—working regionally and nationally to advance the full spectrum of ecosystem restoration, job creation, and forest-based community revitalization.
Marko Bey
Executive Board Member
Lisa Micheli, PhD
Dr. Micheli joined Sonoma County’s Pepperwood Foundation in October of 2009 as its inaugural Executive Director and now serves as the organization’s President and CEO. She brings more than 30 years of experience applying her technical, policy, and fundraising expertise to the design and implementation of ecological restoration, research, and education programs. She started her career at the US Environmental Protection Agency and then completed her graduate studies at UC Berkeley as a NASA Earth Systems Research Fellow in 2000. She now focuses her research on relationships between climate, watershed health, and biodiversity and has published numerous peer-reviewed studies on river restoration, climate adaptation, and community-based approaches to biodiversity conservation.
Dr. Micheli specializes in facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations focused on using relevant research to craft collective solutions to today’s most pressing landscape conservation challenges. She serves as the co-chair of Pepperwood’s Terrestrial Biodiversity Climate Change Collaborative (TBC3), a Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Bay Area climate adaptation research initiative, with Dr. David Ackerly, Dean of UC Berkeley’s College of Natural Resources. She also chairs the Golden Gate Biosphere Reserve team of the international Large Landscape Conservation Peer Network facilitated by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. She has been recognized as a Phi Beta Kappa scholar, a Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation Environmental Leader, a Bay Nature Institute Local Hero for Environmental Education, and a Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences. She is a member of the American Geophysical Union and the Society for Conservation Biology. Dr. Micheli serves as a director on After The Fire board and as a science advisor to the Sempervirens Fund, the Chile-California Conservation Network, the Bay Area Open Space Council, and the Water Research Foundation
Lisa Micheli, PhD
Executive Board Member
Our Advisory Board is a volunteer group of leaders in the space of disaster mitigation, response and recovery. Our Advisory Board provides information and materials to the organization. We have specifically chosen these members for their expertise, commitment to equity in recovery, and innovative voices in their industries.
Belinda Brown
Belinda Brown is a Kosalektawi Band Member of the Ajumawi-Atsuge Nation. (Pit River Tribe). She is also Gidutikad, Northern Paiute and Isleta Pueblo. She has served Indian Country in many capacities over her 30-year career, including her six years as the Executive Director of Strong Family Health Center, an Indian Health Service Clinic in northern California. She has also served as an elected official of her tribe and as tribal administrator. During her work with Lomakatsi Restoration Project as the Tribal Partnerships Director, over the past six years, she has assisted in the formation of the Inter-Tribal Ecosystem Partnership. (ITERP).
Belinda currently chairs both the ITERP and DEI Committee of the Rogue Forest Partners.
Belinda Brown
Oregon + Northern California
INDIGENOUS LAND PRACTICES
TRIBAL LAW
Adrienne Heinz
Adrienne Heinz, Ph.D. is a clinical research psychologist at the VA National Center for PTSD, Public Digital Health Innovation Program and Stanford University. Her research on trauma and resilience complements, informs, and inspires her clinical practice and she has been awarded over 1.5 million dollars in federal and private funding, resulting in over 50 peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Heinz also serves as a consultant advising on cultivation of public-private partnerships to expedite healthcare innovation in trauma-impacted communities. Dr. Heinz’s family and community in Healdsburg, California, have been repeatedly impacted by wildfire disasters and she cares deeply about raising awareness of the intersections of climate change, disaster, and mental health.
Adrienne Heinz, Ph.D.
Northern California
MENTAL HEALTH
Jennifer LeSar
Jennifer LeSar is the founding CEO of LeSar Development Consultants, the Global Policy Leadership Academy, LeSar Support Services, and LeSar Holdings, four firms working together to grow thriving, healthy and vibrant communities. Jennifer combines a background of more than four decades in community development, real estate development, and investment banking with a deep working knowledge of eco-system change management and organizational strategy. Her work supports clients in achieving impactful and scalable solutions to today’s most vexing policy challenges including addressing our global housing affordability crisis and ending homelessness in the United States. Jennifer received both her M.B.A. in real estate and finance and an M.A. in Urban Planning from UCLA and she received her B.A. from Bryn Mawr College in political science and economics. She also completed an Executive Program in Social Entrepreneurship at Stanford Graduate School of Business. She is a Fellow at The Billions Institute and teaches about the California housing crisis as a lecturer at Stanford University.
Jennifer LeSar
Southern California
BLOCK GRANT FUNDING
DISASTER CASE MANAGEMENT
Michael Mondavi, Executive Board
Michael Mondavi is the Founder & “Coach” of Folio Fine Wine Partners, a company he established in 2004 with his wife, Isabel, and their children, Rob and Dina. Folio is an importer and producer of quality wines from the world’s premiere and emerging wine regions, including Italy, Spain, Austria, New Zealand and California. Additionally, Folio provides sales, marketing and public relations services to the wine brands it represents.
Michael’s career began in 1966 when he co-founded the Robert Mondavi Winery in Napa Valley with his father, Robert Mondavi. Until 1974, he served as the Vice President of Production responsible for winemaking. From 1969 to 1978, Michael also served as Vice President of Sales. He was named Managing Director and CEO of Robert Mondavi in 1990. Following the Company’s public offering in 1994, Michael was appointed President and CEO and later served as Chairman from 2001 to 2004.
Over the years, Michael has been actively involved in industry affairs and committed to numerous civic activities, he is a member of the California State Chamber of Commerce Board, past Chairman and CEO of the Wine Market Council, past President of the Napa Valley Vintners Association, past Chairman of Wine Institute and past Chairman of Winegrowers of California, and previous Board Member of the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, LA.
In 1998, Michael was named “Industry Executive of the Year” by The Market Watch Leaders, a group of top industry executives. In 1997, Michael received the “Who’s Who in Food and Wine” award by the James Beard Foundation and, in 1995, he was awarded the “World of Food and Wine” Lifetime Achievement Award.
Michael Mondavi
Northern California
AGRICULTURE, BUSINESS
Diane Moss
Diane Moss is a Founder and Director of the Renewables 100 Policy Institute. She is also an independent consultant focused on energy policy, government relations, and sustainability related communications and campaigns for a broad range of entities, including non-profits, clean tech companies, and utilities, among others. Current and recent clients and issue areas include Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory on renewable hydrogen related activities, ebee Smart Technologies on US market development of streetlight EV chargers, among other public and private entities in the clean technology field. She also served from 2020-2022 as Policy Director for the California Hydrogen Business Council, for whom she consulted on renewable hydrogen policy from 2017-2020. She additionally served in 2018 as South Coast Air Quality Management District Board Member Consultant and Sustainability Consultant to Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn. In 2017, she South Coast Air Quality Management District Board Member Consultant to Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl. Her writing on renewable energy related issues has been published in Wall Street Journal, Beam, Today's Facility Manager, and Cleantechnica, among others. She was also U.S. Policy Advisor to World Future Council, and from 2008-2011, she served as Environmental Deputy to United States Congressmember Jane Harman. Ms. Moss studied at Harvard University and New York University and completed a thesis program in political science in Paris with professors from L'Institut d'Etudes Politques, University of Paris, and HEC. As a high school student, she also was an intern to the Costa Rican Ambassador to UNESCO in Paris.
Diane Moss
Southern California
ENERGY
Wendy Nystrom
Wendy Nystrom is an Environmental Subject Matter Expert and the host of Environmental Social Justice (ESJ), an online webcast that bridges the chasm between environmental and climate experts and the general public.
Her degrees are in Geology/GeoChemistry and Sustainability and has focused her professional background on environmental risk management, climate change, and sustainability where her combined knowledge in science, technology and risk has provided her with a unique view into companies’ exposures and prevention practices.
In 2020 she was appointed as a Commissioner to the Department of Public Works for the City of Beverly Hills and was named Co-Chair of the Citizens Action Committee (CAC) for the development of the Climate Action Adaptation Plan (CAAP). In this role she spearheaded the adoption of 100% renewable energy for the City of Beverly Hills with the Clean Power Alliance (CPA), the removal of plastic utensils from restaurant "take away" packages, and is working with neighboring cities and the community to develop and implement Beverly Hills’ first transit system.
Wendy Nystrom
Southern California
INSURANCE, REINSURANCE
Laurie Schoeman
Laurie Schoeman is the National Director of Disaster and Resilience Recovery at Enterprise Community Partners. She oversees Enterprise’s efforts to preserve and protect affordable housing across the nation from the risks and impacts of natural hazards and a changing climate. Her team assists CDCs, cities, states and the federal government in a wide range of communities across the nation to develop housing that can sustain impacts of natural hazards and incorporate innovative resiliency ideas, technical assistance, and advocacy support into post-event reconstruction of communities. She leads the development of guidance and tools such as the Keep Safe guide to resilient housing and design in Island Communities.
Prior to joining Enterprise, Laurie led the development of catalytic capital and educational projects across the nation including the development of San Francisco’s award winning, first Living Building, Platinum Leed certified off-grid education training center; the EcoCenter at Herons’ Head Park [ecocenterhhp.org], New York City’s first school-based rooftop greenhouse STEM education center; the nation’s first housing integrated urban agriculture systems; Sky Farms at Forest Houses Public Housing [observer.com]; and a community flagship art center in the South Bronx, the Bronx River Art Center [bronxriverart.org].
Laurie has led leading edge policy packages including passing the nation’s first utility-sponsored environmental justice policy in San Francisco and a package of Green Building legislation and policy in New York City. She currently advises a range of agencies/organizations on housing resilience, adaptation and mitigation including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), International Code Council (ICC), Institute for Building Technology and Safety (IBTS) and US Department of Energy (USDOE).
Laurie Schoeman
New York + Washington DC
BANKING, HOUSING
Jim White
Jim White has served as the Executive Director of the Nonprofit Association of Oregon since 2012. The mission of the NAO is to strengthen the collective voice, leadership and capacity of nonprofits to enrich the lives of all Oregonians. They help nonprofits have a collective voice and strive to amplify the role nonprofits play to enrich community life, stand up for underrepresented people and provide essential services and pioneer solutions to social and economic problems. Before his role with NAO, Jim worked as the Vice President of Operations for Mercy Corps.
Jim White
Oregon
PHILANTHROPY
Pamela Williams
Pamela Williams, Director of Mitigation and Resilience for IEM, a nationally recognized, woman- and minority-owned emergency management and disaster recovery firm. She brings 20 years of federal agency and congressional experience gained throughout her prolific career. She most recently served as the Executive Director of the BuildStrong Coalition, a group of firefighters, emergency responders, insurers, engineers, architects, contractors and manufacturers, as well as consumer organizations, code specialists, and many others committed to building a more resilient America. Prior to joining BuildStrong, she served as Counsel for the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management. Additionally, Ms. Williams was key in the enactment of the most transformational piece of legislation since Hurricane Katrina, the Disaster Recovery Reform Act, P.L. 115-254, for which she was the principal drafter and also successfully led negotiations with multiple committees, House leadership, the Senate, and the Administration. Ms. Williams served on the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Advisory Council in the Standards Setting & Accrediting position.
Additionally, as FEMA Deputy Director of Congressional Affairs, Ms. Williams was responsible for directing and executing the Agency’s legislative program. Prior to this role, Ms. Williams served as FEMA Associate Chief Counsel for Legislation and Policy where she managed the Agency’s response to congressional, White House and departmental investigations. During this time, Ms. Williams served as an Advisor to FEMA, Department of Homeland Security leadership, and the Administration on congressional actions, dispositions, and recommended legislative activities.
Ms. Williams previously served in various roles on the House Appropriations Committee, Homeland Security Subcommittee to work on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM), and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) portfolios.
Pamela Williams
Washington DC
FEMA
Emeritus Board
We are grateful for our founding and former Rebuild NorthBay foundation board members, many of whom guided us through our transition to a national megafire nonprofit, After the Fire USA. Their leadership through our recovery and rebuild process was a testament to the power of community to recover, rebuild, and reimagine post-disaster.
Jack Buckhorn
Mr. Jack A. Buckhorn earned an Associate of Science degree from Santa Rosa Junior College. He currently serves as the Executive Director of the North Bay Labor Council, AFL-CIO. Prior to working for the NBLC he served twelve years as the Business Manager and Financial Secretary for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 551. From 1989 to 1998, he was Training Director for the Redwood Empire Electrical Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee. Mr. Buckhorn is currently the Secretary-Treasurer of the Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake Counties Building and Construction Trades Council; President of the Marin County Building and Construction Trades Council; a member of the Sonoma County Health Action Partnership Council; a commissioner on the California Apprenticeship Council and the California Health Facilities Finance Authority.
Jack Buckhorn
Chisato Fukuda Calvert, Ph.D.
Chisato Fukuda Calvert, Ph.D. has 15 years of strategic partnership and 7+ years of business development experience across international development, nonprofits, and startups - all with a focus on advancing equitable solutions to the world's most pressing challenges driven by climate change. She is currently Strategic Partnership Director of SINAI Technologies, where she is developing and executing the company's strategic partnership strategy aimed to help companies build their decarbonization strategy and meet their net-zero targets.
She has served as Acting Director of OpenAQ Inc., where she managed all aspects of the company, including developing and implementing the strategic partnership strategy, partnership building, business development, and managing a growing open-source air quality platform that aggregates and harmonizes over 17 billion air quality measurements from 136 countries across the globe.
She was also Director of Strategic Partnerships at Impact Experience, where she served as an advisor and liaison between key financial partners and community leaders to channel investments into underserved communities throughout the U.S. to support climate resilience, disaster recovery, and community development. Chisato is also the Co-founder and former Director of SmartAir Mongolia, a social enterprise focused on developing and distributing affordable air purifiers to safeguard health against toxic air in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - one of the most polluted cities in the world.
She has also led environmental governance programs at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Laos, and across Southeast Asia, building strategic partnerships with national governments across ASEAN countries, research institutions, and diverse industries to champion win-win collaborations to advance environmental sustainability. Furthermore, she held positions at Trace Foundation in New York, and National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) in Washington, D.C. In addition to her work experience, she has conducted ethnographic research extensively across Asia including in Mongolia, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
Her doctoral dissertation fieldwork focused on health disparities caused by air pollution exposure in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. She has served as a consultant on several environmental health projects and climate mitigation interventions. Chisato earned her Ph.D. in Medical Anthropology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and graduated from Bucknell University with a Cultural Anthropology Honors Degree.
Chisato Fukuda Calvert, PhD
Lisa Carreno
Lisa is the President & CEO of United Way of the Wine Country. Before accepting the position in 2018, Lisa was the Regional Director for 10,000 Degrees in Sonoma County. In September 2013, Lisa became the first Latina to chair the Board for Directors for the Sonoma County Fair and Events Center in its 78-year history. In February 2014, Lisa was the first member of the community appointed to serve on the Editorial Board for the Press Democrat.
Lisa currently chairs the Board of Directors for Forget Me Not Farm Children’s Services and serves on the Community Benefit Committee for St. Joseph Health, Sonoma County Health Action Partnership Council, Congressman Mike Thompson’s Immigration Advisory Group, Los Cien Sonoma County Board of Directors, Sonoma County Coalition for Foster Youth, Sonoma County LGBTQI Giving Circle Steering Committee and the Community Foundation Sonoma County Board of Directors.
Lisa Carreno
Sonu Chandi
The Chandi Group began, like any good restaurant story, as a fifteen year-old Sonu worked the line during the Friday night dinner rush. Three years later, the Chandi brothers helped their father open up his own restaurant. There they cut their teeth negotiating leases, managing vendors, building a team, gaining the experience, and growing the excitement that would cement their decision to own their own hospitality group.
In 2007, the Chandi Group purchased their first restaurant, a Mountain Mike’s Pizza in Rohnert Park. Still in college and with little guidance from the corporate offices, they learned their lessons – from scheduling to handling to every other aspect of owning a franchise – the hard way. And, the right way. Since then, they’ve become the Northern California Mountain Mike’s Development Agent, opening six new locations, with one on the way, and piloting the Mountain Mike’s Tavern concept, which brought a full bar experience into the family friendly atmosphere.
Along the way, Ren joined the team, and family, helping guide them as they branched out into independent restaurants. Together, they took over Stout Brothers Irish Pub and Restaurant two days before St. Patrick’s Day in 2013. The success of Stout’s and the vibrancy of downtown Santa Rosa propelled them to launch three more restaurants, Bibi’s Burger Bar, Bollywood Bar and Clay Oven, and Beer Baron. To date, Sonu has also opened thirteen Mountain Mike’s Pizza locations throughout the North Bay.
Though it all, the Chandi Group has been guided by their deep-rooted commitment to their community, to their work, integrity, and their philosophy of continuous improvement. At every step, they’ve challenged themselves to learn and grow, and strive to always be better.
Sonu Chandi
Larry Florin, Executive Board + Secretary
Larry is CEO/President of Burbank Housing. Burbank Housing is Sonoma County’s largest builder and owner of affordable housing. Larry brings over thirty years experience in real estate, community and economic development in both the public and private sector to Burbank Housing. Most recently Larry served as the Director of Housing and Intergovernmental Affairs for Napa County. He managed Napa County’s affordable housing programs as well as the county’s Housing Authority and community and economic development activities.
Prior to joining Napa County Larry spent over ten years in the private sector, co founding a development company specializing in adaptive reuse of underutilized industrial property and overseeing some of the company’s largest development projects in the San Francisco Bay Area including the redevelopment of the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard and Treasure Island. While in the Northeast Mr. Florin oversaw a 2,000 unit urban mixed use development project along the Hudson River across from Midtown Manhattan.
He has over 15 years experience working in senior management positions in San Francisco including executive level positions in the Mayor’s Office, Redevelopment Authority and Port. He also served as the first Executive Director of the Treasure Island Development Authority.
Throughout the years Larry has served on the Executive Board of the Association of Bay Area Governments, the Governors Task Force on Military Base Conversion, the State of California Housing Element Working Group and California Forward’s One Million Homes Initiative. He has received the San Francisco Business Times Real Estate Transaction of the Year Award and the San Francisco Mayors Manager of the Year.
Larry has a Master in Urban Planning from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Purchase State College.
Larry Florin
Henry Hansel, Executive Board + Treasurer
Henry is the President of the Hansel Auto Group that is comprised of ten (10) new vehicle franchises in 9 Showrooms as well as the Leasing Company and Collision Center. The Hansel Auto Group employs nearly 700 full and part-time employees at its Sonoma County locations. Henry is also a partner with Steve Pleau at Future Ford Lincoln & Hyundai in Concord, CA.
- Born in 1948 in Vacaville, California & Moved to Sonoma County, California in 1961.
- 1970 University of Santa Clara, Bachelor of Science in Economics
- 1966 Bellarmine College Preparatory High School
- Employed by Memorex Corporation, Santa Clara from 1970 to 1973.
- Returned to Santa Rosa in late 1973 to work in the family business (Bishop Hansel Ford, located in downtown Santa Rosa.) He began as a Commercial Salesperson, was promoted to Sales Manager; then to Used Car Manager, and to General Sales Manager in 1975.
In 1979, he purchased Sanderson Ford in Petaluma and renamed the dealership Henry Curtis Ford-Mercury. A beautiful renovation was completed in 2016. In 1981, he began managing both Hansel Ford and Henry Curtis Ford. In 1983, the Lincoln Mercury franchise was purchased (Prestige Lincoln-Mercury) and a new showroom was built next to Hansel Ford in 1998 when the two merged as Hansel Ford Lincoln-Mercury. Saab Subaru and Veale Motors were purchased in 1990 and renamed Prestige Imports (BMW, VW, and Subaru), and Acura-Suzuki in Santa Rosa was renamed Hansel Acura in 2010. 1991 saw the addition of Hansel Toyota in Petaluma where a multi-million dollar renovation and expansion was completed in 2015; and in 1995-1996 Bob Benson Honda in Petaluma was purchased and renamed Hansel Honda. Today, Hansel Ford Lincoln and Hansel Mazda operate from the same campus on Corby Avenue where the Hansel Ford Lincoln Showroom underwent its face-changing remodel in 2015 as well. The Hansel Auto Campus on Corby Avenue was completed in 2012 & 2013 as the new home for Hansel BMW of Santa Rosa, Hansel Volkswagen of Santa Rosa, Hansel Subaru, along with Hansel Acura … three new Showrooms plus a Parts Center, Service Building, and Detail/Carwash facilities to support all of them.
Henry Hansel
Jesse Katz
Early adventures to legendary vineyards and wineries around the world with his father, photographer Andy Katz, rooted Jesse in a passion for place and respect for creative crafts. Jesse is inspired by the relationship of unpredictable nature in the vineyard, precise science in the winery, and a craft millennia in the making. His winemaking centers on selecting unique sites, then pairing diverse farming and winemaking techniques to extract the deepest expression of each vineyard.
Today, Katz creates terroir driven wines for his brands: Aperture Cellars,Devil Proof Vineyards. Aperture, a collaborative project with his father, focuses on Bordeaux varietals and demonstrates an expression of art both inside the bottle and out. Devil Proof Vineyards, Jesse’s flagship wine, is a single vineyard, dry farmed 100% Malbec, whose first release received the highest rating of any Malbec from California from both Robert Parker, Jr. and Wine Spectator, and was named “Cult Winery” of the year. Jesse’s new winery and vineyards slated to open in 2019 will showcase sustainable wine growing and production, while expanding capacity.
In 2010, Katz was the youngest-hired head winemaker in the US at Lancaster Estate, where he brought to bear his handcrafted style of terroir driven winemaking and established their Roth Estate brand. During his five-year tenure, he orchestrated the building of the new Roth winery, production facility, and tasting room on Chalk Hill Road, grew the Roth line over 800% and received 90+ scores on every wine scored by Robert Parker, Jr and his wine was designated as Top 100 Wines by Wine Spectator. During this time, he also pivoted farming and winery practices, making both certified sustainable. His experience spans 15 harvests at wineries like Pétrus and includes time on the winemaking teams at Screaming Eagle Winery, Robert Foley Winery, and Viña Cobos and Bodega Noemia in Argentina.
Jesse has been named 40 Under 40 Tastemaker by Wine Enthusiast and was the first winemaker on the Forbes 30 Under 30. Aperture Cellars was recently selected as a Rising Star by Wine Spectator and a bottle of his 2015 The Setting Wines just became the most expensive single bottle of wine ever sold, earning $350,000 at Emeril Lagasse’s annual charity wine auction. Jesse puts his abilities to work raising funds for good causes, such as Becoming Independent, Navy Seals Foundation, United Way and Roots of Peace whose “Mines to Vines” program works to restore economic stability to war stricken areas of the world through agriculture. He also produces custom wines for athletes and celebrities like Tony Hawk, Superbowl MVP Von Miller, Shep Gordon, as well as Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel’s wedding wine. He has also been featured by multiple media outlets, including: Wine and Spirts, Food and Wine, Drinks Business, Wine Advocate, Worth, Bloomberg, Huffington Post, ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, FOX News, People, ESPN, Forbes, People, AOL, Esquire, and others.
Jesse Katz
Jake Kloberdanz
Jake Kloberdanz is CEO and Founder of ONEHOPE, a brand with a mission to build a community that makes the world better through memorable wine and experiences. ONEHOPE creates thoughtfully-crafted products that each make a measurable impact for a specific charitable cause.
Since launching ONEHOPE in 2007, Jake has successfully raised more than $50 million in financing. He is one of few people age 35 or under to build an independent wine brand now producing more than 150,000 cases annually, solidifying ONEHOPE as one of the 250 largest wineries out of 9,000 in the United States. In 2014, he helped lead ONEHOPE’s acquisition of a flagship vineyard in Napa, and subsequently, helped finance the construction of an iconic Estate and Winery on the property. The Estate is complete and the Winery will be completed by summer of 2019. The ONEHOPE brand has received recognition in Inc. magazine’s “500|5000” – an annual exclusive list of America’s fastest-growing private companies – for six years and counting.
Through the sales of ONEHOPE products, the ONEHOPE Foundation has donated millions of dollars to the brand’s nonprofit partners. Beyond ONEHOPE, Jake also serves as board member and advisor for numerous successful business and nonprofits.
During his time as CEO and founder, Jake has been recognized by Bloomberg Businessweek’s, “Top 25 under 25”, Wine Enthusiast’s,“Top 40 Under 40” and was the youngest nominee to be recognized by Ernst & Young for “Entrepreneur of the Year”. He has also been a speaker at numerous conferences, events and universities including TEDx, The United Nations Annual Global Event, Stanford, U.C. Berkeley, UCLA and MIT. Jake serves on the Advisor Board for 8VC, a successful venture capital firm in SF whose recent investments include Oculus, Wish, Blend and more. He is also an active member of the Young Entrepreneurs Council, GenNext, Napa Valley Vintners and Napa Valley Grapegrowers.
Jake’s work has been profiled in numerous media outlets including, Forbes, Leaders, Entrepreneur, Inc. and Success magazine, in which he shares his expertise in consumer brands and integrating cause into business models and culture. His model, known as Cause-Centric Commerce, helps to integrate social impact with everyday commerce.
Prior to founding ONEHOPE, Jake graduated from the Haas School of Business and was a three-year Scholar Athlete at UC Berkeley playing football and rugby, where he earned numerous national championships.
Jake Kloberdanz
Cynthia Murray
Cynthia Murray is President/ CEO of North Bay Leadership Council (NBLC). Murray served eight years on the Marin County Board of Supervisors and seven years on the Novato City Council, including one term as Mayor. She received the 2010 Women in Business award from the North Bay Business Journal for her achievements in economic development. Murray serves on the boards of many organizations including the North Bay Life Science Alliance, Bay Area Council Economic Institute; First 5 Sonoma County Commission, Sonoma County Health Action Council, Healthy Marin Partnership, Marin School to Careers Partnership and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s Policy Advisory Council.
Murray is a graduate of Rutgers University, spent 20 years in sales and marketing, and is an adjunct professor at Sonoma State University and Dominican University.
Cynthia Murray
Tara Sharp
Tara Sharp is a senior marketing executive with 15+ years’ experience in leading and managing multi-channel businesses, branding, e-commerce, CRM, product development, sales and strategy with P&L responsibility.
She has a passion for innovative and disruptive technological approaches to evangelizing and driving product adoption. Seasoned general manager with a track record of recruiting and developing high performance teams who work well in cross-functional and matrixed organizations.
Tara Sharp
Casey Taylor
Casey Taylor is the founder and Executive Director of Achieve Charter Schools of Paradise. In 2005 she worked with parents, community leaders and educators to develop and open a kindergarten through fifth grade charter school in Paradise, California. In 2008 Casey led Achieve as they expanded their program to middle school. In 2018 she worked with community leaders, local business owners, teachers and families to open Achieve Charter High School, a high school focused on college and career opportunities for all through entrepreneurship and computer science pathways.
After the 2018 Paradise Camp Fire, Taylor led her team in reopening schools in temporary facilities in Chico, while building a permanent school facility there. In the 2021-22 school year, Achieve opened Achieve Charter School of Chico at the new facility and reopened Achieve Charter School of Paradise at the original campus in Paradise. She and her team are now working to reopen Achieve Charter High School in Paradise in the coming years. Taylor is a Paradise native and is committed to providing high quality educational options to the community, especially during the rebuilding process. She sits on the Rebuild Paradise Foundation Board, is a Paradise Rotary Club member and serves on the Paradise Citizen’s Alliance.
Taylor is also an advocate for public charter schools and serves on the California Charter Schools Association’s Board of Directors and as the chair of the California Charter School Association’s Member Council. She works closely with local charter leaders in Butte County and is the chair of the Butte County Charter Leaders Network. Under her leadership, Achieve Charter School has been recognized as a California Distinguished School in 2014 and again in 2020. Taylor was also named the California Charter Schools Association’s Charter Leader of the Year in 2017. She currently supports other school leaders across the state on rebuilding schools after disasters and is asked to share Achieve’s story to inspire others and advocate for state and federal support.