Board of Directors
Erica Lengacher
Erica is the Board President. She currently works as a senior researcher for RAND Corporation and brings non-profit leadership and governance experience from a varied career as an educator, scientist, and critical care nurse. Erica is committed to working toward durable and equitable food systems in partnership with the communities they serve. In her free time, Erica can be found gardening, riding bikes, skiing, and exploring wild places with her husband and daughter.
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Teckla Putnam
Teckla is Vice President of the board and works in the wellness department at Kalispell Regional Medical Center. She coordinates wellness programs for the Whitefish School District. She is passionate about healthy food access for all community members.
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Kim Solem
Kim is the Board Treasurer and an advocate for healthy food access for all, and simplifying food distribution through local farmer engagement. She brings 30 years of experience leading corporate philanthropy and environmental programs for major high-tech companies, and has served on boards with a variety of local, national and international nonprofits. She volunteers as an adaptive ski, paddle, horseback and mountain biking coach for individuals with disabilities and veterans, and as a writing coach in the Whitefish school district. Kim spends her free time getting lost in the woods with her family.
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Naomi Delaloye
Serving as the Board Secretary, Naomi also teaches French and Spanish to middle schoolers in Whitefish. She is a mother, adventurer and avid home gardener who is passionate about supporting access to healthy food for all, as well as local farming.
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Amy Weinberg
Amy is a lover of all things outdoors and dogs and always has a smile on her face. She loves helping anyone; no matter how big or small. She values quality of life for all and fiercely optimistic about our communities equal access for all whether it be food, travel, education, or resources.
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Kristen Shepker
Kristen is a diehard veggie lover who believes all humans deserve access to healthy, nourishing, and local foods. When she’s not at work feeding the community as the program coordinator at North Valley Food Bank, you might find her gardening, foraging, cooking, or otherwise playing with delicious eats.
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Maggi Crotty
Maggi works at Vibrant Roots, a small, local company that values health and wellness. She has always enjoyed being an active participant in whatever community she lives in. Land to Hand was one of the first organizations she reached out to upon moving to the valley. It allowed her to give back to her new community and also introduced her to many wonderful humans that are now close friends. When she is not working, you can find her mountain biking, hiking, or generally exploring in nature.
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Meg Thompson
Meg believes that all people should have access to healthy food and often that access starts with the local farmer. She believes that small farms are the backbone of the community and the partnership Land to Hand has with our community and local farms makes the world a better place. She knows each of us can make a difference and in this season of her life that is through fostering and CASA. You can often find her volunteering with her family, exploring the wilderness of Montana or tending to her garden and bees. She still cannot believe she is fortunate enough to live in such an amazing place!
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Sahar McLean
Sahar McLean is originally from Afghanistan and has been in the states for over 20 years. Sahar is a financial analyst for an agricultural company out of Boise Idaho (JR Simplot). She is a mother of two boys, a runner, and yoga lover. Spending her childhood in Afghanistan she knows what it means to not have access to healthy food and wonder if/when she will get her next meal. She loves to cook from scratch with fresh ingredients (a lot of herbs, mainly garlic). Sahar is excited to be part of the L2H family and looking forward to using her skill set to help/support L2H.
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Kathryn Dolesh
Kathryn is thrilled to be on the L2H board! She grew up in Minnesota and drove west to find the mountains after college and has never looked back. Kathryn is a CPA at JCCS by day and a wife and mom to two active kids by day and night. She loves getting her heart rate up outside with her family while hiking, running, and Nordic skiing. She is working on growing her own garden a little more each year with the ultimate goal of someday (maybe! hopefully!) harvesting a full size leek.
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Laurie Opatz
As a longtime elementary teacher, Laurie is passionate about L2H’s educational components and its commitment to connecting community members with fresh and local food. She’s grateful and excited to be able to support L2H’s efforts during this time in her life. In her free time, she can be found out in the woods on a trail, attempting to master sourdough baking in the kitchen, playing with her grand kids, and traveling around Montana and beyond with her husband and best buddy dog, Juno.
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Gilly Levy
Gilly is a registered dietitian who has always found her most meaningful work promoting food sovereignty. She understands that people can only consider healthy food once it is more equitably accessible. She hopes to bring her passion and experience to L2H, helping to improve access to nutritious, affordable, and local foods in the Flathead Valley. In her free time, you will find Gilly somewhere in the mountains, hiking, backpacking, peak bagging, or skiing.
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Barb Brant
Founding member of Farm Hands and an emeritus board member. Barb is a community activist, Montana Coffee Traders business leader (retired) and a fierce defender of helping those in need. She also runs a flower farm with her husband – Foolish Blooms.
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Thank You, Jeremy!
A big thank you to Jeremy from Wallace Photo for donating his time and skills for the photos on this page.
Check out Jeremy's Work