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The MOSES board meets at least four times a year to provide governance to the organization. A majority of the board members are certified organic farmers.
Chris Blanchard
Chris raises certified organic vegetables and herbs at Rock Spring Farm in northeast Iowa, and markets through a CSA, farmers market, and wholesale accounts in Decorah, Rochester, and the Twin Cities. Before starting Rock Spring Farm in 1999, Chris worked on vegetable farms in Maine, Wisconsin, Iowa, and California. A speaker and writer on subjects as diverse as post-harvest handling, financial planning, time management and local food systems, Chris also coordinates presentations for MOSES' Organic Farming Conference.
Roger Blobaum, Board Treasurer
Roger is an agricultural consultant providing professional services to organic and sustainable agriculture organizations and institutions. He is a member of the National Organic Action Plan Committee and an advisor to the Center for Food Safety and the National Organic Coalition. He also is the organic research coordinator for The Ceres Trust, a national foundation with organic agriculture as a priority.
Darlene Coehoorn, Board Secretary
Darlene, along with her husband Dan and their family, operate Viewpoint Organic Acres in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin. They manage a 55 cow dairy along with 500 acres of cropland on which they grow all their feed as well as a variety of other crops including vegetables for processing.
Atina Diffley, Board Vice President
Atina Diffley is an experienced organic vegetable farmer active in educating consumers, farmers and policy makers about organic farming and related issues. She provides consulting services though her business Organic FarmingWorks. Recently she and her husband Martin worked to create a new farm preservation model when they sold their farm the Gardens of Eagan to the Wedge Community Co-op.
Linda Halley, Board President
Linda, 20-year veteran of farm management, is currently managing the Gardens of Eagan Organic Farm in Farmington, Minnesota. Previously, Halley co-owned and operated Harmony Valley Farm in Viroqua, Wis., a celebrated and diverse organic produce and Angus operation. She also served as general manager of Center for Urban Agriculture at Fairview Gardens in Santa Barbara, Calif., a non-profit, 100 year old organic farm dedicated in part to educating the community on the viability of organic farming.
Melinda Hemmelgarn
Melinda is a Registered Dietitian, freelance writer and speaker with a passion for consumer empowerment and environmental protection. An investigative nutritionist and award-winning journalist, her provocative yet practical "Food Sleuth" columns help people "think beyond their plates," and connect the dots between food, health and agriculture. She advocates media literacy to promote grass roots democracy and a sustainable, organic food system. Her work appears in Touch the Soil magazine, and on the Organic Valley and Rodale websites. She lives in Columbia MO with her photographer husband. Together they created the 2009 calendar, "Farm Hands: A tribute to the hands that feed us."
Tom Miller
Tom, along with seven other family members, operates an organic dairy farm, R & G Miller & Sons Inc. He lives near East Bristol, in Dane County, WI, with his wife Sherry and youngest daughter Kera. They are currently milking 320 cows and farming 1600 acres, which include 300 acres of pasture, 500 acres of hay/alfalfa and 800 acres of small grains and row crops. In his "spare time" Tom enjoys hiking and woodworking.
Margaret Smith
Margaret and her husband, Doug Alert, co-manage their 950 acre organic grain and livestock farm in north central Iowa near Hampton where they raise row crops, small grains, hay, pastured broilers and run a cow-calf beef herd. Margaret also works off the farm for Iowa State University Extension in Value-added Agriculture. Part of her work is with beginning farmers and farm families in transition when organics or other value added enterprises are part of the farming plan. Margaret currently serves as an advisor to the board of the Iowa Organic Association.
Carla Wright
Carla owns and manages Savanna Hill Farm and is a long time advocate for sustainable and organic agriculture. She is president of the Natural Heritage Land Trust, and is past president, of Midwest Organic Services Association, Inc. (MOSA). Carla works for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) where she manages the development of policy and marketing of Wis. Act 276 (Green Tier). She also serves as liaison to selected companies participating in Green Tier and represents WDNR on the state's Organic Advisory Council, and the University's WI Sustainable Agriculture, Research & Education Committee.
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