Farm to Food Assistance Learning Lab Team Spotlights

The Wallace Center’s Farm to Food Assistance Learning Lab kicked off in September of 2023, with 10 teams from across the country coming together for mutual learning and support. Providing a stable market for farmers while simultaneously alleviating hunger is a powerful approach to building more equitable and resilient food systems. Nationwide, organizations are creating and implementing Farm to Food Assistance (F2FA) Programs – paying farmers fair market value for their product and channeling that product into food banks, food pantries, and other anti-hunger efforts – and seeing incredible results. Read on to learn more about the lead applicant from each team! These individuals will participate in the learning lab and bring in partners from their organizations and partners from their communities for relevant activities. See this page for more background and updates on the learning lab.

Map of Learning Lab Team Locations

Many of the food banks that Dionne helped distribute food to, were the same food banks she and her siblings ate from when they were younger. In 2021, Dionne joined the Food Bank Network as the Friends of the Farm Manager where she managed a $500,000 funded program that supported local farmers with procuring and distributing fruits, vegetables and proteins to local food banks and their agencies. Recently, Dionne Co-Founded The Farmers Hub which is a technical assistance nonprofit origination focused on BIPOC and socially disadvantaged farmers. The Farmers Hub offers free TA to all BIPOC and socially disadvantaged farmers in AZ, CA and NM. Dionne also started the AZ Community Hub which helps the affiliated farmers that are in The Farmers Hub sell their produce and proteins at fair market rates to buyers. 

With a deepened passion for supporting local small farms, she moved back to OKC in 2019 to reconnect with family and to start urban farming.  While working as the vegetable farm manager for Commonwealth Urban Farms, she found out first-hand how difficult it was for a new beginning farmer in OKC to get access to land, capital, and cold storage as well as finding a total lack of mid-tier aggregation and distribution support. During the Pandemic, she shifted her farming efforts to supporting local small producers by joining Jenna Moore to co-found the Online Paseo Farmers Market & Grocery Store Cooperative. The launch of The OKC Food Hub in 2023 is the next iteration of their collaboration to build a more resilient and better local food system.  

As an organizer, weaver, and connector, Julie believes in and has experienced the transformative potential of collective power. She has dedicated her professional life to building and strengthening various formations of people and communities working for food and farm justice. Her training in facilitative leadership, popular education and the technology of participation has been instrumental in processes she has created, executed and provided training in, leading to the formation of networks, alliances, communities of practice, and collaborative projects — all important building blocks for broad-based social movements. 

After moving to Seattle, Washington in 1991, Lynda pursued a career in business and ran two of her own companies for the next seven years. In 1998, Lynda accepted a position at the Tulalip Health Clinic as the Administrator and oversaw clinical operations for the next five years. Lynda was transferred to the Tulalip Police Department, assisted the Chief of Police in growing the department and created the Tulalip Tribes Office of Emergency Management. Lynda became the Chairperson for the Washington State Region I Homeland Security Tribal Committee. Lynda subsequently received many awards from the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office for her 15 years of work in community service, served as Tribal Health Director for several Tribal Nations, and Tribal Emergency Manager for two Tribes. These lifelong experiences have given Lynda a unique perspective to bring together many different disciplines to work together in emergency management. Lynda has an extensive background in finance, contracts management and audit compliance work. Lynda is a prolific grants writer, assisting with securing more than one hundred grants and several million dollars for Tribal Nations in the State of Washington. Lynda has received recognition for her work in Indian Country from the US Department of Homeland Security and US Bureau of Indian Affairs, as well as FEMA. Lynda was inducted into the International Association of Women in Emergency Management’s Hall of Fame. Lynda is the proud wife of Richard Zambrano, whom is a member of the Snoqualmie Tribe, mother of three and bonus mom to many.     

She has the wit and professionalism of the women we all know and love, except she is genuine and authentic.  Ryan received two Master’s Degrees from Marshall University and her Bachelor’s from University of Louisville. She uses her experience in life to her advantage and she places Black and brown people in positions to feel activated to give back to the community. As a mother of an intelligent and vulnerable Black son she knows what it means to make each day worth it. Through extensive research both qualitative and quantitative she uses her acquired knowledge to build a better community one small change at a time. The conception of Change today, Change Tomorrow came from a need that Taylor saw, instead of looking past it she attacked it full force head on. Going school to school and door to door, collecting donations, and canvassing, Taylor with the help of her specifically selected board are creating safe and open spaces for Black people to thrive. Much like the name of the grassroots non-profit she founded Taylor uses the day to make changes that will impact a better tomorrow. Taylor often reminds us to be transparent in who we are and the work we accomplish.  She ensures that who you see is who she is. 

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