Meet Our Board
Meet Our Board
Meet our wonderful Heart & Soil Board of Directors- the volunteer team who’s support and guidance makes our programming possible.
Our Board helps plan, direct and facilitate programming, fundraising and events throughout the year. They make sure we are meeting our mission of connecting people to the land where their food grows, making healthy local foods and hands-on agricultural experiences accessible to all.
We couldn’t do this important work without them!
President
Melissa Baehr is First Nation Anishnabe/Ojibwe, owner of Indigenous Deliciousness, a catering business where she shares her food journey of healing and reclaiming Indigenous identity, connections and values through Indigenous and farm fresh ingredients. She lives in Pittsfield with her husband and Australian Shepherd. She enjoys planning and tending to her backyard garden for a 3 sister mound garden, herb, veggie and fruit garden.
“I enthusiastically support the “Locally Grown to Local Homes” campaign. It supports our Berkshire farmers, and brings farm fresh foods to the homes of our elders, nourishes our children, and reconnects the community to the land. It’s been meaningful to work alongside others in preparing local farm fresh veggies for soups that are then distributed throughout Berkshire County to our neighbors. It’s vital that our communities have access to healthy foods and understand the importance of our local farmers.“
President
Treasurer
Jennifer serves as Heart & Soil Collective’s Treasurer, bringing extensive experience leading teams, resourcing for growth, and improving operations.
She currently leads finance and administration for a $35 million unit within a major research university and previously led operations and service delivery for a global corporate learning team as it grew revenue and the team’s scale more than 3x.
As a volunteer and Board member, Jennifer has led annual and capital campaign fundraising initiatives. Locally, she has served as mentor with EforAll Berkshire County. Jennifer is passionate about supporting the local Berkshires economy, food security, and community engagement with the land that nourishes us.
Treasurer
Clerk
Nancy Simonds-Ruderman is a food safety consultant for Safe Food of the Berkshires and previously spent over 25 years as an educator in the Food and Hospitality field at Berkshire Community College and in Rochester N.Y. She acted as an FDA Standardized food inspector and trainer serving many communities in the Berkshires. Her dedication to educating food handlers on the procurement, preparation and service of safe foods in businesses has always been her passion.
Nancy is pleased and honored to be on the Board of Heart and Soil Collective for many reasons. Foremost, because she believes in their basic mission that ties the community and its people to the land where their food is grown. In addition, the connection and support of local agricultural entities with Heart and Soils objectives of providing nourishing, nutritious foods to those who may be in need makes the perfect balance of what Safe Food of The Berkshires believes is needed and important to move the “local food movement” forward in a positive way.
“Heart and Soil also brings an educational component to their mission which I strongly support. I hope to find ways to tie this with community educational programs, local food service businesses, food producers and other organizations that can help support food insecurity needs of the Berkshire community.”
Clerk
Board Member
Rebecca Lord is a life long resident of Berkshire County. She is a passionate supporter of local farming and was one of the founding members of the Great Barrington Farmer’s Market. She understands the joys and challenges of growing healthy food.
For more than 25 years, Rebecca has worked in the Berkshires as a mental health therapist and social worker. Through her work, she has seen firsthand how food insecurity and poor nutrition affect individuals and families. These insights inspired her to get involved with the Heart & Soil Collective—first by making soup and delivering vegetables, and later by joining the board. Her deep commitment to both mental health and community well-being continues to guide her work in promoting access to healthy, nourishing food for all.
Board Member
