Meet Your Staff
Brian is a lifelong Washingtonian who has lived in various parts of the state, including the Skagit Valley and Ferry County. There, with his bride Sandi, they raised their four children. They have three grandchildren living in Manson and are happy to be nearer to them and back in the country again. Brian moved to Leavenworth from Spokane, where he had lived for 10 years. He is excited about the snow-capped peaks, bright stars, and the possibility of having horses once again.
Sandi recently finished up a degree at Evergreen College in Olympia. Her work has been focused on empowering and advocating for women who are survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse. She has been working both nationally, through faith organizations, and internationally in Guatemala and Central America.
Brian and Sandi love being outdoors, hiking, backpacking, horseback riding, and back country skiing. They have been touched by the warmth, the friendliness, and the open heartedness of the people here. They are particularly impressed with the depth of community involvement in Leavenworth, and how Upper Valley MEND is part of that tapestry. They hope to be part of the community for years to come, building on the foundation that is here and expanding the outreach of the Community Cupboard, the Upper Valley Free Clinic, Cornerstone, and affordable housing through SHARE CLT.
Kelly Hasinger has worked for Upper Valley MEND since 2005. She first came to the organization searching for a checkbook to balance, and walked into a million dollar project called Aldea Village, SHARE CLT’s second Affordable Housing neighborhood. She received on-the-job training from Carl Florea, the original director of Upper Valley MEND, and her 5 hours-a-week job turned into 15-20 hours per week as the company grew and stretched itself with staff transitions, and additions of new programs under the Upper Valley MEND umbrella. The content of her job has evolved from invoicing and writing Christmas cards to processing payroll, tax reporting, account reconciliations and many other office duties. Working for Upper Valley MEND has been a humbling experience for Kelly, as the level of community support that keeps the non-profit organization going constantly surprises her.
Aside from the fun at work, Kelly helps her three daughters in their many endeavors. For her own enjoyment, she likes to garden, hike, bike-ride, ski and volunteer at the schools her daughters (and teacher husband) attend. Kelly also enjoys summer traveling with her husband and family, as they discover this vast country of ours.
Sarah grew up in Ohio and attended Otterbein College where she received a BA in Mass Communications. She moved to Seattle where she worked in internal communications for an avionics corporation. She moved to Cashmere in 2004 and started working with Upper Valley MEND in May as a temporary marketing and development associate. She enjoys music, outdoor sports and all things Ohio State. She is so pleased to be able to give back to this awesome community.
Bob is another Northwest transplant who fell victim to the power of Washington's beauty. Originally from Bellows Falls, Vermont, Bob moved to Bellingham, Washington in 2000 as an Americorps*VISTA volunteer with the American Red Cross, and has lived in the Northwest off and on ever since. Prior to joining Upper Valley MEND in 2009, Bob was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of completing a long-term, international volunteer placement; he spent two years as a Community Development Advisor in Zambia, Africa, with Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO). He has also volunteered and studied in parts of South and Central America, and hopes to one day combine his passion for service and appreciation for travel & cross-cultural opportunities into the ultimate “career job”. He has a BS in Community Development and Applied Economics from the University of Vermont, with a focus on International Development and Agricultural Economics.
His current duties with Upper Valley MEND include volunteer coordination, managing the website and the member database, publishing the quarterly newsletter and other printed materials, management of the Community Cupboard, facilitating emergency family assistance, general office support, and filling a variety of other roles as needed. He enjoys all sorts of outdoor recreation, music, good food, and the company of friends.
Amy joined Upper Valley MEND as an Administrative Assistant in April of 2010. She brings with her a background as a librarian and an eagerness to serve the mission of MEND. She and her husband, Dayle, came to Leavenworth with their two kids in 1999 so that Dayle could take a position as a science teacher at Cascade High School. Amy also has a background in education, having worked at all four local Leavenworth schools as a para educator and volunteer.
Originally from the Chicago area, Amy, along with her family, enjoys skiing, hiking and camping in the beautiful Northwest. Amy is also a local coordinator for the Council for International Educational Exchanges, an exchange program which brings high school students from different countries to local schools. Amy and her family have hosted girls from the Czech Republic and Afghanistan, as well as countless weekend students from all over the world.
Stuart has been a friendly fixture at the Community Cupboard since 1992, and has families ties to the Cupboard that go back even farther. Stuart's mother, Marie Emig, helped start the Community Cupboard out of the basement of the United Methodist Church back in 1983. The opportunity to help meet some important needs in the local community brings a lot of joy to Stuart's life, and is just one way in which he is able to continue his commitment of providing service to others.
In addition to his role at the Cupboard, Stuart is also a mental health counselor for New Beginnings at Catholic Family & Child Services, an active member of the American Red Cross Disaster Action Team, and a volunteer with the Upper Valley Free Clinic, providing social service referrals to Free Clinic patients. He is a certified Information and Referral Specialist through the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems, and spent 10 years doing mental health counseling and referrals over the telephone. He has a BA in Psychology and a M.Ed from Whitworth University in Spokane, WA.
When he is not working or volunteering, Stuart enjoys cross country skiing and participating in spiritual counseling and other activities with Leavenworth Christian Fellowship.
Mary moved to Leavenworth in 1994 and has been involved with the Community Cupboard ever since, as a volunteer, a Board member, and currently as an employee. Prior to this she had a 23-year career in accounting, mainly with Alaska Airlines. Over the years, she has coached girls soccer, led a Ponderosa 4-H horse club, and taught & administered Sunday School. She and her husband, Tim, have two adult children and two grandsons. Her greatest joy is her family, but she also enjoys the outdoors, camping, golf, horses, snowmobiles and a good read.
Laurie moved to Leavenworth in 1974 to teach French, English and P.E. at Peshastin-Dryden High School. Luckily for her, after one year of teaching, the school needed a Spanish instructor and asked Laurie if she would be willing to take on that responsibility. Laurie learned as much as she could over the course of a summer, and in the process, developed a new focus for her work and life. Now, much of her energy is dedicated to the issues of Latino people here in our valley, and in Guatemala. She has taught in several area schools, working her way "up" to the youngest learners, and spent 11 years teaaching at Upper Valley Coop Preschool. Currently, most of her teaching centers around English Language Learners. She is also the Migrant Home Visitor for the Cascade School District.
Laurie also has a deep history with the Community Cupboard. Carl Florea hired Laurie to help at the Cupboard in the late 1980's, and she remained as a staff member until the turn of the century. At that point, she left for Guatemala for six months to do some volunteer work in Xela. She returned to the Cupboard as a volunteer for 10 years, and is now back on as a staff member, splitting her time between the Cupboard and Jubilee Global Gifts. Her hobbies over the past 7 years revolve mostly around her grandchildren, as well as gardening, walking and reading.
Alexandra has lived in the Upper Valley since 1987 when she and her husband moved here from Mexico in order to work the fruit harvests. The instability of the work and lack of affordable housing forced them to move around quite a bit, almost forcing them out of the Northwest entirely. But Alexandra had grown to appreciate the Upper Valley, and in particular the friendly, small-town environment of Leavenworth, and was committed to providing an opportunity for her kids to grow up here. Finally, in 2001 on a visit to the Community Cupboard, Alexandra began talking with Carl Florea, the former Director, and learned about homes that were being built through SHARE Community Land trust. She immediately signed up, and by 2002 Alexandra, her husband, and four children were some of the first residents of Alpine Heights, SHARE's first housing development.
Since 2005 Alexandra has worked part-time for SHARE as a translator. She is happy to help other SHARE residents and prospective home buyers because she feels that SHARE is the type of program that can help make dreams come true, as it did for her and her family.
