Our Team – veggierescue.org

Our Team

Eryn Shugart

Executive Director

Eryn Shugart is a Santa Barbara native who holds a doctoral degree in social psychology from Claremont Graduate University. She has worked in senior administration with human services nonprofit organizations throughout the county for the past 20 years in roles including executive director, senior development director, program director, and director of operations.

Eryn also worked for Santa Barbara City College, where she helped to establish a healthy aging associates degree and taught classes in healthy aging and psychology. Eryn has a grown son and daughter and is happy to again live in the house she grew up in. In her spare time, she loves to spend time in the outdoors hiking and biking, and volunteering for other nonprofits.

David Roberts

Program Director

David Roberts joins Veggie Rescue as the Program Director, bringing a wealth of experience from his previous role as Executive Director of the Pro Deo Foundation in Carpinteria. A Chicago native who spent years in Minneapolis, Spokane, and Seattle before relocating to California, David has developed expertise in community outreach and nonprofit management throughout his career.

He not only brings professional experience to the role, but also a passion for serving those who find themselves on the margins. Veggie Rescue's mission to reduce food waste while providing nutrient-dense food to nonprofits that need it aligns well with his core values. Beyond his professional life, David is married to Rachel, and together they have two daughters who keep life busy and full. When he's not working to further Veggie Rescue's mission, David enjoys soccer, spending time at the beach, cooking, and being with his family.

Rhyn Hammargrn

Advancement Manager

Rhyn’s role with Veggie Rescue marks an exciting beginning for her in the field of sustainable food systems and non-profit work. While earning a B.S. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from UC Santa Cruz, Rhyn depended heavily on food banks, and after graduating, she spent the following year working jobs that placed her in food deserts.

Finding herself once again reliant on food assistance programs, a strong and personal commitment to food justice was born, leading Rhyn to Santa Barbara in search of work centered on equitable food access. After initially joining Veggie Rescue as a volunteer, she is thrilled to officially join the team and contribute to the organization’s mission of reducing food waste and combating food insecurity. Outside of work, Rhyn enjoys spending time outdoors hiking, gardening, and playing volleyball. She is also often found practicing yoga, making art, reading, and playing cards.

Kevin Kemp

Driver

Olga Leatherbury

Driver & Admin Support

Our Board

Janessa Van Vechten

Secretary

A Santa Barbara native, Janessa previously worked as a Program Manager for the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. She ran nutrition education programs for children in local after school programs, food distribution programs for seniors, and resource fairs and food distributions for low income families.

She has a background working for international nonprofits such as Kiva (microfinance) in San Francisco and the International Rescue Committee in Oakland. Growing up, Janessa spent many happy times on her grandparents' farm in Sonoma County and has since treasured local farms and the fresh food produced throughout California. Janessa has her BA from UC Berkeley and a MS in Nonprofit Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania

Lisa Bertero Palmer

Immediate Past Board Chair

Lisa has more than 25 years of experience as a practitioner in communications strategy development, research, community outreach, public hearings, media relations, and crisis communications, managing numerous complex and long-term public affairs efforts for projects navigating the public permitting process, primarily in California.

After spending most of her career working for a national public affairs firm, she launched her own strategic communications consulting practice in 2016, assisting private, non-profit and public agency clients with communications strategy, message development and stakeholder engagement. She also serves as a board member of the Los Olivos Community Services District and Santa Ynez Valley Community Aquatics Foundation. Lisa holds a degree in Political Science from UC San Diego. She lives in Los Olivos, CA with her husband Steve where they raised their three now-young adult sons. In her free time she enjoys running, hiking, family adventures and travel.

David Coryat

Board Chair

David Coryat has dedicated his life to serving under-represented populations, focusing on innovative programs that address critical community needs. His work has included collaboration with organizations such as New Beginnings, SB ACT, and City Net, where he has fostered partnerships and supported initiatives to assist vulnerable populations.

David previously served as a board member for Good Samaritan Shelters, where he contributed to the organization’s mission by supporting programs that provide housing and services to individuals experiencing homelessness. His leadership and strategic input were instrumental in advancing key initiatives, including sustainable community food solutions. Through his efforts, David continues to demonstrate a deep commitment to equity, collaboration, and impactful service for vulnerable populations.

Minerva “Minnie” Ringland

Board Member

Minnie Ringland serves as Manager of Climate & Insights for ReFED, a national nonprofit dedicated to driving adoption of solutions to food waste. Minnie works to improve ReFED’s understanding of the environmental impacts of wasted food and translate these findings to empower partners and solution providers.

She also supports key data and insights programs, including updates of ReFED’s Insights Engine and food business measurement and reporting. Minnie is a lifelong member of the “Clean Plate Club” and has cultivated an interest in sustainable food systems since college, where she led the Food Action Student Club in tackling food waste and nutrition issues. She moved from Buffalo, NY to Santa Barbara in 2019, to attend the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at UCSB, and has been addicted to sunshine and the beach ever since!

Chris Bashforth

Board Member

Chris has over 30 years of experience as a marketing, business, and communication professional for technical, medical, and educational corporations in San Diego and Santa Barbara. After working in the business sector, Chris spent 15 years heading up non-profit organizations in the Santa Ynez Valley, including the Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum, the Solvang Chamber of Commerce, and the Santa Ynez Valley Wine Country Association.

Chris’s background in the corporate sector transitioned well to her work with non-profits. In her non-profit directorship roles, Chris was responsible for overall management, fundraising, event planning, membership, volunteer leadership, and financial management. Recently retired, Chris is eager to lend her knowledge and experience to deserving non-profits with a mission to feed and clothe the underserved in the Santa Ynez Valley. She is currently an active Board member of the Los Olivos Rotary Club and the Santa Ynez Chamber of Commerce. Chris holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism from Northern Arizona University and an MBA from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. She has resided in the Santa Ynez Valley for 40 years, where she raised her son, Patrick. For fun and relaxation, Chris enjoys reading, biking, working out, hiking, playing tennis, and traveling.

Lonnie Smith, Jr.

Board Member

Lonnie has been involved in work focused on addressing food insecurity and homelessness in the Central Coast region since 2022. He currently works as a Rare Diseases Specialist with Direct Relief.

As a Rare Disease Specialist at Direct Relief, his work helps provide medical aid to patients internationally who otherwise would not have access to the medication they need. In his previous role as a project engineer for the Balay Ko Foundation, he collaborated organizations such as the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County and the Foodbank of San Luis Obispo County on projects working to eliminate food waste, deliver meals to vulnerable populations, and develop mobile food storage solutions that run on renewable energy. In his free time, Lonnie enjoys camping, hiking, traveling, and learning about climate solutions to help heal the planet. Additionally, Lonnie enjoys learning about climate technology and building climate resilience to find solutions to help heal the planet.

Jamie Edlin

Board Member

Jamie Edlin has enjoyed a long career in marketing communications working in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. As co-founder of Los Angeles-based Square One, she produced award-winning national broadcast commercials and sponsor-supported television and documentary programming for a wide range of clients from established corporations to ambitious startups.

It was a piece that she produced on California’s growing wine production that inspired her to switch gears from the media and entertainment industry to that of wine and food. She formed Hollywood & Wine, a marketing communications and brand management agency geared to family owned California wineries and to others in fields of hospitality. Moving from Los Angeles to the Santa Ynez Valley (SYV) in 2018, Jamie launched “Chew On This,” her series of stories profiling farmers, ranchers, fisherfolk and other growers and gatherers of the foods we eat. The series is published in Edible Santa Barbara and other local publications. Jamie has served various nonprofit organizations in both Los Angles and Santa Barbara County, including Woodbury University, Jewish Federation Los Angeles, The Ark Trust, Pups for Peace, SYV Humane Society, Olive Crest Hope Refuge, ADL Santa Barbara and People Helping People. Jamie was awarded the 2019 Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties Women’s Economic Ventures’ Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award in Media and Communications Jamie graduated Carnegie Mellon University and furthered her studies with the Experiment in International Living in London England. She now lives in Santa Ynez with her husband, two dogs and a cat, a micro farm, a well-used kitchen and a table that seats as many as necessary.

Greg Kniss

Treasurer

Greg recently retired as Chairperson of KROST CPA’s, KBKG tax consulting, and KROST Wealth. He has 40+ years of experience in the financial services industry as a CPA, consulting with individuals and businesses regarding tax and strategic planning.

He spent his entire career with KROST and its related entities. Joining the 10-person firm as a staff out of school in 1982, he moved up through the ranks and became a partner in 1989. In 2001 Greg founded KBKG, a tax consulting startup, introducing specialty tax strategies to the firms clients as well as the general market. In 2009 he became the managing shareholder / CEO of the companies and retained that position until he became Chairperson in 2022. At the time of his retirement, the companies had 350+ employees and office locations around the country, doing work both nationally and internationally. Over the years Greg has served on several boards, including the Ronald McDonald House, the California Restaurant Association (CRA); Prime Global, the 3rd largest Association of CPA’s in the world; College of the Canyons, a community college in Santa Clarita, CA; KROST CPA’s; KBKG; KROST Wealth, Oak Trail Estates - Water Company; and Oak Trail Estates - HOA. Greg received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting from California Lutheran University, while playing basketball and football at the University. He lives in Santa Ynez with his wife Jennifer and has 2 adult sons, Eric and Michael. Now retired, Greg enjoys maintaining his gentleman’s ranch and vineyard, as well as traveling, golfing, playing pickleball, bocce ball, and wine tasting, among other things with family and friends.

Phil Korte

Board Member

Phil grew up in Southern Illinois near St Louis on a family dairy and poultry farm. In 1977 at the age of 19, he enrolled in DeVry Institute of Technology located in Kansas City. After completing a 2-year technology program, Ihe moved to Santa Barbara in 1979.

He took a position with Burroughs Corporation as a computer maintenance technician specializing in data communications and data networking. About 5 years later, Phil went to work for ComDesign located in Goleta. It was a new start-up tech company manufacturing data communications equipment. They were acquired by Network Equipment Technology (NET). Phil transitioned into a sales manager position and relocated to Chicago. In 1996, he took a position as a Data Products Manager for CIMCO communications located in the Chicago suburbs. The company grew from 20 employees to about 150 employees targeting mid-size companies integrating voice, data, and Internet services. Phil has always had a strong desire to run his own company and he was ready to move back to California from Chicago. In 2006, he purchased a wholesale commercial bakery, called Edna’s Bakery located in San Luis Obispo. At that time, it grossed $60,000 a month in sales with 2 delivery vans, 140 customer, and 12 employees. Phil sold the bakery in July of 2022. When he sold the bakery, it was grossing $600,000 a month, had 22 delivery vans, 750 customers and 95 employees. Phil live in Arroyo Grande with his wife. He has 2 sons, one in Santa Barbara, and the other in Zurich Switzerland who is married and has 2 daughters. Phil currently manages his rental properties in Grover Beach and travels to Switzerland annually.

Terry Delaney

Founder

Terry founded Veggie Rescue in 2010. A life long sales & marketing veteran of the seafood industry. Resident of the Santa Ynez Valley for 29 wonderful years with his wife Holly co-founder of Veggie Rescue. Terry's grandparents were farmers in Nebraska and time spent in his grandmother’s garden in Costa Mesa, CA began his love and understanding of food & the soil at a young age.

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