2023 Proposed Roster of MOFGA Board Members

MOFGA extends our deepest appreciation and respect to Stacy Brenner, JoAnn Myers, Beth Schiller and David Shipman for their service as board members over the past many years, as they conclude their final terms. MOFGA’s community also continues to grieve the passing of Logan Johnston in May of 2022, holding his memory and service close in our hearts.

Slate of MOFGA board member candidates for election in 2023 to three-year terms:

• Seth Kroeck of Brunswick (new nominee)
• Martha Leggat of North Yarmouth (new nominee)
• Abe Noyes of Southwest Harbor (new nominee)
• Jo D. Saffeir of Pownal (new nominee)
• Anna Shapley-Quinn of Monroe (second term)
• Ben Tettlebaum of New Gloucester (third and final term)
• Annie Watson of Whitefield (third and final term)

Slate of MOFGA board officers for election in 2023 to one-year terms:

Ben Tettlebaum, of New Gloucester, serving as president

Ellen Sabina, of Morrill, serving as vice president

Patty Duffy, of Belfast, serving as treasurer

Anna Shapley-Quinn, of Monroe, serving as secretary

Full board in 2023 if slate is approved by membership:

• Sam Brown of Parkman
• Sikwani Dana of Solon
• Patty Duffy of Belfast
• Rob Dumas of Prospect
• Margaret Hathaway of Gray
• Craig Hickman of Winthrop
• Seth Kroeck of Brunswick (new)
• Martha Leggat of North Yarmouth (new)
• Abe Noyes of Southwest Harbor (new)
• Beth Richardson of Kennebunkport
• Ellen Sabina of Morrill
• Jo D. Saffeir of Pownal (new)
• Anna Shapley-Quinn of Monroe
• Jessie Spector of Jefferson
• Ben Tettlebaum of New Gloucester
• Annie Watson of Whitefield

Biographies of New Nominees

Abe Noyes was born and raised in Southwest Harbor. Noyes is an experienced organic gardener and was brought up growing vegetables as a way of life and has continued that tradition and practice into adulthood. Noyes’ involvement with MOFGA has mainly come as being a long-time Common Ground Country Fair attendee. At 29 years old, Noyes has been to at least 20 fairs!  

Jo D. Saffeir is a Natural Resource Consultant based in Pownal, Maine. For over 30 years she has been assisting nonprofits, state agencies, academic institutions and foundations achieve conservation and public policy results. Her areas of expertise include agriculture and food systems, state and federal natural resource policy, sustainable forestry, land conservation and natural climate solutions. She provides a range of services to her clients including technical facilitation, strategic planning, academic research and technical report writing, administration of public and private sources of conservation funding, editing and fundraising strategy development. She holds a master’s degree in environmental law and policy from Vermont Law School, and a bachelor’s of science in agriculture from the University of Connecticut. Her past board service relevant to MOFGA’s mission includes the Maine Board of Pesticides Control (two bipartisan gubernatorial appointments), Maine Farmland Trust (founding board member), Cumberland County Soil and Water Conservation District (treasurer) and Wolfe’s Neck Farm’s Agricultural Advisory Committee. She currently serves on the board of trustees of Sterling College, which offers degrees in sustainable agriculture and food systems, and draft animal power systems.  

Seth Kroeck has been an organic grower for 25 years and has been certified by MOFGA at Crystal Spring Farm in Brunswick, where he lives with his wife Maura and their two children Leila and Griffin, for the last 19. The farm’s primary crops are carrots, Brussels sprouts and wild blueberries sold to wholesale markets, schools and hunger relief organizations in Maine. Kroeck is an active member of the Organic Farmers Association, Real Organic Project and the Maine Grain Alliance, and is committed to supporting and building regional food systems. MOFGA has been a central part of the success of Crystal Spring over the last two decades. Certification, the apprenticeship program and technical services have all been invaluable sources of support to him as a grower.

Martha Leggat has lived in North Yarmouth, Maine, for 23 years. A former teacher, more recently she has dedicated her time to volunteer pursuits, serving as a member and chair of her local MSAD #51 school board, tutoring New Mainers in language and citizenship at Portland Adult Education, and leading social justice and education ministries at the Congregational Church in Cumberland. She and her husband have three children, and are fortunate to live on a property that allows for a big vegetable garden, an orchard and beehives. Leggat currently works part-time at a local organic vegetable farm in Durham, and runs a granola business called Martha’s Maine Mix, selling small-batch granola (made with her honey!) to local natural food stores. She joined MOFGA as a lifetime member the first year she moved to Maine, and has been involved in different ways since then. Leggat is passionate about MOFGA’s mission, in particular regarding farmer training, promoting local and organic food, engaging in food and agricultural policy, and addressing climate change. Hobbies that Leggat is most engaged in include gardening, writing, political advocacy, outdoor pursuits and tutoring.