ABOUT US
BACKGROUND
The Milwaukee Food Council is a network of community members and organizations, professionals, and government officials committed to supporting a food system that is community-driven, healthy, environmentally sustainable, and economically vibrant. We strive to incorporate diverse voices and perspectives, inclusive of all racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and other identity groups, and uplift youth and intergenerational exchange.
- 2007 – Founded
- 2016 – Became 501(c)(3)
- 2019 – Partnered with FoodWIse & Dept. Health Services
- 2020 – First staff – Lee Valentyn
- 2023 – First Executive Director – Solana Patterson-Ramos
MISSION & VISION
Our mission is to support a locally-anchored food system that advances Milwaukee’s social, economic, and environmental well-being through collective action.
Our vision is a Milwaukee food system that is community-driven, healthy, environmentally sustainable, and economically vibrant; and we believe this state is achieved only when it is inclusive of all racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and other identity groups.
We are a network and a movement — advancing culture, policy, and practice towards a healthier and more equitable food system. Through research, education, community development, and policy, we engage our network in collective action to cultivate change.
STAFF
Lee Valentyn
Healthy Food Systems Coordinator
Partnership with the UW-Madison Division of Extension and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Samual Odin – Chair
Co-Owner of Village Farmstead
I am Researcher, Organizer, and Farmer at and co-owner of Village Farmstead in Oak Creek alongside my partner, Sara. Research-wise, I have done fieldwork (from ethnographic research to actual – bent over weeding and harvesting vegetables – “fieldwork”) within the Milwaukee food system for over 10 years. While working with and simultaneously studying several food and farm-based organizations in the Milwaukee area, including UW-Ext, Milwaukee Urban Gardens, and Victory Garden Initiative, I have sought a dynamic albeit thoroughly critical perspective of: the so-called “Local Food Movement” and its initiatives, Urban Agriculture, CSAs, Farmers Markets, and Small-Scale Farm Businesses. Using anthropology and political-economics, I begin with more ethnographic methods of participatory observation and then move to a dialectical analysis, situating findings from the local level within broader geographic and historic contexts and patterns.
As an organizer, I have been working alongside farmers in SE WI and the Wisconsin Farmers Union, benchmarking business performance, measuring and comparing outcomes, analyzing shared problems (from within and outside of the farm), and strategizing for transformative change. Also very recently, though, somewhat non-related, I helped organize the incorporation of a new housing co-op in Oak Creek “Village Cooperative of Oak Creek”, where I now live and participate in a myriad of ways. All of this fits supremely into the purview of the MFC and it’s most recent 2020 Strategic Plan, and I am very excited to learn more about and participate in fights for Universal School Lunch and expanding SNAP and WIC; along with fights for safer working conditions, dignified jobs, and living wages in food and farm sectors from from field to fork. I also play upright bass and tour professionally in several bands including Horseshoes and Hand Grenades.
Leslie Krueger – Vice Chair
FoodRight
Leslie is a registered dietitian and community relations manager at FoodRight, a local non-profit that provides hands-on gardening and culinary nutrition education to Milwaukee students. Leslie is most interested in how food systems influence and effect health.
She joined the MFC Board of Directors after experiencing a positive shift in momentum from individuals, communities, and organizations wanting to work in tandem to help solve some of the most complex issues caused by food systems inequities.
Hannah Trasser – Secretary
City of Milwaukee Health Department
My name is Hannah Trasser and I am a Public Health Strategist at the City of Milwaukee Health Department focused on advancing a more equitable food system in Milwaukee. I graduated from the University of Minnesota (go Gophers!) in 2017 with a Master’s in Public Health. While in school, I ran track and cross country and still enjoy being active today, however now I’m usually accompanied by my dog, Marty.
In January of 2023 I joined the board of directors with the Milwaukee Food Council and am excited about this opportunity to serve Milwaukee by building relationships that strengthen our local food system. There is a need for a convener in our Milwaukee food system and I view the Milwaukee Food Council serving this role-bringing people from different sectors, neighborhoods, and experiences together to help build a more just food system. I am passionate about serving an active role in creating a space where we can learn from one another, talk about food injustice, address root causes to these barriers, and create actionable steps towards systems change.
Kelli Hirt – Treasurer
Vivent Health
Currently the Director of WI Food and Nutrition Services at Vivent Health, I am living out my dream of bridging the gaps between community, healthcare, and food. I, like Hannah, also graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Master’s in Public Health.
Food has been my biggest passion both personally and professionally for over 10 years. I’ve spent time working in the food system in both school and community gardens as an educator, and in healthcare. Food is a vehicle for connection, nourishment, and social justice, which is why I’m passionate about positively changing the way America and the modern world interacts with the food system. Being a member of the Milwaukee Food Council’s Board of Directors allows me to use my background to drive change in Milwaukee’s food environment alongside leaders who understand the importance of centering the community we represent in our work.
Kyle Ashley
Community Organizer
Kyle Ashley is a Milwaukee native who has been involved in community-based work his entire career. Kyle has a background in workforce development, youth programming, community engagement, and professional development. Kyle joined the Food Council to support connectivity and increased awareness for all things food throughout Milwaukee. Kyle hopes to utilize his knowledge and strong relationships across sectors to connect dots that will eliminate food deserts in his neighborhood and beyond.
Randy McCarthy
Outpost Natural Foods
I have always loved food-eating it, growing it, dumpster-diving for it, and best of all-giving it away. I have always been disturbed by the inequities in the food system-food being wasted and thrown away in some places and people not having enough to eat in others. Joined the MFC to work on these issues.
Brooklynn Gray
Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin
Brooklynn has led the food bank’s volunteer programs, coordinated advocacy initiatives with FAEW’s Food Leaders Lab SNAP-Ed program, and now manages the food bank’s FoodShare outreach team across the 35 eastern county footprint. In her free time she adores hiking, camping, live music, and coffee in every way, shape, and form.
“I joined the Milwaukee Food Council to meet and better understand all of the different people, programs, and organizations that are working toward a healthy, accessible, and equitable food system. There is a lot of incredible work going on in the community, and by being a part of the MFC, we have an amazing opportunity to help create connections and build networks for a thriving Milwaukee food system.”
