2025 Board Elections: Candidate Statements
There are two positions open on the Board of Trustees and one opening for the Staff Board Member. Two incumbent Board members are running for the two open board seats, and two employees are running for the Staff Board Member position.
The information about all candidates and a ballot are included below. Candidates were asked to express why they'd like to serve our Co-op on the Board of Trustees and which skills and experience they'd bring to the position should they be elected.
You may vote using a paper ballot (available near the ballot box at the front of the store) or online at skagitfoodcoop.com/vote2025
Kristen Ekstran
Kristen Ekstran
Incumbent Candidate
Board Experience
I am a long-standing Board member with the Skagit Valley Food Co-op and have held the Vice President role for many years. I have also served on the Strategic Planning Committee since I joined the Board. I have served on other boards related to school/sports activities for my kids (Liga Tlaxtli chair, Burlington Little School strategic planning facilitator, etc.), and professionally, I facilitate the Population Health Trust (PHT), an advisory board to Skagit County’s Board of Health.
Skills/Knowledge
Facilitation
Farming/Food Distribution
Co-op
General Management
Existing Community Relationships
I have relationships with 30 organizational leaders who serve on the PHT and many others who participate in community health improvement planning workgroups/coalitions with us (e.g. Food Policy Council). Most of these organizations are non-profits, but there are also hospitals, hospital districts, EMS, schools, and philanthropies on our board. Personally, I have relationships with a small segment of the Hispanic/Latino community through twelve years of involvement with Burlington’s dual language program. Many of those relationships continue. We also had a close association with the families served by Liga Tlaxtli during the same timeframe, and today, I’m a regular volunteer at the Tri-Parish Food Bank, whose primary clientele is Skagit County’s farmworkers.
Candidate Statement
The Skagit Valley Co-op Board is a dedicated and conscientious board that I am proud to be a member of. In the last three years, we’ve worked hard to update policies and procedures that drive our strategic oversight of the Co-op, expand our vision of community engagement, and create new mechanisms for growing funds that contribute to the community’s health and wellness.
With giving established by the Growing Good Fund (GGF) to Viva Farms, we are working through policies and procedures for future boards to make good decisions about whether to fund a community initiative based on the GGF’s financial health. We’re also creating procedures for identifying potential partners and determining how collaboration would help the Co-op fulfill our mission and vision. It’s exciting and humbling to be a part of an organization that is actively working to strengthen, fund, and partner with organizations that also believe in a healthy and resilient food system. Another highlight for me over this last term was the Co-op’s involvement in a Population Health Trust initiative to create a strategic plan for food security in the community. Through that work, the Co-op has deepened our commitment to the local food banks through purchasing agreements, has been more creative with food recovery efforts, and has become a WIC-approved grocery store. These are wonderful steps that serve our community in new ways.
I’m eager to continue my work on the Board. I’d like to see us through the completion of our Ends Statements (vision statements that drive the direction of the Co-op into the future) and a new strategic plan based on the Ends and the other policies we’ve developed over the past three years.
Rob Smith
Rob Smith
Incumbent Candidate
Board Experience
Skagit Valley Food Coop Board (May 2016-Current)
Governance Board
Board Secretary (2017-2018)
Board Treasurer (2022-2024)
Various Committees: Member and Community Engagement (MCEC), Board Development, Finance
Puget Sound Food Hub Founding Board Member (2016-2018)
Governance Board
Finance Committee Member
Skills/Knowledge
Financial
Co-op
Spanish language fluency
Farming and local distribution
Grocery
General management
Existing Community Relationships
Being a Director at a non-profit organization that is at the heart of the Skagit Valley farming community, I’ve been able to develop numerous deep relationships with leaders and community members throughout our region, state, and nationally. I collaborate closely with many institutions and non-profit service providers in our area in a number of industries, particularly those that touch the agricultural sector, including economic development, emergency food system, farm-to-school, agricultural research and development, land and natural resources conservation, and advocacy for farmers and farmworkers. I work with many small-scale, direct market farmers in our Valley, many of whom are vendors to the Co-op, helping to establish and support new farm businesses as they establish and scale their operations. I have many connections in the Spanish-speaking immigrant farm worker and farm owner community, helping to support the growth and development of their farm businesses, connect them with available resources, and advocate for this community throughout my work.
Candidate Statement
The Skagit Valley Food Co-op is a special place—a vibrant nexus for member-owners, customers, our local farmers and food producers, and the Skagit Valley community at large. Our Co-op reflects our exceptional community and is a catalyst for change in forging a cooperative and people-centered local economy. Serving on the Board for the past nine years, I’ve engaged on a deeper level with our cherished Co-op as we give back to this community I value so deeply.
As a Director of Viva Farms, a local, non-profit farm business incubator program, I feel fortunate to have participated in the local farming community as a bilingual (English/Spanish) community educator and advocate, working with diverse people – from farmworkers to community leaders – around issues of food and farm viability, justice, and sustainability. I have gained practical experience in leadership, business management, strategic planning, budget design and implementation, fiscal stewardship, and building community partnerships. I bring this experience and perspective to the table in my role on the Co-op Board.
I’m proud of what the Board has accomplished over the past number of years as our Co-op passed the 50-year mark. We navigated the challenges to our business brought on by the pandemic. We've been through one successful transition in the General Manager position and are readying ourselves for another transition when the time comes. We’ve modernized and formalized our Board governance by implementing and refining Policy Governance systems, and we’ve adopted new tools for budgeting, financial monitoring, and management. We’ve invested in our building and store updates and are looking for ways to continue to make better use of our physical spaces and increase our offerings to customers, all while reducing waste and increasing access to healthy foods. The Board has continued to support the hard work, tenacity, and dedication of our amazing staff, who have ensured that the Co-op continues to thrive. We’ve deepened the Co-op’s capacity for impact in our community through our increased giving efforts, including (now) 5% Fridays and, most recently, the Growing Good Fund. As we move into the next chapter (the next 50 years!), our Co-op is on firm footing, and we’re poised for lasting success as a business and for even greater impact in our community. It’s been an honor to serve on the Board, and I humbly ask for your support in serving another term! Thanks!
(Rob Smith has appropriately recused himself from all board and committee decisions related to the Co-op’s relationship with Viva Farms.)
Zachariah Armstrong
Zachariah Armstrong
Kitchen Supervisor, Staff Board Member Candidate
Board Experience
No previous board experience
Skills/Knowledge
I have over a decade of experience working in numerous styles of food service. I have also helped facilitate different businesses moving into new spaces in addition to, managing multiple teams and creating a workplace environment and culture that is welcoming, recognizing, and accountable.
Existing Community Relationships
No existing community relationships with Co-op related communities.
Candidate Statement
In the relatively short time I have worked for the Co-op, going on four years, I have always been open to growth and new experiences. The journey from Deli Cook to Kitchen Supervisor has been one not without challenge but also one of exponential learning and opportunity. The chance to be elected to the Employee Position on the Board is one I cannot pass up!
I would thoroughly enjoy learning more about the Co-op – how it operates internally and externally in the community; the opportunity to represent the employees of the Co-op whom, without, the Co-op could not operate; and the growth potential of sitting on the Board. I would like to think that my experiences would enable me to bring a grounded perspective to the Board on what it’s like to work for the Co-op, not just as an employee but also as a team leader, and to be a vessel for the voice of the staff.
Jeremy Moselle
Jeremy Moselle
IT/POS Assistant, Staff Board Member Candidate
Board Experience
Served as President of HOA for 3 years – 88 units, $500k/yr budget.
Recently elected to Skagit County Democrat Party Board (Jan '25) – State Representative
Recently elected to Skagit Runners Board (Jan '25) – Vice President
Skills/Knowledge
Financial: Master’s Degree in Business
Legal: UW Law, Fall ‘22
Facilitation: Action Officer & Executive Assistant, US Indo-Pacific Command
General Management: Section Chief for 26 employees
Existing Community Relationships
Leadership Skagit Class of 2025;
Citizen's Academy (MVPD) Class of 2024;
Community Action of Skagit County – GED Instructor 2023-present
Precinct Committee Officer, Skagit County Democrats, 2024-present
State Representative, Washington State Democratic Party, 2025-present
Skagit Runners, Vice President, 2025-present
Candidate Statement
When first I came to Skagit County in the fall of 2022, the Co-op was the first thing I saw. We found it so charming and magical that we decided to buy a home here and commit to raising our children in the Skagit Valley – despite having no other connections here. The staff, mission, and values espoused by the Co-op and its board have been inspiring, and my affiliation has been something I’ve been proud of everywhere I go. The way the Co-op has worked towards the betterment of people of the Valley – whether through donations to Viva Farms, tabling YMCA events, food donations to race events, or sponsoring me through the Leadership Skagit program – it’s clear that community is the priority.
Due to the nature of my work, I can’t pretend I have the pulse of the staff. The Staff position on the Board is meant to represent the interests of the employees, and I will have to actively seek feedback to ensure I’m aligned with their concerns and interests. I believe I’m approachable enough that this should not hinder my ability to execute the duties of this position.
I wish I had more specialized expertise to bring to the Board, but I’m a dedicated and proactive participant in the organizations with whom I’ve aligned myself. I have a wide array of experience and could bring a new voice to the Board, although I intend to start by listening and learning first. Thank you for considering my candidacy, I trust you’ll select the most qualified individual.