GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — At their Annual Board meeting, Berkshire Grown Board of Trustees approved a slate of four new board members and elected officers. 

 

Officers are Amy Rudnick, President; Peter Platt, Vice President, Katy Sparks, Treasurer, Lee Venolia, Clerk; Jake Levin, Member-at-Large and Kat Hand, Member-at-Large.

 

Joining the Board in 2024 are three food and farming-focused Berkshire residents:

 

Susan Bronson, Monterey

 

Susan Bronson has lived in Monterey for 27 years.  For the last 13 years she has served as executive director of the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, MA. Prior to assuming that position, Susan was director of development and interim director of the Berkshire Museum, director of development at Shakespeare & Company, and director of development at Austen Riggs. 

 

Before moving to the Berkshires, Susan was the program officer for the Social Science Research Council in New York and served as a consultant to projects for the Ford Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and the U.S. Holocaust Museum. Susan holds a Ph.D. in Russian History and Jewish History from the University of Michigan. She serves on the board of the Council of American Jewish Museums and on the board of 7,000 Languages, a non-profit dedicated to supporting the preservation of indigenous languages. Married to Berkshire native, John Sellew, Susan and John raised their children across the road from Rawson Brook Farm and Susan is eager to support Berkshire farmers and their connections to the local community.

 

Tu Le, 328North, Williamstown

 

Tu Le is a Vietnamese-American farmer, designer, and chef of 328North, a micro farm in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Born in Phu Quoc, Vietnam, he along with his two parents and eleven siblings, became refugees and immigrated to America. Tu's passion for farming and cooking stems from his upbringing in San Diego, California, where his parents installed in him the importance of growing and cooking their own food to retain a sense of culture. Tu and his husband, Matt Berltes, started building their farm on Stockbridge Munsee land in 2014. With food and flowers, Tu and Matt have connected with their Northern Berkshire community and continue to push the boundaries on what small-scale farming can produce. With a background in Fashion, Industrial Design + Construction, Tu's goal is to continue to connect with his fellow community member by using the Farm as a medium to tell stories.

 

Nick Martinelli, Marty's Local, Lenox

 

Nick is the founder and CEO of Marty's Local, a Western Massachusetts-based food distribution business, specializing in local and regional foods. Founded in 2016, the mission of Marty's Local is to help re-build our regional food system by linking area farmers and food producers with nearby grocers, schools and colleges, restaurants, farm stores, and other institutions.   Nick previously worked as an attorney for nine years in Massachusetts state government and in the office of Governor Deval Patrick.  He is a graduate of Williams College, Suffolk University Law School, and The Farm School.

 

Laura Tupper-Palches, Full Well Farm, Adams

 

Laura Tupper-Palches is a co-owner and farmer of Full Well Farm in Adams, MA. Originally from Cape Cod, she has made a home in North Adams because of the opportunity to farm. She and Meg Bantle started Full Well in 2019 on Meg's family land.

 

The Berkshires provided an opportunity for Laura to combine her passion for food justice and farming. Their organically grown produce and flowers are sold through a CSA, farmer's market, and wholesale accounts - all in the North Berkshires. Laura lived in a Harlem neighborhood experiencing food apartheid and became very interested in how food is produced and accessed. She pursued a bachelor's degree in Social Thought and Political Economy at UMass Amherst which provided context for the structures that create food insecurity.