Our Team

Staff

Andi Doane

Executive Director

Andi Doane

Executive Director
She/her

Andi has been the Executive Director of Arlington EATS since 2015. Her background includes 20 years of experience managing and overseeing various nonprofits in the Midwest and Greater Boston area. She has a certificate in Nonprofit Management from Iowa State University and a Bachelor’s Degree from Coe College.

Outside of work, Andi enjoys hiking, gardening, baking and spending time with her family.

Contact: adoane@arlingtoneats.org

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Susan Dorson

Program Director

Susan Dorson

Program Director
She/her

Susan is a community organizer with over 16 years experience building and operating nonprofits to benefit the local community. As the program director of Arlington EATS she is focused on improving quality, quantity and accessibility to food while working closely with local organizations to connect people to resources. Susan has a BA in Psychology from Connecticut College and a Masters Degree in Macro Social work from Boston University.When not at work, you can find Susan in her garden or playing her saxophone around town in the two different brass bands that she manages.

Contact: sdorson@arlingtoneats.org

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Natasha Strom

Volunteer Manager

Natasha Strom

Volunteer Manager
She/her

Before coming to Arlington EATS, Natasha was most recently the Race Director for the Head of the Charles Regatta, overseeing a team of more than 2000 volunteers. She has worked or been involved in volunteer organizations for over 20 years including the MFA and Community Rowing Inc. among others. She has a BA from Wheaton College (MA) and Masters degrees from both the University of Oxford and the University of Leicester. Outside of work, you might find her at a baseball field in town or rowing on the Charles River.

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Johanna Niles

Community Food Access Manager

Johanna Niles

Community Food Access Manager
She/her

Before coming to Arlington EATS, Johanna facilitated Meals on Wheels and Senior Dining programs for a senior services agency. She has volunteered at the MA Department of Children and Families and in the public schools for a number of years. Johanna has a BA in Sociology and in African and African American Studies from Brandeis University. You might bump into her at the park with her dog, or on the sidelines of her kid’s soccer games.

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Vera Ok

Market Manager

Vera Ok

Market Manager
She/her

Vera has an extensive background in food security work. She spent several years working with Mill City Grows in Lowell, where she supported immigrant and refugee farmers and cultivated the curious minds of elementary students through school gardens. Vera received her bachelor degree from the University of New Hampshire where she studied Sustainable Agriculture and Environment Resource Economics. When Vera isn't working she's inside reading a good book or outside cultivating her container garden.

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Carolyn Schneyer

Operations Coordinator

Carolyn Schneyer

Operations Coordinator
She/her

Carolyn has worn many hats over the years including music teacher, sign artist, wind energy engineer, birth doula, non-profit program coordinator, and Arlington EATS volunteer. Arlington families may know her best from her many years teaching Music Together classes in the community. Carolyn has a BA from Vassar College and an MASc from the University of Victoria, BC. Outside of work, she is a singer, a knitter, and a proud Minuteman mom.

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Board

Blanca Allen

Allegro Music School

Blanca Allen

She/her

Blanca is a violin and viola instructor at Allegro Music School and at Lesley Ellis School. She also provides private lessons. She has lived in Arlington since 1982 and has volunteered with Arlington EATS 3 times per week since 2020. She serves as a shift leader and translator, fluent in Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian. She joined the Board of Directors in 2021.

Blanca has also served as a member of the Arlington MVP 2.0 team (Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness). As a member of the MVP team, she listens to the concerns of the most vulnerable members of our community and helps to plan ahead for future challenges.

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Kendra Bird

Mass General Brigham

Kendra Bird

She/her

Kendra serves as the Director of Operations for Specialty Care within the Mass General Brigham Medical Group, where she oversees ambulatory practices on the South Shore of Massachusetts. A Registered Dietitian by background, Kendra has experience leading nutrition and programming teams in the hunger relief space as well as process improvement efforts with a focus on safe, equitable, and high-quality patient, customer, and guest care.

Kendra joined the Arlington EATS board in 2024 and currently serves as Co-Chair of the Development Committee. With a passion for food security and individual wellbeing, Kendra’s involvement in EATS aligns with a personal commitment to bringing nutritious foods to the community. Kendra lives in Arlington with her daughter, Liv, in whom she hopes to instill an equal passion for human service.

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Lynne Dichter

Educator

Lynne Dichter

She/her

Lynne is a recently retired elementary school teacher, having spent half of her 35-year career teaching at the Thompson School in Arlington. She has served on the boards of The Learning Project (an independent school), the Arlington Education Fund and the Arlington Education Association as a teacher representative.

Lynne began volunteering at Arlington EATS several years ago, having heard about it at its conception in the Thompson community in 2014. She has been a regular volunteer at the Monday Market, sometimes serving as Shift Leader. She is excited to begin her first term on the EATS Board.

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Linda Hanson

Educator

Linda Hanson

She/her

Linda is a retired educator with 30 years of experience teaching at the elementary level. She worked as a Haitian Bilingual teacher in Somerville and as a reading teacher and professional development specialist in Arlington. Linda is a past president of the Arlington Education Association and has served as a Town Meeting Member in Arlington for several terms.

Linda is a regular Arlington EATS volunteer. She is constantly inspired by the dedication and thoughtfulness of the staff and volunteers as they pursue EATS’ mission of eliminating food insecurity in Arlington. In addition, Linda volunteers as a community advocate to support recently arrived migrant families, connecting them to essential services and resources in our area and providing them with a warm welcome to our community.

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Kathy Le

Community Action Partners Harvard Business School Association of Boston

Kathy Le

She/her

Kathy is a nonprofit professional with over 20 years of international and local nonprofit experience. Kathy enjoys working with organizations with challenging missions and holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government and a BA in International Relations and English Literature from Brown University. She currently serves as the Executive Director of Community Action Partners, an organization whose mission is to increase the impact of mission-driven organizations by strengthening their ability to address our community’s greatest challenges.

Kathy became involved with Arlington EATS during the pandemic and currently serves as Co-Chair of the board. As an immigrant from Vietnam, she believes that food security is a right for all. Kathy is also a board member of Enroot and previously served on the board of Community Action Partners and was a contributing member of Social Venture Partners. She lives in Arlington with her family and enjoys cooking Vietnamese food.

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Michelle Lin

Vor Pharma

Michelle Lin

She/her

Michelle is currently the Vice President of Preclinical and Translational Biology at Vor Bio, a biotech company based in Cambridge. Driven by her lifelong passion for science, she is committed to developing innovative therapeutics that can significantly impact the lives of patients in need. As a mother of two, Michelle has made Arlington her home for the past seven years.

Her connection with Arlington EATS began during the pandemic when she became aware of the challenges families faced due to school closures and the resulting lack of meals for children. This inspired her to take action, and she has since joined the Board and volunteered as a Mandarin translator at the Arlington EATS market. She is dedicated to serving her community and eliminating food insecurity.

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Dianna McNeish

Certified Public Accountant

Dianna McNeish

She/her

Dianna is a CPA with the firm Howell & Minchello, LLP in Concord, Massachusetts. Dianna has over 35 years of experience as a Certified Public Accountant in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Dianna started volunteering with Arlington Eats a few years ago as part of the Monday morning team, unloading the Greater Boston Food Bank food delivery.

Dianna has a passion for serving the community and has been an active member of many non-profit organizations over her career.

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Nandana Mewada

ESG Investing

Nandana Mewada

She/her

Nandana has 20 years of professional experience in the sustainable investing industry. She has worked in Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) research in the financial sector helping investors manage ESG risks and opportunities, as well as faith-based investors align investment decisions with their core values. Her experience also includes working with non-profits on corporate social responsibility issues.

Nandana joined the EATS board in 2024. She began volunteering with EATS when it was founded at the Thompson Elementary School in 2014. Over the years, she has volunteered for different EATS programs including packing snacks, helping at community dinners and fundraising events. Her continued involvement in EATS is driven by the belief that all people have the right to access food with dignity and EATS mission of neighbors serving neighbors.

An active member of her community, she is a Town Meeting Member and serves on the board of the Arlington Center for the Arts.

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Christine Michael

HubSpot

Christine Michael

She/her

Christine is a user experience professional in the software industry, specializing in product design and customer research. Her work involves data collection, analysis, and storytelling to guide and enhance the customer experience.

Christine joined the EATS board in 2023 to give back to the Arlington community and support EATS’ mission of eliminating food insecurity. She has served on EATS’ Strategic Planning Committee and currently co-chairs the Development Committee.

A resident of Arlington since 2004, Christine has also served on Town Meeting. In her spare time, she enjoys preparing nutritious meals, weightlifting, and spending time with her family.

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Ramona “Mona” Nichols

Mass General Brigham

Ramona “Mona” Nichols

She/her

Mona serves as the Vice President of Employee Relations and Labor Strategy at Mass General Brigham, where she leads the development and implementation of employee and labor relations strategies for the largest health system and private employer in Massachusetts.

Mona has been a dedicated board member of Arlington EATS for four years, including serving in the role as co-chair from 2023-2024. Her commitment to Arlington EATS stems from a deep belief in the power of community, where neighbors care for and support each other. Mona is passionate about ensuring that everyone in Arlington has access to nourishing food, and she serves on the board to foster connections among neighbors, helping to create a town where no one is left hungry. Mona lives in Arlington with her husband and daughter, and feels a strong connection to her neighbors through this important work.

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Farah Shafi

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island

Farah Shafi

She/her

Farah is a physician with over 20 years experience in clinical and managed care settings. She currently serves as the Chief Medical Officer at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island where she oversees the clinical affairs department.. Farah is passionate about her work focused on addressing healthcare inequities. From her experience in healthcare, she understands the role that social issues such as food insecurity play in overall health outcomes and joined the Arlington EATS board in 2023 to help address this need in her community.

Farah holds a medical degree from the University of Louisville School of Medicine, completed her training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Women and Infants’ Hospital/Brown University program and an MBA from Brandeis University. Farah lives in Arlington with her husband and 2 daughters and loves the connection with the community through this meaningful work.

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Susan Stewart

Ottoson Middle School

Susan Stewart

She/her

Susan is an Arlington resident and teacher at the Ottoson Middle School. She has served on the Board of Arlington EATS from 2017 - 2021 and again from 2022 to present. She is one of the co-founders of the Arlington EATS school based programs in 2014, and helped to facilitate the merger of Arlington EATS with the Arlington Food Pantry in 2018.

Prior to teaching at Ottoson, Susan worked as an environmental engineer and project manager. She also served as the youth director at a local church for 15 years and was a Town Meeting member for 6 years.

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Past Board Members

Judy Andrews
Corky Binggeli
Christine Bongiorno
Sue Fish
Stephanie Franzosa

John Hurd
Patsy Kraemer
Lauren Ledger
Thomas Lee
Nicole Melnik

Vicki Rose
Mikel Satcher
Dan Sparta
Wendy Stack
Parke Wilde

Volunteer or Donate

Arlington EATS relies upon people like you to ensure there is food for all Arlington residents.

Donate food
Donate money
Volunteer
Donate stock

You can donate gifts of stock to Arlington EATS and will receive a charitable deduction of the stock at full market value. Please email adoane@arlingtoneats.org for details.

FOOD PICKUP LOCATION

117 Broadway
Arlington, MA

MAILING ADDRESS

117 Broadway
Suite A
Arlington, MA 02474

CONTACT US

339-707-6757
info@arlingtoneats.org

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