Board of Directors

  • Laura Colligan

    President

    Laura Colligan owns and operates Dirt Rich Farm, a Certified Organic farm in Springville, NY, along with her husband. They make a living growing vegetables, culinary herbs, berries, and seedlings on their five-acre property, which they sell through their CSA, at the farmers market, at their farm stand, at their seedling sale, and to restaurants and other local businesses. Laura is a former board member of the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York, a former Land Advocacy Fellow with the National Young Farmers Coalition, and one of the five co-founders of the Good Farmers Guild of Western New York.

  • Bari Zeiger

    Vice President

    Bari studied Philosophy and Environmental Studies with a focus on agricultural ethics at SUNY Geneseo. Learning from mentors, Bari developed a deep passion for and knowledge of ecological agriculture at Heartstone Organic Farm (Dansville, NY), A Way of Life Farm (Bostic, NC) and Frost Valley YMCA Farm (Claryville, NY). Bari is a member of National Young Farmers Coalition and is the Women's Affinity Representative of the organization's Federal Policy Committee. Additionally, Bari is the Farmer Representative on Northeast SARE's Executive Committee. Bari is on the Board of Directors of Unadilla Community Farm and Catskills Agrarian Alliance. Locally, Bari is involved in co-organizing with Good Farmers Guild of Western New York. Currently, Bari works with Providence Farm Collective while her farm, Healing Poem Farm (Java, NY), grows.

  • Steph Beneng

    Treasurer

    Steph Beneng began working on farms in 2004 and finally came back to her home region in 2016. She now lives in Hinsdale, NY with her beloved and their three children, where she runs her family's small greenhouse operation, Light Work Farm, and works as the grower at Canticle Farm, a nonprofit vegetable CSA in Allegany, NY. Steph is especially interested in issues of farmland access and transition, agriculture-focused economic development, and new farmer training and support.

  • Ethan Hansen

    Board Member

    Ethan Hansen is high school physics and agriculture teacher by day and a farmer by nights, weekends and summers. His transition from teacher to farmer and now farm-teacher began by watching too much farm YouTube from his couch. He was fascinated by watching farmers work with nature to improve the environment but soon tired of just watching. He started working at Erba Verde Farms in East Aurora where he continues to work in the dairy, pork and chicken business there and co-founded Legacy Pastured Beef where he manages a 60 head grass-fed beef herd based in Strykersville. Then, partly as a result of realizing that his physics students were more interested in hearing about farming than in learning physics, he founded and runs the East Aurora High School Sustainable Agriculture program which includes a school farm and class. The program's goal is to graduate students who appreciate the health, economic, social and environmental benefits of a sustainable local food system. He is passionate about advancing local agriculture and helping to make farming a viable career option for the next generation.

  • Carolyn Fitzgerald

    Board Member

    Carolyn owns and operates Oatka Creek Farm with her partner Ben in Le Roy, NY. They grow a variety of vegetables using organic methods for their local community. Carolyn developed a love for farming by spending time with her grandparents on their family farm and hearing farm stories of different generations. She received her degree in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems from Green Mountain College in Poultney, Vermont where she was first exposed to organic vegetable production and animal husbandry. Carolyn also has a degree in English and is an avid reader. After graduating college she moved to Colorado to gain experience farming in a different type of climate. She met Ben in Fort Collins, Colorado and began farming with him at Raisin’ Roots Farm in 2018. During her time in Colorado, Carolyn served her local Farmers Union chapter as a member of the leadership committee and policy chair. Carolyn and Ben relocated to Le Roy, NY in 2022 to be closer to family.

  • Aeryn Boyd

    Board Member

    As an advocate for sustainable agriculture and community engagement, I bring a wealth of experience in both education and grassroots initiatives that align with the mission of the Good Farmers Guild of Western New York. I am eager to collaborate with like-minded individuals who share my passion for agriculture and strengthening our local food economy. I would like to support the board in organizing events, fostering connections and knowledge sharing among farmers, skill development for aspiring farmers, and access to land and nutrient dense food for the greater community beyond that.  I believe that by creating platforms for collaboration and support, we can strengthen our local agricultural network and inspire innovative practices that benefit all.

  • Katie Ebersole

    Notetaker for the Board

    Katie is an unsung hero who volunteers for the Good Farmers Guild taking notes during board meetings. Her behind the scenes work ensures that the board is able to have accurate meeting records while allowing all board members to freely participate during meetings. Katie has worked and volunteered on farms and is an enthusiastic gardener. She strongly believes in the mission of the Good Farmers Guild.

Advisory Board

  • Ignacio (Nacho) Villa

    American Farmland Trust

    Ignacio is a native of Colombia where he spent his childhood. He has spent all his adult life involved in Agriculture: getting an ag degree in Canada, working in ag development in Colombia, earning a graduate degree in Michigan, working in therapeutic farm settings in Michigan and Ohio, owning a small farm in Ohio, teaching at a farm school, milking cows and raising pigs in Vermont, making compost in Buffalo, and currently working with American Farmland Trust in New York State focused on supporting land access to Hispanic farm workers.

    His main interest is in supporting highly diversified, collaborative farming systems that build ecological resilience and strengthen community. He and his wife Donna are grandparents to 11 grandchildren scattered from Vermont to Cleveland, the main challenge to their commitment to a small carbon footprint.

  • Rachel Myers

    Chestnut Hill Farm

  • Missy Singer DuMars

    Crown Hill Farm

Events Committee

  • Katie Pfohl

    Massachusetts Avenue Project

  • Laura Colligan

    Dirt Rich Farm

  • Laura Lane

    Art of Repair

  • Steph Beneng

    Light Work Farm