Brigitte joined the Board in 2019 and currently serves as Chair. She was most recently the COO at the Osher Marin JCC. Prior to that she spent 14 years as the CEO of the Agricultural Institute of Marin (AIM), transforming it from a struggling for-profit company to a vibrant and effective nonprofit. A Marin native, Brigitte contributes significant time and energy to the betterment of the county, through volunteer activity in youth sport (currently the coach of the first organized Marin City girls volleyball team) and with seats on several boards, such as CVNL, ExtraFood.org, the Marin Economic Forum and the Marin Visitors Bureau. She attended Dominican University and College of Marin and lives in a historic home in San Rafael with her husband and adorable dog.
Lawrence joined the BFF Board in 2021. He is a founding partner of Bivium Capital Partners, a San Francisco based investment management company. He and his wife Stacey have lived in Marin for over 12 years where they have raised their three children. His approach to activism and volunteering has been guided by providing equity and a voice for communities that are often overlooked or left behind. Lawrence is actively involved in numerous financial services non-profit associations, as well as boards of directors of Green Book Ventures, Beacon Rose Partners, Xprize Racial Equity Alliance Brain Trust, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area, and Play Marin. Lawrence attended Cornell University where he received his BS from the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and his MPA from Cornell University School of Public Affairs.
Sherna was appointed to the Board in 2021. She is active in interfaith dialogue, writing and speaking, and served as Board Secretary for the Marin Interfaith Council. She has retired from the Superior Court of California, where she managed one of the Court’s Five Model Self-Help Centers, and she continues independent study of jurisprudence. She is currently faculty in the Department of Bahá’í History and Texts for the Wilmette Institute—an on-line learning center associated with the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA.
Marilee joined the Board in 2014. She was the Chief Executive Officer of Conservation Corps North Bay for 27 years and is currently the Executive Director of San Francisco Conservation Corps. She is nationally recognized as a leader in the Corps movement and received the national Corps Legacy Achievement Award in 2013. Additionally, Marilee has served on the Marin County Economic Commission, the Marin County Disaster Council, and the Sonoma County Youth Council. She has been a Board Member of the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership of Marin, Environmental Education Council of Marin, Fire Safe Marin, and Human Rights Roundtable on Hate Violence. Marilee was inducted into the Marin Women's Hall of Fame in 2010 and honored as the Environmental Hero of the North Bay in 2011 by Congressmember Jared Huffman.
Miguel joined the Board in 2014. He is a nonprofit leadership coach, trainer and consultant. He has been a volunteer for the Marin County Juvenile Probation Department's Disproportionate Minority Contact Initiative since 2012. In the 1990's and early 2000's he worked for various community based organizations serving the Canal neighborhood in San Rafael. He has lived in San Rafael since 2004, and his two sons have attended San Rafael City Schools.
Andrew joined the Board in 2015. He is a lifelong, third generation resident of Marin County. He and his wife Susi have raised their three children in San Geronimo Valley, where he grew up. By day he is the Managing Partner of Hanson Bridgett LLP, a law firm with offices throughout the Bay Area (including Larkspur). Andrew believes in giving back and has had the privilege of serving in leadership positions on several nonprofit boards in Marin and beyond, and has enjoyed working with others in the community on many important grassroots projects and causes.
Ralph Gonzales, MD, MSPH is Chief Innovation Officer for UCSF Health, and Associate Dean for Clinical Innovation in the UCSF School of Medicine. He attended Washington University in St Louis for undergraduate studies (A.B., 1986), and UCSF for medical school (M.D. with thesis, 1991) and residency in internal medicine. He served as chief medical resident at San Francisco General Hospital, and then moved to Colorado to complete a fellowship in primary care research at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and remained on faculty for 4 years. He returned to UCSF in 2001 in the Division of General Internal Medicine. His research has centered on improving health care quality and outcomes through continuous process improvement and strategic innovation. The son of immigrant farm workers, Dr Gonzales was born in Michoacan, Mexico and grew-up in the Central Valley. He lives in Kentfield with his wife (Beth) and 3 children (Michael, Maya, Isabella). His hobbies include trail running, mountain biking and fresh food.
Noah joined the BFF Board of Trustees in 2017. A native San Franciscan and longtime resident of Marin, he is a public affairs consultant, writer, speaker and musical performer. His career in public affairs began with his appointment by Mayor Joe Alioto to the Mayor’s Council on Criminal Justice. He then served on the staff of former Mayor Dianne Feinstein and as press secretary to Mayor Frank Jordan. He was also a talk show host on KGO Radio, an op-ed columnist in the San Francisco Examiner and to this day remains a frequent op-ed writer in the Marin Independent Journal. Noah has served on many boards, including Marin Fair Housing, Marin Legal Aid and Bread & Roses. Having performed with Duke Ellington and Nat King Cole, Noah is also likely to break into song with no notice.
Peter Hamilton was appointed to the Board in 2013. He is a director of software engineering at Fair Isaac and Company (FICO), the highly regarded decision and analytics company with offices in San Rafael and around the world. A life-long resident of Marin County, Peter lives in Novato and has a computer science degree from University of California, Santa Barbara. He also has a keen interest in the issues of public education.