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Dear SFC supporters, donors and friends,

On behalf of Sustainable Food Center’s Board of Directors, I am excited to announce that Mark Bethell will serve as the organization’s next Executive Director. Mark is an accomplished nonprofit leader with a depth of experience in business and organizational development. With a background in health care, he has a proven track record for leading organizations through significant change and growth, which will be a real asset as we work to achieve our ambitious vision.

Mark currently resides in St. Louis but was raised in Austin and is excited to get back to this amazing city we all love.

“I am so honored to join such a great team of people who are committed to changing the way we think about sustainability in our food system and how we make Central Texas a healthier community for all.” - Mark Bethell

Mark’s experience will complement the deep talent and expertise of the entire Sustainable Food Center staff. He will start November 30th and Ronda graciously gave the board ample time before leaving so the two of them will be able to overlap for three weeks. During this transition, Ronda will help get Mark up to speed on all things SFC.

We are extremely thankful to Ronda for her dedication to this organization and for her help with making this a successful and smooth transition. In addition to the overlap time, the board has established a Transition Committee, which will provide oversight of this transition during the first six months of Mark’s service.

As many of you know, we launched our search process in early August and held several interview rounds through September and October, including the final round interviews where the entire board was invited and encouraged to participate. I am so grateful to our board for their active participation and assistance in this process. And I owe a debt of gratitude to our diligent Executive Director Search Committee that spent countless hours meeting, reviewing resumes, and conducting interviews. Their dedication to the search process and this organization is truly remarkable.

Finally, I’d be remiss if I did not acknowledge the amazing work and the huge impact that Ronda Rutledge has made on this organization. Her 15 years of service have certainly set the course for many years to come. She has transformed SFC into what it is today. She is a tremendous leader for this organization, but also for the entire Central Texas community. We look forward to Mark further accelerating the work of this organization and helping SFC fulfill its mission and vision.

Thanks again to all of you for your tremendous support and we are very excited for each of you to get to know Mark.