Board of Trustees

  • Bob is a recently retired business executive who has served in senior financial leadership positions in several industries including Investment Management, Healthcare, and Independent School Education. Bob and his wife Melody have been devoted residents of Warner for over 30 years, first as seasonal property owners and for the past decade as full-time residents. Bob has been actively involved in several organizations that are dedicated to conservation and has numerous outdoor interests and hobbies.

  • Ellie is originally from the Adirondack mountains of upstate NY and is guided by the desire to connect people meaningfully to land. She was a farmer for many years, mainly working for different educational institutions focused around small scale, diversified agriculture systems and hands-on experiential learning. In 2017, she moved to NH and completed a masters program at Antioch University New England in Rural Community Conservation through their Environmental Studies department. She has a small pottery business and is also a librarian. In her free time she enjoys canoeing, swimming, doing basketry and fiber arts, and spending time with her husband, Alden and cats, Tilly and Sash.

  • Sophie grew up in the woods of Warner but spent the last 10 years farming vegetables, grains & grass-fed beef at Alprilla Farm with her partner, Noah on Cape Ann in Massachusetts. A love of Warner, all the family who lives here, and of the family farm where she was raised inspired a move back home to continue farming. The move was also influenced by housing and land access pressures felt in Massachusetts, and she's excited to be working with KCLT to help alleviate those pressures in the Kearsarge region. In the spare moments when she's not working with plants, she enjoys writing, long walks, and good coffee.

  • Ben Frost is a passionate advocate for affordable housing and inclusive community planning. He has applied his energies to the establishment of New Hampshire’s most progressive housing policies, including its workforce housing law, accessory dwelling unit law, and the creation of the state’s housing appeals board. While drawn forward by injustices, Ben is also a strong believer in the powers of empathy, compromise, and community engagement. He works as the President of Proactive Development for Rhode Island Housing. Back home in Warner, he is the assistant town moderator and served for 12 years on its planning board, including seven as its chair. But with his heart in the mountains, Ben can often be found sitting at the very top of his Mink Hills property, listening to the wind blow through the pine trees.

  • Born and raised in Warner in the 80's Bret spent many years traveling and working his way around the world before returning to call the woods of Warner home again in the early 2000's. Bret, a sculptor by trade, has had a widely varied work background including many years of experience in property management, home building, and hospitality. Since returning to NH Bret has been focusing on putting his permaculture training to work on his family's land and in the community. Bret has helped start multiple service focused organizations including RISE Now inc, Warner Public Market, KCLT, and various volunteer town committees. In his free time he enjoys mixing shows for his radio spot on WNHN and getting outdoors with his wife and pup.

  • Jam moved to New Hampshire in August of 2023 after finishing her Masters in International Environmental Policy at the Middlebury Institute for International Studies, with a focus on Natural Resource Policy and Management. She is passionate about land trusts and recognizes the importance of community driven and community centric conservation efforts. Having spent time in both the US and the UK, Jam is excited to bring her varied experiences to New Hampshire!

    In her free time, Jam can be found running on local trails, spending time in the climbing gym, or exploring new hikes.

  • Nancy Martin has lived in Warner for 48 years. She is a dental hygienist who worked in private practice and for the NH Division of Public Health Services. Since retirement, Nancy continues to volunteer in NH schools providing dental care for students to prevent future dental disease. As a CASA volunteer, (Court Appointed Special Advocate) for abused and neglected children, Nancy has advocated for six years for one young boy who will soon be adopted into a “forever home.” She has been the Chairperson for Warner’s Conservation Commission for 15 years working to protect Warner’s forests, marshes, ponds, and local farms.

  • Kevin Porter is Principal of Resilient Capital Solutions, a consulting and advisory firm dedicated to scaling up financing for sustainability, clean energy and community development. Kevin has over twenty years of experience with various community development financial institutions (CDFIs), spanning single-family, multi-family and energy efficiency lending. Kevin served on the Board of Directors of Clean Energy NH for six years, including two years as Vice Chair.

    Outside of his consulting business, Kevin owns and manages several small woodlots and has earned certification under the NH Tree Farm program. These forestlands are operated with a focus on firewood production, ecosystem services and growing high quality timber sustainably. In his free time Kevin can usually be found hiking, biking, reading, or cooking for family and friends.

    Outside of ROC USA Kevin owns and manages a small woodlot, which has been certified under the NH Tree Farm program, with a focus on firewood production and growing quality hardwood timber. In his free time Kevin can usually be found hiking, biking, reading, or cooking for family and friends.

  • Born and raised on Nantucket Island, Ruth grew up appreciating the natural splendor of conservation land, the great outdoors, and how to steward land by working in landscape gardening. She moved to the Boston area and started her own gardening business, Gardens by Ruth, focused on native species, edible plants, and creating ecologically functioning environments. After a few years of dabbling in farming, food justice, herbalism, and organizing, she grew to yearn for a rural setting and fate brought her to Concord, NH to help her partner grow his wine grape endeavor, NOK Vino. With her passion for regional resiliency through connection to land, she found herself more and more drawn to Warner, where plenty of wonderful things are indeed happening. Ruth brings experience from serving on the board of the Permaculture Association of the Northeast and a variety of other prosocial activities as well as an enormous love for land.

Partner and Supporting Organizations