Staff

**Victoria (Tory) Clark-West**
*Executive Director*
Email
(612) 767-2122
Tory oversees organizational strategy, advocacy, fundraising and capitalization, and new program development. Tory is a graduate of the National Development Council’s Housing Development Finance Professional (HDFP) Certification Program and holds a bachelor's degree in English from Gustavus Adolphus College.

**Emily Stewart**
*Associate Director*
Email
(612) 767-2132
Emily works closely with the Executive Director in leading the development and implementation of the organization’s lending programs. Emily also oversees the organization’s cooperative technical assistance team. Before joining NCF, Emily founded BreadHive Worker Cooperative Bakery (Buffalo, NY) and worked in community organizing. Emily has an undergraduate degree from Grinnell College and a master’s in Community Development in Action from Vanderbilt University.

**Dave Berglund**
*Real Estate Development Director*
Email
(612) 767-2106
Dave oversees all aspects of the organization’s cooperative real estate development projects, including market development, property acquisition, project planning, and financial assembly. Before joining NCF, Dave spent several years as a real estate agent. Dave is graduate of Hamline University.

**Michelle Dobbratz**
*Development Manager*
Email
(612) 767-2134

Michelle works closely with the Executive Director to cultivate support for NCF’s mission from philanthropic, corporate, government, and individual donors and funders. Michelle discovered her love for grant writing while pursuing her PhD in agronomy, and freelanced in development consulting and grant writing before joining NCF. Michelle has a B.S. in Agronomy from University of Wisconsin-Madison and a PhD in Agronomy from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.

**Julie Fliflet**
*Controller*
Email
(612) 767-2135
Julie oversees the financial functions of the organization and has specialized in the nonprofit sector her entire career. She is a graduate of St. Cloud State University with a degree in accounting and is also a CPA. She brings over 30 years of experience working with nonprofit organizations, starting her career in public accounting working as an auditor for a large regional CPA firm in their nonprofit division, then subsequently directing the finance and administration activities for several Twin Cities nonprofit organizations before coming to NCF.

Joel Hanson
Advocacy & Communications Manager
Email
(612) 254-2847

Joel serves as the public policy and public relations advocate for NCF, including overseeing state level lobbying efforts. Joel works to strengthen and expand NCF's capacity to impact systems change through effective communications, grassroots advocacy, and government relations. Before joining NCF, Joel worked in the Minnesota State Legislature for seven years, most recently serving as the Senate Housing Committee Administrator.

**Sam Estes**
*Affordable Housing Program Manager*
Email
(612) 208-9672
*Habla español*
Sam manages the ongoing technical assistance and support to NCF client cooperatives. Before coming to NCF, Samuel worked in a variety of education and public policy roles, including as a Spanish-English interpreter, policy researcher, MNsure Navigator, English Language Learner (ELL) teacher, and workshop facilitator. Originally from Arizona, Samuel is a graduate of Carleton College and a Master of Public Policy through the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs.

**Alexa Hancock**
*Office Coordinator*
Email
(612) 767-2105
Alexa provides administrative support to the staff at NCF. She brings experience from a variety of roles including her time at a credit union in Wisconsin and over 8 years as a manager at a local food coop in South Minneapolis. Originally from Upstate New York, Alexa is a graduate of North Central University in Minneapolis.

**Dan Gordon**
*Housing Program Associate*
Email
(612) 767-2116
Habla español
Dan is originally from Duluth, MN and had worked with non-profits in the Twin Cities for over a decade as a community organizer, Spanish interpreter, and housing outreach worker. At NCF, Dan provides provides ongoing technical assistance and support to NCF client cooperatives throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin. He is a graduate of the University of MN and has a Secondary English Teaching License from Hamline University.

**Kathleen Richert**
*Training & Outreach Coordinator*
Email
(612) 767-2112
Kathleen supports the organization in its training and leadership development of leaders in resident owned communities. Prior to her work at NCF, she did community outreach and technical training for small businesses and arts organizations. Her work included the development of mission statements, Board development, business fundamentals, and the creation of a text called “The Work(book) of Art”. With degrees in restaurant management and textile design, she also runs a studio-based business from her home in Minneapolis.

**Ellery Wealot**
*Housing Program Associate*
Email
(612) 331-9145
Ellery provides technical assistance and support to resident-owned communities in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Prior to joining NCF, he served on the board of Students Cooperative in Minneapolis, MN, overseeing the renovation, and reopening of the 32-person housing cooperative after a crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic. He has a bachelor’s degree in Financial and Organizational Management from the University of Minnesota-Morris, as well as more than a decade of experience in cooperative education, management, and research through various organizations. He currently lives in South Minneapolis.

**Jason Paschall**
*Cooperative Housing Advisor*
Email
(612) 208-8922
Jason provides technical assistance and support to NCF client cooperatives. Before coming to NCF, Jason worked as an independent co-op housing policy consultant and research assistant after graduating with a Master’s of Public Affairs with a concentration in Housing, Equity and Race from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs. A longtime high school social science educator and founding collective member of Boneshaker Books, Jason has lived in Minneapolis since 2007.

Board of Directors

Noah Hobbs, Chair
Director of Strategy & Policy, One Roof Community Housing - Duluth, MN

Noah has worked in the community development field for 10 years. He served as Lending Director for five years at One Roof Community Housing, growing the organization’s CDFI from $400,000 to $4 million in five years. Noah now serves as Director of Strategy and Policy leading vertical integration efforts within One Roof and directing local, state, and federal policy to improve the CDFI environment and increase the production of affordable housing. Noah was elected to Duluth City Council in 2015 and appointed to serve in the same capacity in 2022. He has served as Council President and Vice President.

Bobbie Grubb, Vice Chair
Festival Foods

Bobbie has worked in the retail food industry for several years. She is a resident of and secretary of the board of directors for Pammel Creek Estates, a resident-owned manufactured home community in La Crosse, WI. Bobbie also serves as the Co-Chair of the ROC USA Outreach and Education Committee. She is a regular volunteer at a local LGBTQ resource center, La Crosse Annual Turkey Trot, Mississippi River clean ups, Rotary Lights, and the Shelby Fire Department.

Trisha Presley, Secretary
Vice President, Alliance Bank - St. Paul, MN

Trisha’s background includes strong lending and loan servicing experience in both the Affordable Housing and Commercial Real Estate spaces. As a Vice President at Alliance, Trisha manages commercial client banking relationships and manages an existing portfolio of business and private banking clients in the Twin Cities. Trisha previously worked at Greater Minnesota Housing Fund (GMHF), a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) in St. Paul, as a loan closing manager and as loan capital asset manager. Before GMHF, she worked at Alliance Bank as a loan supervisor and senior personal banker.

Brian Dahlk, Treasurer
Accountant/Senior Manager, Wegner CPAs - Madison, WI

Brian is an Accountant/Senior Manager at Wegner Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) based in Madison, WI. Brian has been a member of three different housing cooperatives and served as board chair for one of those co-ops. For the past 14 years he’s provided audits, financial reviews, tax returns and consulting services for co-op organizations across the country. Prior to joining Wegner CPAs, he served as the financial manager of a housing co-op, owned a small business, and provided accounting and managerial services for several nonprofits and co-ops in California and Wisconsin.

Benjy Nicholie, Director
CFO, First Children’s Finance - Minneapolis, MN

Benjy has worked in nonprofit accounting since 1999. He has worked for a variety of small nonprofits and 10 years with the YMCA of the North. He has held a variety of roles including Business Manager, Accountant, Internal Auditor, Finance Director, and CFO. Benjy holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Metropolitan State University and a Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management from Hamline University.

Juan Luis Rivera Reyes, Director
Coalition Organizer, The Alliance for Metropolitan Stability - Minneapolis, MN

Juan Luis is a community organizer and housing advocate living in St. Paul. He is currently a Coalition Organizer for The Alliance for Metropolitan Stability. He has held organizing roles at HomeLine and All Parks Alliance for Change (APAC). Juan Luis grew up in many neighborhoods throughout St. Paul, and has had the opportunity to call Los Angeles and Phoenix home. He has had the opportunity to live and learn in many diverse neighborhoods, including living for several years in a manufactured home community in the Twin Cities greater metropolitan area. The diversity of his living experience has taught him the importance of having a community and being committed to your community.

Mar Valdecantos, Director
Translator, activist - Northfield, MN

Mar is a translator based in Northfield, MN. She is a Director of Rice County Neighbors United. Mar is a native of Madrid, Spain, and moved to the United States with her husband. As a writer and community organizer and activist, her first experience was working with MnDOT, the City of Northfield, Rice County and the Northfield School District to create a crosswalk in front of the Northfield Middle School. Next, she joined the Northfield Human Rights Commission. Working with the team at the radio show El Super Barrio Latino, she helped created Rice County Neighbors United/Vecinxs Unidxz, an action group which fights for the rights and dignity of all, especially immigrants, refugees and low-income persons.

Cooperative Loan Fund Board of Governors

Sarah Berke, Chair
Senior Manager, Livable Communities & Housing Policy | Metropolitan Council of the Twin Cities - Minneapolis, MN

Sarah is a Program Officer at Family Housing Fund. Sarah has more than a decade of leadership experience in affordable housing and community development finance at national and regional nonprofit social enterprises, in strategy, innovation, development, and management roles. Sarah’s experience and interests include affordable housing preservation and development, access to financial capital, networked social enterprise models, and international exchange.