At the Heart of CFR
Diane Calvin
Founder, Executive Director, Board Secretary
Diane Calvin is the founder of CAFE Food Rescue. She held the vision of a food rescue organization for Summit County in her heart for many years. When COVID hit and food insecurity grew in Summit County, she decided to start CAFE Food Rescue, beginning as the sole worker, picking up and distributing food herself. As she found more support and help from friends, she began writing grant proposals and expanding the food rescued and redistributed.
She has a degree in civil engineering and a background in solid waste management. When living in Massachusetts, she worked with schools and secured grants to recover organic waste from lunches and improve recycling programs. When the family moved to Rhode Island, she continued to promote food rescue. She was a part of the RI Food Policy Council working to reduce wasted food. She also founded foodSCAPE, a nonprofit that worked with schools to divert food scraps into compost, piloted food recovery from the Summer Meals Program in Providence, and defined and published guidelines for donation of commercially packaged food and whole fruit from school lunches.
She believes deeply in this community and that our people care for others and for protecting our unique and fragile environment.
Colleen Ihnken
Board President
Nurse Practitioner at the Summit Community Care Clinic
As Cafe Food Rescue’s Board President, Colleen Ihnken is committed to collaborating with Community partners and Summit County Residents to improve access to healthy food for all while reducing food waste. Colleen is dedicated to advocating for change that will positively impact people at risk, facing hunger or that simply do not have access or means to purchase healthy food. She is passionate to be part of Cafe Food Rescue and its mission. She is excited to learn more about food policy.
Colleen is a Family Nurse Practitioner at the Summit Community Care Clinic and works in the School-Based Health Centers. She works primarily serving the underserved and uninsured. She received a master’s degree in nursing from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and has been practicing as a Nurse Practitioner for 17 years.
Jenniffer González
Board member
Care Navigator at Youth and Family Services
As CAFE Food Rescue’s Outreach and Community Coordinator, Jenniffer González is committed to working with Community partners and Summit County Residents by identifying associates who might be prospective donors. Jenniffer is dedicated to advocating for transformation that will positively impact people facing hunger. She feels passionate to be part of the CAFE Food Rescue and will work on innovative approaches to rescue healthy food that would otherwise be wasted.
Jenniffer is from Panama City and works very closely with the Latino community. She received a Master Degree in Tourism Administration in the Canary Islands. With more than 15 years of case management experience in the nonprofit sector. Currently, Jenniffer works as a Strengthening Families Coordinator in Youth and Family Services at the Summit County Department of Public Health.
Leo Santos
Board Member
Youth Coordinator at Northwest Colorado Center for Independence
Leo Santos was born in Mexico but has lived in Summit County since he was very young. He is very interested in being outside and enjoying everything that comes with the beautiful mountain community. He graduated from Snowy Peaks in 2012 and in 2019 began working for the Northwest Colorado Center for Independence. NWCCI helps people with disabilities in our county. He enjoys every second of living here and working with people “I wouldn’t change it for nothing in this world.”
Leo grew up in a single parent household and learned not to waste food because it was scarce. As he got older, paying for food on his own was also hard. He jumped at the chance to join the FIRC’s equity coalition working on providing healthy and affordable foods for everyone. He joined CAFE Food rescue to help the community he loves so much save as much food as possible.
Katrina Doerfler
Board Treasurer
As Cafe Food Rescue’s (CFR) Treasurer, Katrina is committed to identifying revenue opportunities and sustainably building CFR to meet the county’s needs. She has been active in the county-area food banks since 2020, when the pandemic hit. With such disparity of economic levels in county residents, she sees food recovery as both an environmental necessity (reducing methane gas in landfills) and solving the “meal gap” for our residents (ensuring our residents are food secure).
Katrina also volunteers with the Summit County Transit Board and is passionate about the intersection of transit services and food recovery/food pantries in the county. We have diverse terrain and extreme weather in our county and we should be coordinating to ensure that public transportation services support our food recycling efforts.
Katrina and her family love the beauty and outdoor recreation in Summit County. She has lived here since 2015, fully retiring at the end of 2019. She is a former CPA and Sales executive with 35+ years of experience.
Blanca Delao
Board Member
Blanca De La O serves on the Food Equity Coalition and has worked at the FIRC for years. She is from Chihuahua Mexico and has lived in Summit County for 20 years. Her family always taught her to share food with others and never to waste it.
She is overjoyed to have the opportunity to raise my four kids in this community where they can be proud of their Mexican identity, heritage and values but also be able to immerse themselves in American culture. Being a part of CaFe Rescue allows me to serve the generous and diverse community we love to call home.
Hallie Jaeger
Board Memeber
driving practical solutions for waste reduction and resource conservation in the mountain community.
Promoting social wellness, environmental regeneration, and sustainable economic impact in our communities is achievable!
Hallie, as the Development Director at Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center, utilizes her expertise in fundraising strategy, donor relations, grant-writing, data analysis, and marketing to support one of the nation's top Adaptive Ski Programs and Wilderness Experience Centers. Additionally, she shares her knowledge as an Adjunct Instructor at Colorado Mountain College, teaching Sustainable Business and Agriculture. Hallie believes in connectedness to the environment, respect for all living beings, resource conservation, and access to healthy food and habits for all, which can bridge societal gaps and lead to resilient communities. With a background spanning from Hyatt Hotels to bio-dynamic farming practices in Southeast Asia and an M.A. in International Development, Global Health, and Sustainability from the University of Denver, Hallie brings a wealth of experience to her work. She also served as the Community Program Coordinator at High Country Conservation Center,